U.S. Immigration Policy Harms Children

We have previously reported on the effect of ICE raids on children; the Urban Institute and National Council of La Raza have issued one report on this issue and is conducting further research on the matter.

Now Mary Ann Zehr of Education Week has noted that the United Nations is concerned with the effect of U.S. immigration policy on children. She notes:

Children from migrant families are vulnerable in this country to having their human rights violated, according to a report released last month by the United Nations. (Click here for the link to download the 27-page report, which is at the top of the list. Choose “E” for English.)

About a year ago, Jorge Bustamante, the Special Rapporteur on the human rights of migrants for the United Nations, visited the United States to investigate the effects of U.S. immigration policy and procedures on migrants, including children. The Special Rapporteur notes that the United States lacks a clear, consistent, long-term strategy to improve respect for the human rights of migrants. Although there are national laws prohibiting discrimination, there is no national legislative and policy framework implementing protection for the human rights of migrants against which the federal and local programmes and strategies can be evaluated to assess to what extent the authorities are respecting the human rights of migrants.
Mr. Bustamante makes a recommendation regarding treatment of unaccompanied minors He says they should be removed from “jail-like detention centres and placed in home-like facilities.”

He mentions education issues briefly in the report, saying that in some cases, migrants have “limited access to health and education.” He notes how in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, the presence of migrant workers in the Gulf Coast region has created tensions over language barriers and education.

Click here for the Ms. Zehr’s entire blog entry.

bh