NBC Los Angeles-

The Los Angeles City Council voted unanimously today to temporarily ban private companies from establishing or operating immigrant detention centers or similar facilities within the city.

City Council President Nury Martinez, who championed the proposal, criticized the federal government and detention center operators, saying the

practice of separating immigrant children from their parents when they cross the border has “scarred them for life.”

The temporary ban also applies to so-called “shelters” for unaccompanied immigrant minors, like one proposed by the company VisionQuest in Arleta, a predominantly Latino community.

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