On May 15, 2019, Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Lindsey Graham announced a massive immigration reform bill. Along with several components aimed to curtail the number of immigrant families seeking asylum, it would expand the number of days children can be detained with their families by ICE from 20 to 100. This is likely to have a myriad of negative outcomes for migrant children according to a report from the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP). It found that time spent in detention centers increases risks of , , and even long-term issues such as heart disease and diabetes.

After the “zero-tolerance” policy announced in April 2018 which resulted in thousands of separated immigrant families, The American Psychological Association released a statement on the potentially effects. It read in part, “The administration’s policy … threatens the mental and physical health of both the children and their caregivers. Psychological research shows that immigrants experience unique stressors related to the conditions that led them to flee their home countries in the first place.”

Source: Melissa Dalton-Bradford, used with permission

Similar concerns arise when discussing the effects of detention centers on . Lessons can be learned from Romania, where efforts to increase the population in the 1960s led to an epidemic of infant abandonment. With no foster system in place, orphanages became overcrowded and understaffed. Though the children were fed and diapered, they experienced what psychologists call “failure to thrive.” They had difficulty gaining weight, had smaller head circumferences than others, were susceptible to illness and disease, and struggled socially. Researchers found a difference in IQ of 26 points between those living in institutions compared to those who had not. This gap in became wider the longer the child was institutionalized.

Institutions need not be on the verge of being condemned to have negative consequences. Bruce Perry, an expert on childhood trauma and author of Born for Love: Why Is Essential and Endangered, described an orphanage in Russia this way,

To those unfamiliar with an infant’s developmental needs, the orphanage looked wonderful. The rooms were bright and open, there were plenty of toys. Babies and toddlers were moved from one activity to another; there were safe places to play in. And everything was clean and sparkling… But, in fact, it was a loveless void.

While the orphanage described by Perry would likely be a welcomed change by asylum seekers, many migrants are placed in conditions much worse. The processing center alone can be traumatic. Recently, CNN released photos of the Border Patrol station in McAllen, Texas showing migrant children outside on dirt and rocks, snuggling Mylar blankets. One source who had seen conditions firsthand stated, “Nobody, no matter who you are, where you are from should spend an hour like this. This is the United States of America. Not in our country.” The AAP stated of processing centers in 2017,

Reports by advocacy organizations... have cataloged egregious conditions in many of the centers, including lack of bedding (eg, sleeping on cement floors), open toilets, no bathing facilities, constant light exposure, confiscation of belongings, insufficient food and water, and lack of access to legal counsel, and a history of extremely cold temperatures.

Once immigrants are processed, many stay in a shelter or in one of three family detention centers (two others were closed due to “dangerously inadequate” conditions). In detention centers, they receive limited medical, dental, and mental health services. Researchers reported that “visits to family detention centers in 2015 and 2016 by pediatric and mental health advocates revealed discrepancies between the standards outlined by ICE and the actual services provided.” The Family Detention Pro Bono Project found traumatic effects of detention centers, even with short lengths of time.

Source: Melissa Dalton-Bradford, used with permission

While efforts are being made to curb the waves of asylum seekers, “detention is not a deterrent,” according to Kate Lincoln-Goldfinch, a Texas-based immigration lawyer. She mentioned that in many cases parents are deciding between seeking help from the U.S. or staying in a place where their children could be killed or raped.

The AAP report outlined the insufficient conditions of processing centers and detention, recommending limited exposure of any child to Department of Homeland Security facilities. Instead, the AAP recommended using community-based alternatives, implementing community-based care , frequent trauma-informed mental health screening for immigrant children, and comprehensive medical care. While community-based alternatives may sound insufficient, the American Civil Liberties Union found that “alternatives to detention ... are effective, more humane, and far less costly than institutional detention.”

Asylum seekers should be able to find refuge from their trauma, not a continuation of it. Detaining any child, especially vulnerable ones, can cause irreparable harm. We are consciously creating a hostile environment that strips immigrant families and us of our humanity. U.S. history has not looked kindly on the detainment of Japanese Americans during World War II; how will it view the results of extended detention now?

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