"Reducing Protections for Noncitizen Children — Exacerbating Harm and Trauma"

On June 26, 2018, a federal judge ordered the Trump administration to reunite families that it had separated at the U.S.–Mexico border. As of mid-October, however, an analysis by the American Civil Liberties Union showed that 245 children were still in government custody. About half those children remained in the United States when their parents were deported and were not seeking reunification; the other half were still waiting to be reunited with their parents.1 Meanwhile, the total number of undocumented immigrant children in U.S. government custody has reached unprecedented levels (more than 14,000 as of mid-November), and President Donald Trump continues to crack down on immigrant families seeking asylum.