MEDIA ADVISORY: Press Call Releasing New Report on Family Separation at the Border

12:30 PM TODAY: Press Call Releasing New Report on Family Separation at the Border

Washington, DC — Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kelly’s recent statements that he is considering separating migrant parents from their children to deter them from coming to the United States to seek safety   is a new low that shows the Trump Administration’s lack of concern for basic child protection and willingness to transform and expand a cruel practice into formal policy.

A new report, released with a press call at 12:30 p.m. today, outlines the current practice which unnecessarily separates children from their family members and caregivers after they cross the border and are apprehended by U.S. Customs and Border Protection; many are from Central America. “Betraying Family Values: How Immigration Policy at the United States Border is Separating Families” by the Women’s Refugee Commission (WRC), Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service (LIRS) and Kids in Need of Defense (KIND) shows the egregious consequences, some unintended, of this separation, which will be greatly exacerbated if the Trump Administration mandates the separation of migrant parents from their children.

For a link to the report, click here.

WHO:

Michelle Brané, Director of the Migrants Rights Justice Program at the Women’s Refugee Commission (Moderator)

Katharina Obser, Senior Program Officer at the Women’s Refugee Commission

Jennifer Podkul, Director of Policy at Kids in Need of Defense

WHEN: TODAY, March 9 at 12:30 p.m. eastern

DIAL IN: 877‑876‑9174; PASSCODE: SEPARATION

—–

For more information contact: Michelle Brané, MichelleB@wrcommission.orgTessa Wiseman, tessa@newpartners.com

Also see WRC’s 10 Things to Know About How Trump’s Executive Order Will Harm Women and Children Seeking Protection here.