CAN’T GO HOME

The U.S. Is Sending Parentless Central American Migrant Children to Mexico: NYT

Though current policies require the children to be flown to their home countries, CBP has pushed roughly 200 children into the hands of Mexican child welfare authorities.

The United States is deporting Central American migrant children to Mexico in violation of an agreement stipulating that only Mexican children and those with parental supervision be sent back there, the New York Times reports. Customs and Border Protection has sent roughly 200 unaccompanied children from Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador into Mexico in the past eight months, pushing them into the custody of the country’s child welfare authorities. Current policies state that the children should be flown to their home countries. CBP said the actions are part of the strict border closures President Donald Trump’s administration says are necessary to prevent the spread of the new coronavirus. U.S. Border Patrol’s Assistant Chief Eduardo Sanchez wrote in an email, “Recently, we have identified several suspected instances where Single Minors (SM) from countries other than Mexico have been expelled via ports of entry rather than referred to ICE Air Operations for expulsion flights...To reiterate, under no circumstances should a SM from a country other than Mexico be knowingly expelled to Mexico.”