Flores Settlement Proposed Regulations—How To Comment

Background

On September 7, 2018, the Trump administration published proposed Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and Health and Human Services Department (HHS) regulations to implement the terms of the Flores Settlement Agreement, the 1997 legal settlement that governs the conditions of children held in immigration detention.  The proposed regulations would remove key safeguards the federal government agreed to in the Flores Agreement, including permitting the long-term detention of children, as well as long-term family detention.  In addition to permitting indefinite family detention, the rule would end existing Flores requirements that facilities holding immigrant children, including family detention facilities, be state-licensed, creating a new alternative federal licensing scheme. Also, the proposed regulations waive existing child protections in the case of “emergency,” which is broadly defined, and remove protections for unaccompanied children (UAC), including continually reassessing UACs and changing the bond hearing process for UACs in a manner that may be less favorable for them.

The 1997 Flores Settlement Agreement, the result of litigation which originated in the 1980s when children fled alone to the United States to escape civil wars in Central America, protects immigrant children from indefinite detention in unsafe and inappropriate conditions. The agreement requires that children be released from custody as quickly as possible, preferably to a parent, and that until they can safely be released they are held in the least restrictive setting; generally, in a non-secure facility licensed by a child welfare entity. We all know that the solution to holding immigrant children in cages without their parents is not to hold them in cages with their parents. Like separation at the border, this inhumane practice cannot stand. Like separation at the border, you can make the administration change course.

Action
Your voice and your leadership are needed now. The most effective way to fight back against this proposal is to get as many people as possible to participate in the 60-day public comment period, which ends November 6.

1.       Submit a comment on behalf of yourself or your organization: Click here to register your opposition to the administration's proposal and stand up for immigrant children’s safety.  See suggested comments below. Please adapt the language to share why you oppose the Trump administration’s new regulations to indefinitely detain children, lower standards of care in immigration jails, and remove legal protections from minors seeking safety in the U.S.  N.B. Identical comments will be discarded.

2.       Help others submit written comments: CLINIC’s Flores Public Comment Mini-Toolkit gives you everything you need to:

·         Share information about the proposal;

·         Organize an event in your community to gather public comments;

·         Submit comments by mail. Must be postmarked by November 6, 2018.

3.       Contact Congress: While these regulations are pending, Congress is actively considering legislative changes that would give DHS greater funding and authority to jail immigrants. Tell members of Congress to oppose family detention in any form and demand cuts to funding for immigration detention and enforcement.

Suggested Comments:  REMEMBER, you will need to revise these suggestions to make them unique.

Sample Introduction

[On behalf of ORGANIZATION], [We/I] would like to submit the following comments concerning the proposed rule from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) on the Apprehension, Processing, Care, and Custody of Alien Minors and Unaccompanied Alien Children (Docket No. ICEB-2018-0002).

[INSERT BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF ORGANIZATION OR INDIVIDUAL SUBMITTING COMMENTS] [ORGANIZATION is/ I am] concerned that the proposed rule is contrary to the purpose and spirit of the 1997 Flores Settlement Agreement which sought to ensure that all children in the government’s custody are “treated with dignity, respect, and special concern for their particular vulnerability as minors.”

[We are/I am] called by our faith to care for the most vulnerable and we are challenged by our national values to promote the welfare of our children and tend the common good. Therefore, we/I must oppose the government’s proposal to discard the Flores Settlement Agreement safeguards, which protects the welfare of migrant children in U.S. government custody, in favor of dangerously broad criteria that allow indefinite detention, fewer legal protections, and questionable standards of care and oversight. Children and families belong together and free from detention.

Key Points you might include

[ORGANIZATION is/ I am] opposed to the proposed rule “Apprehension, Processing, Care, and Custody of Alien Minors and Unaccompanied Alien Children” because:

·         Detention, even for a short amount of time, has been proven to be devastating to a child’s development, health, and well-being. This proposed rule permitting indefinite detention is abusive and inhumane. The Flores settlement was put in place to ensure children are treated with “dignity, respect and special concern for their particular vulnerability as minors.” The proposed rule fails to meet those standards.

·         There are proven, effective alternatives to detention, such as the Family Case Management System. It is less harmful to a developing child and more cost effective.

·         The proposed rule is an unnecessary burden on taxpayers. Alternatives to detention are proven to be effective and humane. The proposed rule is a needless cost and a poor and wasteful use of resources.

·         It is unacceptable for the administration to have the authority to certify that its own jails are safe for children. Detention facilities have been proven time and time again to be dangerous to the health and well-being of vulnerable children.

·         The proposed regulations do not serve the best interest of children. Instead, they undermine existing child protections. That is contrary to the Flores Agreement’s purpose, contrary to the values of this nation, and contrary to our/my faith.

Sample Conclusion

Our faith, and the ideals upon which this nation was founded, call us to be mindful of the common good, to embrace our neighbors, and to care for our children. [ORGANIZATION / I] urge[s] DHS and HHS to reject the proposed regulations or to make revisions to ensure that children are protected and the regulations are consistent with the purpose and spirit of the Flores Agreement.

Additional resources:

·         JFI—10 Things You Should Know about Proposed Flores Regulations

·         Catholic Legal Network, Inc. (CLINIC) Mini Toolkit on Flores

·         Protecting Immigrant Families

·         CLINIC’s guide to taking part in the Federal Rulemaking Process

Information and action items created by Sr. Ann Scholz, SSND the Associate Director of Social Mission for the Leadership Conference of Women Religious

Family Detention Interfaith Letter

Join a growing list of religious and faith-based organizations and leaders using their moral authority to call for an end to family detention and a shift to community-based approaches for unaccompanied minors and families seeking asylum in the U.S. Let us use our collective power to create much needed change at this critical policy juncture.

If you are signing on as an organization, click here.

Dear President Obama:

As religious leaders, communions, and faith-based organizations, we urge you to listen to the recommendations of the Department of Homeland Security Advisory Committee on Family Residential Centers. These recommendations were presented at its final meeting on October 7, 2016 and call for an immediate end to the practice of detaining Central American children and families seeking asylum in the United States.  

While we come from diverse religious traditions, we share common values and teachings calling us to welcome the stranger and to show mercy and kindness, particularly to those most vulnerable. Surely, the children, youth, women, and men who are fleeing rape, murder, extortion, gang recruitment, and other physical and emotional horrors in countries internationally condemned for their impunity to violence deserve our most thoughtful care.                                     

The Committee’s report recognizes that simply improving detention center conditions to meet best practice standards is not a sufficient fix for the trauma and re-traumatization resulting from detention of any length of time. 

In addition to being inhumane, detaining parents and children is unnecessary. According to the report, these families pose an extremely low flight risk and no harm to local host communities. Moreover, detention is extremely expensive for the U.S. government while other effective, community-based, low-cost alternatives are immediately available.

DHS’s own experts make this case. There is no reason to wait any longer. We see this as a matter of conscience as well as good policy and call upon you to immediately institute a community-based asylum-seeking process for families as well as unaccompanied children.  

(to electronically add your name to this letter please CLICK HERE)

Rally Against Immigrant Family Detention in San Antonio

More than 50 people showed up to the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) field office in San Antonio at 8940 Fourwinds Dr. Tuesday afternoon to protest the thousands of immigrant women and children being held in the Karnes and Dilly detention centers, where families can be detained for months on end or even close to a year.

Currently, the daily census for the two facilities in Texas is around 2,200 detainees, according to the Interfaith Welcome Coalition.
An August report released by UNICEF states that almost 26,000 unaccompanied children, mostly hailing from El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras were apprehended at the U.S. border along with an additional 29,700 people in the first six months of 2016. Most individuals were traveling as families, specifically mothers and young children.

During the Tuesday rally, individuals continuously chanted “let our babies go,” and attempted to deliver oversized baby cards, baby shower balloons, pairs of socks, and diapers to the ICE office, a symbolic move aimed to represent the countless children held in detention.

When ICE office staff came outside, protestors requested to speak with ICE Regional Directors. Security officers said “we’ll see what we can do,” but nobody came outside. Rally attendees decided to walk across the front lawn of the building and placed all their cards and symbolic objects on the U.S. Department of Homeland Security‘s (DHS) office entrance sign.

Speakers at the rally included Rev. Marisol Caballero of the Texas UU Justice Ministry, Paul Pfeiffer of the Interfaith Welcome Coalition, Sr. Sharon Altendorf from COPS/Metro, and Jonathan Ryan, an immigration attorney and executive director of RAICES, a nonprofit charity that provides free and low-cost legal services to underserved immigrant children, families, and refugees. The speakers represent a coalition of faith and community leaders who are working together with the Catholic Legal Immigration Network, Inc. (CLINIC) to coordinate events around the country calling for an end to family detention.

The protest comes on the heels of the recent Aug. 18 announcement made by the U.S. Department of Justice, which stated that it will begin phasing out the use of private, for-profit prisons. Many hoped that that would include the immigration detention system, but those hopes were unfounded. Ryan said that pressure from the public and the media prompted the the DHS to announce plans to review the practice of using private immigration detention facilities.

“Their deadline to (come to a decision) is at the end of November,” Ryan said. “But really, this is a feeble attempt by the DHS to kick the can down the road and alleviate the pressure it’s under now.”

Caballero opened the event with a prayer and asked everyone to imagine the children in detention centers who do not have the luxury of leaving every morning to go to school, playing outside, or going to the park because they are incarcerated.

Caballero asked the audience to answer the question: “What would move a mother to go on such a perilous journey with a small child, or carrying a child through pregnancy?” She added that these people are incarcerated for the crime of risking everything for the love of their children, so they can have a better life.

(Continue reading HERE)

End "Diapers in Detention" Aug 29 - Sept 1

Join the campaign to end “Diapers in Detention”—August 29-September 1 and help us raise awareness about the continuing scandal of family detention!

The Interfaith Immigration Coalition under the leadership of the Catholic Legal Immigration Network (CLINIC) is planning a week of action to draw attention to U.S Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s policy of incarcerating mothers and children.

The center piece of the campaign is our “Diapers in Detention” baby showers which we plan to hold at ICE offices across the country during the week of August 29-September 1.  We’ve developed a “Diapers in Detention” tool kit which provides all the details.

In addition to inviting you to join a “Diapers in Detention Baby Shower” near you, we’d also like to ask you to:

• Send a baby card to  Secretary of Homeland Security Jeh Johnson.
• Send an op-ed or letter-to-the-editor to your local paper.
  • Send a prewritten letter to the editor to your local newspaper at www.fcnl.org/endfamilydetention .
  • Find a sample letter to the editor at:https://cliniclegal.org/sites/default/files/advocacy/diapersindetention/sample-letter-to-the-editor.docx
• Send an email to your local ICE office asking them to end family detention. Find email addresses at:https://www.ice.gov/contact/ero.
• If you’d like, join our Facebook group at https://www.facebook.com/groups/diapersindetention. You might find people interested in arranging a baby shower in your area.
• You might also make some noise on social media. Advocate on social media using #diapersindetention.
  • Tweet:
    • Babies don't belong in jail. Tell .@ICEgov to end #familydetention! No #diapersindetention .@cliniclegal .@lcwrjpic
    • Tell .@ICEGov: No #diapersindetention! End #familydetention and keep families together while they apply for asylum .@cliniclegal  .@lcwrjpic
  • Facebook:
    • Headline:  Baby jails in the U.S.? No way!
    • Post: “Did you know that in the United States, dozens of babies and toddlers under two are in prison with their mothers? Even worse, a recent court ruling requires the release of the children but not the parents, which opens the door for families to be separated. They are refugees from Central America fleeing violence and instead of jail, they deserve due process to pursue asylum. Tell ICE: no baby jails. End family detention, and keep families together!”

PLEASE, let us know you plan to participate. Sign up at: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSckcA0gHtUgErAwxm630_yo7K6BUYjGUxpMl2yLQVXELFoH2w/viewform

If you have questions about this project, please contact Ashley Feasley at CLINIC. She is the prime mover behind the campaign and has graciously volunteered to field questions. You can reach Ashley at:afeasley@cliniclegal.org or 301-565-4831.

National Day of Action to #EndFamilyDetention

Monday, February 22nd is the National Day of Action to #EndFamilyDetention. Join moral activists across the country in sending a message to ICE: prisons are not childcare, and these kids need our help.
 

A federal judge has ruled that locking up children in “family detention centers” violates the law – but that’s not stopping Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials from twisting policies to keep family detention centers up and running and kids locked in.

The government wants us to believe they’re complying with Judge Gee’s ruling by licensing family detention centers as childcare facilities, as though licensing will improve conditions for kids. In fact, Texas officials just agreed to downgrade their childcare licensing standards just to allow family detention centers to keep jailing kids.

Conditions in these centers are shocking. Legal observers and community activists have reported abusive treatment by facility staff, malnourishment, psychological damage – even suicide attempts. Mothers locked up with their children in the Berks County Residential Center issued a letter saying, “[Many of our kids] have suffered health wise because of this confinement, and not to mention the racist abuse and poor treatment from certain members of the staff…but especially by the agents of ICE that play and mock our dignity as immigrants.”

 That’s why  we’re inviting you to join the National Day of Action to End Family Detention and flood ICE offices with phone calls TODAY Monday (2/11) demanding an immediate end to ICE’s unnecessary and immoral jailing of refugee children.

Call the ICE offices in Pennsylvania and Texas that oversee Family Detention Centers:

Pennsylvania
Action: Call ICE Regional Director Thomas Decker
Number: (215) 656-7164, 0 # – ask for Thomas Decker

Texas
Action: Call ICE Field Director Enrique Lucero
Number: (210) 283-4711 – ask for Mr. Lucero


Script: I’m calling to ask that you comply with Judge Gee’s ruling and stop detaining refugee children in jail-like conditions. Prisons are not childcare, and these kids need our help.

And Tweet At ICE:
Script: Hey, @ICEGov, #PrisonsAreNotChildcare – comply with the court: #EndFamilyDetention via @uusc

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