Immigration Reform News 2014: Secretary Jeh Johnson to Visit Arizona, Detention Facilities
Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson will be taking a trip tomorrow to U.S. Customs and Border Protection facilities in Nogales, Arizona, to address the influx in unaccompanied children.
According to Politico, Secretary Johnson made a public plea to the parents of children from central America, warning them of the dangers their children face coming into the country illegally. He stated that the risks that their children could face would be "far too great."
The country has seen an influx in children immigrating from Central America, especially Guatemala, El Salvador and Honduras. Administration officials have reported about 52,000 unaccompanied children that have been detained along the southwestern boarder as of June 15 and 39,000 adults with children as of late May.
Republicans have blamed the Obama Administration's immigration policies for being an incentive for more children to come into the country illegally. Democrats and the Obama Administration have blamed increasing levels of gang violence in Central America as the causes, with which Secretary Johnson agrees
"The majority of these children come from Honduras, El Salvador and Guatemala, where gang and drug violence terrorize communities," Johnson wrote in an op-ed published in Spanish this weekend. "To the parents of these children I have one simple message: Sending your child to travel illegally into the United States is not the solution.
"The long journey is not only dangerous; there are no 'permisos,' 'permits,' or free passes at the end," Johnson said.
Johnson also wrote that many children have been traumatized and abused under the guidance of smugglers, and the physical conditions will only get worse as the summer months come.
According to the Washington Times, the people emigrating from Central America don't always see it that way. For them even if they are detained, they could have an opportunity to be released into the U.S., where they could apply for asylum and fight deportation or disappear into the country.
Secretary Johnson is scheduled to testify Tuesday at the House Homeland committee.
This comes as Texas Gov. Rick Perry has called lawmakers to do more to stop the flow of child immigration.
"I'm incredibly disappointed that we have not seen more of Washington, D.C., in the valley to see what's going on down there. This is an absolute humanitarian catastrophe waiting to happen," Perry said.
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