Back in May, the Trump Administration announced a “zero-tolerance” policy on people entering the US illegally, and families were separated at the border as parents were prosecuted and children were held in inhumane detention centers. Since then, Trump signed an executive order to stop the separation of families at the border and to reunite parents and children that have already been separated, according to the AP.
On June 26th, US District Judge Dana Sabraw set a deadline to reunify all children under five years old with their families by tomorrow (July 10). But a statement from the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) says that the Trump Administration is going to fail to meet the deadline, The Daily Beast reports.Â
There are currently 102 children under five years old that need to be reunited with their families, but the ACLU has learned that “less than half” will be reunited by the deadline. While the Justice Department says they have “worked tirelessly” to meet the deadline, surely there could have been more done to avoid keeping these families apart for longer than they have been already.
Under court order, we were given a list of 102 kids under 5 who remain separated. The administration appears likely to fail to reunite even half by deadline.
The kids have suffered so much. Every extra day just adds to the pain.#FamiliesBelongTogether https://t.co/Upbuu1HN4K
— ACLU (@ACLU) July 9, 2018
ACLU attorney Lee Gelernt told the Associated Press, “It’s extremely disappointing that the Trump administration looks like it will fail to reunite even half the children under [five] with their parents. These kids have already suffered so much because of this policy, and every extra day apart just adds to that pain.”
The Justice Department asked Judge Sabraw last week for an extension of the deadline, but he decided to uphold the overall deadline and only consider certain exceptions, as the “crisis level” situation and the “chaotic circumstances” are the government’s own fault.
Even though the deadline to reunite children under five with their parents hasn’t been met, the deadline to reunite those older than five with their families is July 26. Hopefully the Justice Department can meet that deadline and fix the chaos they’ve created for so many families.