Detention centers at the border are full of able-bodied people. Our economy needs workers. Maybe we can work something out, writes Becoming American Initiative Director Linda Chavez in The Bulwark.
We should all be thankful that the number of migrants crossing our southern border dropped dramatically last month, down overall 28 percent in June, with an even larger decline among families and unaccompanied children. But this welcome development does not mean the humanitarian crisis is over for thousands of asylum seekers who have been subjected to conditions in U.S. facilities most of us would not find acceptable for animals. Investigations by the Department of Homeland Security Office of the Inspector General confirm that even very young children lack beds, clothing, food, clean water and access to proper hygiene. Some have suffered psychological, physical, and sexual abuse by guards and Custom and Border Patrol agents. The DHS inspector general report revealed photographs of youngsters in overcrowded wire and concrete cages with only Mylar blankets to keep them warm. Physicians who have visited the sites report the stench of urine, feces, and sweat that pervades the holding cells. Some migrants have alleged they were told to drink from toilets when they complained that they had no access to water.
Read the whole thing here.