Humanitarian crisis at the U.S. border
The current influx of unaccompanied children at the United States' southern border is an international humanitarian and refugee crisis in desperate need of resolution. Thousands of young lives are in jeopardy as children seek refuge after fleeing from Central America's "Northern Triangle"—the countries of El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras. These countries are overrun by organized crime, violence, human trafficking and persecution, and the region has the world's highest homicide rate. San Pedro Sula in Honduras, for example, is considered the murder capital of the world—with 187 murders per 100,000 inhabitants—driven by a surge in gang and drug-trafficking violence.
As an organization that represents those who teach and care for the next generation, the AFT has called for an immediate response from the federal government that puts the safety and well-being of children first, while seeking resolution to the root causes of the forced migration. The AFT is committed to working with local leaders, community partners, faith-based networks and other labor unions to ensure that the health, educational, safety and legal needs of the unaccompanied children are being met.
About the issue
- AFT letter to DHS and Dept. of Ed. condemning the immigration raids
- AFT Leaders Condemn Raids Targeting Refugee Women and Children
- AFT infographic:
- AFT resolution: International Humanitarian Crisis at the U.S. Border
- U.S. Department of Education fact sheet: Educational Services for Immigrant Children and Those Recently Arrived to the United States
- State by state placement data of unaccompanied children with sponsors
- Office of Refugee Resettlement infographic: General statistics about unaccompanied minors
Resources
- Meeting the Needs of Unaccompanied Child Refugees
- A Guide to Children Arriving at the Border: Laws, Policies and Responses (Immigration Policy Center)
- Legal Protections for Unaccompanied Minors in the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2008 (First Focus)
- Dear colleague letter from U.S. Departments of Education and Justice warning about discrimination against immigrant children
- Resolution urging the San Francisco Unified School District to meet the needs of unaccompanied immigrant children fleeing from Central America
- Memo from Lillian Lowery, Maryland state superintendent of schools, about immigrant children
- New Fraud Schemes Targeting Families of Unaccompanied Children
- Information from Colorín Colorado to help educators work with newly arrived children