The Expanding Toll of the Child Detention Industry
By Deepa Iyer
Excerpt:
“For more than 30 years, there had been policies restricting immigration enforcement in sensitive places such as schools, childcare centers, hospitals, and places of worship,” Wendy Cervantes, director of immigration and immigrant families at the Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP), told NPQ.
“In our research talking to parents of young children and early childhood providers over the past year, we have heard how the constant worry and fear parents are feeling is trickling down to their kids, with children as young as three exhibiting behavioral changes such as regressions in talking, changes in sleeping and eating habits, and increased anxiety about saying goodbye to their parents,” Cervantes said. “A late pick-up now drives once calm toddlers and kids to panic attacks as they believe their mom or dad has been taken.”
