Families at the US-Mexico Border- Immigration Crisis

QVS has been dismayed over the last three weeks as we have watched the US government separate families seeking asylum at the US-Mexico border and detain children as young as newborns, charging them with illegal entry into the US. While we are happy to learn that the President will be putting an end to the family separation policy, his aggressive “zero-tolerance” position still means that children will not only be charged with illegally crossing the US border, they will be still be detained while waiting to be prosecuted along with their parents or guardians. This means that child detentions could possibly be extended beyond the legal limit established in 1997.

While it may seem as if the three week crisis (recognizing that this immigration crisis, and inhumane treatment/separation of families is embedded in this nation’s history) will now come to a close, the challenge is that there is more to be done to end the injustice of the zero-tolerance policy and the human rights violations associated with it. Thankfully there are organizations and individuals rallying around the cause of the children and their families many of whom are fleeing violence in their home countries. We encourage you to learn more about the situation and to study the analysis with an open heart.

We also encourage you to ACT in the ways that make sense for your position and experience, whether that is attending a local rally, bringing this to your local meeting, calling your reps, or sharing this information widely etc.