On day one, President Trump must take immediate action to protect migrant children by completely overhauling the Office of Refugee Resettlement within the Department of Health and Human Services. The current catastrophe has led to thousands and thousands of children disappearing into the unknown, many into the hands of human traffickers. The actual number remains unknown because the government has lost track of so many of these vulnerable souls. Those in the current administration who have deliberately weakened or eliminated critical screening procedures for sponsors must be removed. The safety of vulnerable children should not be sacrificed to administrative opportunism.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement, with its extensive capabilities and expertise in immigration procedures, should assume primary responsibility for vetting sponsors and monitoring the whereabouts of these children. Just as ICE successfully manages its Alternatives to Detention program through vetted contractors, similar frameworks could be established to track and protect unaccompanied minors. By leveraging ICE’s resources and coordinating with direct support from other agencies, we can create a robust system that actually protects these children rather than abandoning them to potential traffickers.
One of the Biden administration’s first steps was to systematically dismantle the extensive sponsor screening program established during the Trump administration. This reckless decision prioritized speed over safety, effectively eliminating crucial protections for vulnerable children. The robust vetting procedures that once helped prevent human trafficking and exploitation were sacrificed in the name of expediting placements – with devastating consequences.
Nearly a decade after my own whistleblowing efforts from the Department of Homeland Security in 2015 exposed shocking deficiencies in sponsor vetting, the situation remains dire. Despite improvements achieved in 2016 through collaboration with Senator Grassley’s office, the system continues to place children with sponsors with criminal backgrounds, including violent crimes. The system designed to protect these children has instead become a pipeline that too often delivers them into the hands of exploiters.
The story starts with good intentions. When unaccompanied migrant children arrive at our borders, the law requires that they be placed in the least restrictive environment—usually with a sponsor while their immigration cases continue. This approach, intended to prioritize the well-being of children, has been catastrophically undermined by inadequate monitoring procedures and virtually non-existent follow-up.
The current government has made matters worse by rushing placements to control overcrowding while weakening crucial safeguards. The basic background checks have been abbreviated. Home studies have become rare. Post-release supervision, which is critical to ensuring the safety of children, has been largely neglected.
Over the past few months, I have sent urgent letters to numerous members of Congress and the heads of congressional committees explaining the need for immediate action to protect these children. I personally briefed congressional staff members and presented them with a comprehensive seven-point plan to address this crisis. Instead of focusing on these crucial child protection measures, they seemed more interested in recruiting government insiders as whistleblowers. This dismissive response to concrete solutions that could save the lives of children is emblematic of a system more concerned with political maneuvering than with protecting the most vulnerable.
The plan I presented was clear and actionable and included:
1. More stringent background checks: Implement a comprehensive, multi-agency approach to vetting potential sponsors.
2. Regular follow-ups: Establish a system of mandatory, regular check-ins after a child is placed with a sponsor.
3. Enhanced Interagency Collaboration: Facilitate seamless collaboration between DHS, health care, and human services to locate and protect these children.
4. Enhanced Data Collection and Transparency: Require the collection and public reporting of accurate, up-to-date information on unaccompanied minors, their placements, and outcomes.
5. Zero tolerance policy: implement strict penalties for sponsors who have a violent or exploitative history and slip through the vetting process.
6. Accountability measures: Establish a robust system of accountability, ensuring that policies are followed at all levels and that there are real consequences for those who fail to protect these children.
7. Cross-border initiatives: Establish strong links with governments and NGOs in countries of origin to address the root causes of child migration.
Critics might argue that these measures would delay deployment and increase costs. They are right, but what is the alternative? Continue feeding children in a system that is losing track of them by the thousands? Perpetuating practices that enable human trafficking and exploitation?
This is not about immigration policy or party politics. It is about preventing child abuse and trafficking. Whether you believe in stricter or more lenient immigration policies, we can agree that children already in custody deserve protection.
The impact of human trafficking, especially on children, is devastating. These young victims face physical and psychological abuse, forced labor and sexual exploitation, leaving scars that may never fully heal. Migrant children are particularly vulnerable, often separated from their families, facing language barriers and without support in a foreign country.
As we confront this ongoing crisis, our resolve must be stronger than ever. We must work together to create a world where no child is exposed to the horrors of human trafficking or falls through the cracks of a failing system. This is more than a call to action; it is a call for justice and a plea for our collective conscience to treat this issue with the seriousness it deserves.
Every day we delay, more children disappear into the shadows. Their fate will be our legacy. Now is the time for action. Our government’s first duty is to protect the vulnerable. When it comes to migrant children, we are not alone in failing; we actively enable their exploitation. This has to change, and it has to change now.
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