***For Immediate Release***
June 20, 2018
Contact, Jeff Sheldon
Communications Director, Nebraska Appleseed
Office: (402) 438-8853
Mobile: (402) 840-7289
jsheldon@neappleseed.org
Statement on President’s Executive Order on Child Detention
Locking up families who are seeking asylum does nothing to end humanitarian crisis the White House has chosen to create
LINCOLN — Today, the President signed an executive order that mandates families seeking asylum be locked up in detention facilities near the U.S.-Mexico border. The order does not change the so-called “zero tolerance” policy, which paints people fleeing violence and poverty as criminals.
Wednesday afternoon, Nebraska Appleseed Federal Policy Director Omaid Zabih released the following statement on the executive order:
“The President’s executive order does nothing to reduce the needless humanitarian crisis caused by imprisoning children and families seeking a safe home in the U.S.,” Zabih said. “Putting children in cages, even if they are with their parents, causes lasting harm, which is why this inhumane policy has been denounced by the American Academy of Pediatrics and the American Medical Association.
“The White House cannot pretend to solve this self-imposed crisis by locking up kids and parents. Families belong in communities, not cages, while waiting for their asylum claims to be addressed by the courts. We urge our members of Congress to work swiftly to create a humane immigration policy in accordance with Nebraska values. We must protect families in safe, healthy environments and maintain their due process rights.”
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