Congressman Derek Kilmer, D-Washington, toured the Northwest Detention Center in Tacoma on Friday and described what he called heartbreaking accounts of detained mothers who remain separated from their children.
“They were very emotional,” said Kilmer, who met with around 22 women, some of whom said they still have not communicated with their children.
“One woman talked about being separated from her 9-year-old two months ago and having had no communication with him.”
Kilmer estimates around two-thirds of the women he met with reported some communication with their children, and said most had information about where their children were located. However, they expressed uncertainty and lack of information about when or how they would be reunited.
“One mom said, ‘This is the worst punishment I could imagine,’” Kilmer recounted.
Watch extended interview with Congressman Derek Kilmer
The Department of Homeland Security and Health and Human Services says the agencies have established a process to ensure that family members have regular communication. It’s estimated more than 2,000 migrant children remain separated from their parents, scattered across HHS facilities and shelters across the United States.
“The United States government knows the location of all children in its custody and is working to reunite them with their families,” HHS said in a statement.
However, neither details of a process nor a timeline have been released.
“Some of the people we spoke to from ICE said they were working on that,” said Rep. Kilmer. “They said they know what young people they have detained. They know what parents they detained. Where things have gotten more complex is connecting the young people to the parents.”
Kilmer said almost all of the women he spoke with identified themselves as asylum seekers from Central America, citing violence, gang violence, crime and domestic violence as reasons for leaving their home country.
Researchers who have talked to the asylum seekers say many are aware of the risks, but are willing to make the dangerous trek regardless, out of fear for their safety.
“You have to just think for a second: How bad must it be for you to travel from your country to our southern border and surrender yourself to ICE and be separated from your child for two months? How bad must your circumstances be for that to be considered a good option,?” said Kilmer.
Congressman Kilmer says one of the bipartisan immigration bills he’s cosponsored includes an aid package to Central America aimed at addressing some of the key causes of migration from their region.
“Frankly, I think Congress should step in and have a broader bipartisan approach to comprehensive immigration reform. I’ve supported that since I got to Congress, and so far, we’ve seen a complete failure to do that,” said Kilmer.
A Republican compromise bill on immigration failed to make it through the U.S. House earlier this week. It’s unknown whether lawmakers will relaunch talks when they return to D.C. following Fourth of July recess.
“I think it’s time for Democrats and Republicans to actually work together and actually pass a bill that address some of these issues,” said Kilmer.
Meanwhile, Congressman Dave Reichert, R-Washington, along with Senators Patty Murray and Maria Cantwell, D-Washington, visited the federal detention center at SeaTac on Friday, where the remaining detainees in Washington state are being held.
Statements from senators:
“I visited the SeaTac Federal Detention Center today to meet with the women there who are seeking asylum. Several recounted being separated from their children, unable to say goodbye or explain what was happening. People seeking asylum should not be treated as criminals,” said Senator Cantwell in an email to KING 5.
“My heart aches for the women I met today,” said Senator Murray in a statement.
“Their stories, simply put, are deeply upsetting, and as a mother and a grandmother, it’s hard to fathom the anguish of being separated from your child without a hug or a goodbye, or to spend hours, let alone days or weeks, without knowing where they are, how they’re being cared for, or wondering how scared their child must be. President Trump’s choice to target these women and their children and treat them as nothing more than criminals should infuriate every American.
“While it was good to see President Trump buckle under public pressure and forced to back off his initial family separation policy, I will continue to demand answers on the safety and wellbeing of children who’ve been ripped away from their parents, and I will continue to call on my Republican colleagues to stand with me-- because no person, especially those trying to escape horrific violence, should be treated in the manner we’ve seen unfold in recent weeks.”
