City of Philadelphia - File #: 180714

• File #: 180714
• Version: 0
• Type: Resolution
• Status: ADOPTED
• File created: 6/21/2018
• In control: CITY COUNCIL
• Final action: 6/21/2018
• Title: Condemning the Trump Administration's "zero tolerance" immigration policy, which has resulted in thousands of children being separated from their parents after being detained at the United States border, and opposing the use of indefinite family detention as inhumane.
• Sponsors: Councilmember Johnson, Councilmember Quiñones Sánchez, Councilmember Green, Councilmember Bass, Councilmember Parker, Councilmember Henon, Councilmember Blackwell, Councilmember Squilla, Councilmember Gym, Councilmember Greenlee, Councilmember Domb, Councilmember Reynolds Brown, Councilmember Jones

Date	Ver.	Action By	Action	Result	Tally
6/21/2018	0	CITY COUNCIL	Introduced and Ordered Placed on This Week's Final Passage Calendar - Rules Suspended	Pass
6/21/2018	0	CITY COUNCIL	ADOPTED	Pass	15:2

Title
Condemning the Trump Administration's "zero tolerance" immigration policy, which has resulted in thousands of children being separated from their parents after being detained at the United States border, and opposing the use of indefinite family detention as inhumane.

Body
WHEREAS, In April 2018, the Trump Administration adopted a "zero tolerance policy" for border crossings. It mandates prosecution of all adults found crossing the border without legal status, including those lawfully seeking asylum in the United States; and

WHEREAS, Under this policy, children detained at the border are ripped away from their families and detained by the Office of Refugee Resettlement, which is part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. They are then placed in foster care or in the care of a family member living in the United States; and

WHEREAS, While families have been separated at the border for many years, prosecutions and separations have spiked under the zero tolerance policy. According to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), nearly 2,000 immigrant children were separated from parents during six weeks during April and May 2018, or about 65 to 70 family separations per day. Those children include infants and toddlers; and

WHEREAS, Photographs released by DHS show children detained in metal cages with concrete floors. Immigrants call one of these facilities La Perrera (the dog pound), because of its resemblance to a holding pen for dogs. Attorneys who have visited the facilities describe children crying inconsolably. These children, who do not have a right to legal counsel, typically end up navigating the immigration system alone; and

WHEREAS, In a June 2018 Texas Monthly interview, Anne Chandler of the Tahirih Justice Center noted that many young children do not yet know important identifying information like their own birthdate or their parents' names, which can further complicate the process of reuniting children with parents o...