By The Diary
Sep 23, 2024, 9:37 PM EDT
More than 100 migrant minors reported physical and verbal abuse while in Border Patrol custody in Arizona between January 2023 and March 2024, according to a report by the Florence Immigrant and Refugee Rights Project, cited by EFE.
The report, titled “Handcuffed, Shoved, and Afraid: Migrant Children Share Terrifying Experiences While in Border Patrol Custody,” documents 134 reports from children between the ages of 5 and 17.
Most of the minors come from Mexico, Guatemala, Ecuador, Colombia, Venezuela and Guinea. The case of a five-year-old girl, separated from her grandparents and detained alone for 72 hours, stands out among the reports.
Roxana Avila-Cimpeanu, deputy director of the Florence Project, told EFE that some children are too young to describe their experiences, while others fear reprisals from police if they report the incident.
“There are likely more cases of abuse that have not been reported due to the lack of constant access to minors,” Avila-Cimpeanu told EFE.
Among the complaints, one in ten minors reported having been physically assaulted, while four in ten said they had suffered verbal abuse. One testimony revealed that an agent shouted at a child: “Go back to Mexico.”
Other children said they were told their parents had been deported or no longer had any family. One 11-year-old girl was told she should marry an American so she could stay in the country.
More serious violence
The complaints also mention more serious episodes of violence that occurred in March 2024. According to Camille Auer, a researcher at the Florence Project, higher levels of violence were reported that month than in previous periods.
“I heard reports of children being handcuffed, pushed, and a minor who saw an adult being thrown against barbed wire,” he told EFE.
In addition to the lack of security, the minors also reported inadequate conditions of detention, including a lack of access to food, water and medical care. Some were placed in cells with adults who were not their relatives, which increased their vulnerability.
The Florence Project is not the only organization to denounce these abuses. ImmDef, a California-based group, filed a similar complaint about abuses at that state’s border. Both organizations have called on the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to take immediate action to end these abuses.
Despite previous complaints, CBP has offered only reminders about existing policies without implementing significant changes. Advocates hope the Biden administration will act more firmly before its term ends.
With information from EFE.
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