Photo: Kids in Foster Care due to Deportation
“Shattered Families”, a new report from the Applied Research Center (ARC) conservatively estimates that there are more than 5,000 children currently living in foster care whose parents have been either detained or deported. To date, there has been no national data available on the numbers of children impacted by the intersection of immigration enforcement and child welfare systems.
Historic levels of detention and deportation, combined with a clear lack of child welfare policies are resulting in the separation of thousands of families across the United States. ARC projected that at least 15,000 more children will face these threats to reunification in the next five years, if the same rate holds true for new cases.
In fiscal year 2011, the United States deported a record-breaking 397,000 people and detained nearly that many. In the first six months of 2011, the federal government removed more than 46,000 mothers and fathers of U.S.-citizen children.
“Shattered Families” analyzes these problems, identifies key barriers, and presents policy recommendations for Department of Homeland Security, various levels of legislature, state child welfare departments, and juvenile dependency courts on how we can better protect families from separation and reunify families in a timely way.