Unaccompanied, Undocumented Children in U.S. Custody

FAIN: FT-59823-12

Susan J. Terrio
Georgetown University (Washington, DC 20057-0001)

Every year immigration authorities apprehend 7,000-9,000 undocumented children at the U.S. border or within the country, designate them as "unaccompanied aliens," and transfer them to federal custody. This apprehension ensnares them within two parallel but separate systems; mandatory detention in custodial facilities and removal proceedings in immigration court. This book focuses on what happens to those children in custody, in court, and after release. It documents the increased tension between two competing agendas in the treatment of institutionalized children. One agenda, informed by Western child welfare standards, emphasizes humanitarianism and protection. It conflicts with a second, more political and better funded, agenda that prioritizes and enforcement and security.

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