These actions are an important step toward a creating stronger, fairer and more just American asylum and immigration system, prioritizing the protection of vulnerable children and families

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Media Contact: Suzanne Arnold, [email protected], (609) 610-4957 (M)

Washington, D.C. (February 3, 2020) – Save the Children Action Network (SCAN) commends President Biden for yesterday’s executive orders that will ensure the protection of asylum-seeking children and families now and in the future, and begin to repair the damage caused by the egregious policies of the previous administration. The development of a regional strategy to create a stronger, more humane immigration system will ensure policies – such as the Migrant Protection Protocols (MPP), which denied entry to over 13,000 asylum-seeking children and families, including nearly 400 infants – are properly addressed and discontinued. It will also work to address the root causes of unsafe migration from Central America, opening the door for the creation of a safe and orderly processing system for asylum seekers. Finally, the formation of a task force to reunify the hundreds of asylum-seeking children forcibly separated from their families will begin to repair the harm and pave the way for a reimagined system incapable of implementing a family separation policy in the future. The task force will provide avenues for the reunification of families in the United States and provide much needed mental health and trauma services to support affected children and families in their recovery.

“SCAN applauds President Biden for following through on his campaign pledge to protect children and families who come this country seeking a better life. Policies enacted over the last four years created an unnecessary and devastating humanitarian crisis at our Southern border, causing immeasurable trauma for children and families,” said Santiago Mueckay, Manager of Federal Government Relations at SCAN. “We are excited that the Biden administration is moving quickly to turn the page from this dark chapter in American history and seizing the opportunity to transform our asylum and immigration system into a safer, stronger and fairer one that prioritizes kids and families.”

SCAN – together with its 375,000 advocates nationwide – remains committed to advocating for a fairer and more just asylum and immigration system, and looks forward to working with the Biden administration to ensure children and families along our Southern border are protected and treated legally, humanely, and with dignity and respect.

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Save the Children Action Network was created in 2014 as the political advocacy arm of Save the Children, to be the political voice for kids. We work to ensure that the issues critical to children’s lives and futures are given top priority by our elected leaders, building bipartisan support to make sure every child has a strong start in life.