Washington May 31, 2018 – Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) today issued the following statement announcing that she will introduce legislation to prevent the separation of immigrant families:
“It’s hard to conceive of a policy more horrific than intentionally separating children from their parents as a form of punishment. In addition, parents seeking asylum are being referred for prosecution. Taken together, these terrible policies call into question whether we are in violation of our own laws and our obligations under international law.
“As the ACLU has documented in recent court filings, young children have been taken from their parents’ arms and federal law enforcement has not given parents even the most basic information about their children’s whereabouts. This is not what the United States of America should be.
“At last week’s Senate Judiciary Committee hearing, Customs and Border Protection informed me that 658 children were taken from 638 parents during a 14-day period in May. That’s an average of 47 children being taken from their parents each and every day. This is shocking.
“I am working on legislation that would prevent the intentional separation of families. Congress has a moral obligation to take a stand here.”