Oppose H.R. 4371 and Protect Immigrant Children from Detention Abuse

I am writing to urge you to oppose H.R. 4371, a bill that recently passed the House and would subject unaccompanied immigrant children to invasive body searches and prolonged immigration detention. This legislation prevents children from being released to loved ones in the United States and represents a dangerous expansion of mass detention policies that cause documented harm to vulnerable young people. The conditions children already face in immigration detention are unconscionable. At Camp East Montana at Fort Bliss in El Paso, Texas, currently the country's largest immigration detention center holding over 2,700 people, human rights organizations have documented horrific abuses based on interviews with more than 45 detained individuals and 16 sworn declarations. A detained teenager named Samuel was beaten so severely he lost consciousness, sustained injuries across his body, had his tooth broken, and suffered severe ear damage. Another detainee, Isaac from Cuba, reported being beaten and having his head slammed against a wall approximately ten times. A leaked internal ICE inspection found this facility violated over 60 federal detention standards in its first 50 days of operation. H.R. 4371 would expand this system of detention rather than address these abuses. According to Sarah Mehta, deputy director of policy and government affairs at the ACLU, the bill masquerades as protective legislation but would instead subject children to physical and psychological harm. Prolonged detention causes serious psychological trauma to children who should be placed with family members or sponsors who can care for them safely. I note that dozens of members who previously voted for extreme detention bills rejected H.R. 4371, recognizing how dangerous it is. I urge you to stand against this legislation and instead support policies that protect children's wellbeing and human rights. These are vulnerable young people who deserve safety and dignity, not expanded detention and invasive searches.