The Timeline of Family Separation

If you, like me, feel like you're barely treading water in the ocean of human horrors created by the Trump administration, it can feel like the zero tolerance immigration policy almost came out of nowhere. One day I was bemoaning the inaction on DACA, the next we have concentration camps full of innocent children. Given that I only started hearing about this in the month of June, I'd assumed this cruel and inhumane policy was announced very recently. But as I did some research, I realized that I'd become so overwhelmed with all the human rights abuses of the Trump administration that I'd missed the early days of this policy.

Back in March of 2017, John Kelly who was then the Secretary of Homeland Security discussed the idea of a policy to separate children from their parents when family crossed the border. Secretary Kelly specifically said he was considering this policy to deter people from crossing the border illegally. In April, the New York Times reported that around 700 children had been taken from their families, though at that point it wasn't clear that this was a formal policy. Then this May, Attorney General Jeff Sessions (human Confederate flag) announced a policy that said anyone crossing the border illegally would be prosecuted, and children would be separated from their parents.

Read More

The Most Secure Shutdown

It’s been awhile since I’ve updated the blog, but it’s also been awhile since Congress was on the brink of a shutdown of necessary government services, so I guess we both just had other things on our plates. Now, after over a year since the last government shutdown, Congress is once again flirting with the possibility of ending funding to a government agency. This time, it’s the Department of Homeland Security, and the Republicans are in charge. What a difference a year makes!

The Department of Homeland Security was created in the aftermath in the 9/11 attacks, and oversees border patrol, emergency responses, cybersecurity, and other industries that protect our nation from foreign threats. Their funding is running out, though Congress did pass a one week extension last Friday to fund the department for another week. But once this funding expires on March 6th, another bill will have to be passed to continue to keep our country safe.

Read More