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Statement

'A Child Dies. We Need Answers and More Compassionate Treatment of Asylum-Seekers.'

December 17, 2018
Immigration

Lisa Lederer, 202-371-1996

Statement from leaders of MomsRising, an online and on-the-ground organization of more than one million mothers and their families, on the tragic death of Jakelin Caal:

“The death of seven-year-old Jakelin Caal while in the custody of U.S. Customs and Border Protection is deeply and profoundly disturbing. Since the Trump administration came into power, our country has treated immigrants and asylum-seekers with suspicion and enmity, adopting policies that can only be characterized as hostile and heartless. We need to know whether Jakelin – who had just received her first pair of shoes and was hoping for her first toy and the chance to learn to read – would be alive today if our federal policies prioritized the health and safety of moms and children seeking asylum. One thing is clear: We need answers and more compassionate treatment of asylum seekers.”

 -- Statement from Donna Norton, Executive Vice President, MomsRising

“No mother or family should have to take their lives in their hands to seek asylum in the United States. We join with Democratic congressional leaders in demanding a thorough investigation of this tragedy, and policies that do not force asylum-seeking families and children to take risks that could have been avoided. In recent months, the Trump administration has used tear gas on moms and children trying to enter this country, separated children from the parents who love them, and detained families seeking asylum in lawful ways, often depriving them of basic human rights and forcing them to live in intolerable conditions. We must prioritize the health and safety of those seeking the chance to live and learn in peace, and treat all those who seek asylum in the United States with compassion, dignity and respect.”

 -- Statement from Khadija Gurnah, Campaign Director for Immigration, MomsRising

 

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MomsRising.org is an on-the-ground and online grassroots organization of more than a million people who are working to increase family economic security, decrease discrimination against women and moms, and to build a nation where businesses and families can thrive. Established in 2006, MomsRising and its members are organizing and speaking out to improve public policy and to change the national dialogue on issues that are critically important to America’s families, including criminal justice reform, immigration policy reform, and gun safety. MomsRising is working for paid family and medical leave, affordable, high quality childcare and early learning, and for an end to the wage and hiring discrimination which penalizes women — particularly moms and women of color — and so many others. MomsRising advocates for access to healthy food for all kids, health care for all, earned sick days, and breastfeeding rights so that all children can have a healthy start. MomsRising maintains a Spanish language website: MamásConPoder.org. Sign up online at www.MomsRising.org — and follow us on our blog, and on Twitter and Facebook.