(StraightShooterNews.com) – In an attempt to mask their dismal handling of the border, the Biden-Harris administration hid the fact that it has overseen the release of hundreds of thousands of migrant children.
Referred to as Unaccompanied Migrant Children (UCs), these children have been allowed into the United States from the southern border.
A report from the Department of Homeland Security’s Inspector General highlights significant concerns, as these children are vulnerable to trafficking, exploitation or forced labor.
This report details how the Department of Homeland Security takes these children into custody when they arrive at the border.
They are then transferred to the Department of Health and Human Services, and often placed with adult sponsors in American communities.
Notably, many of these sponsors are not the children’s biological parents. Between Fiscal Year 2021 and Fiscal Year 2023, approximately 365,705 UCs were released into the U.S.
This shows a significant increase from the 83,100 during the last two years of the Trump administration.
A concerning finding in the report is the large number of these children failing to appear at their scheduled immigration hearings.
Moreover, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has been unable to issue Notices to Appear (NTAs) in immigration courts to hundreds of thousands of these UCs.
Additionally, communication issues between Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS)’s Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) have contributed to gaps in accountability.
ICE officers in only one of eight field offices attempted to locate UCs who missed their court dates.
By May 2024, ICE had not served NTAs on over 291,000 UCs, leaving them without a scheduled immigration court date. This lack of oversight is linked to a sharp increase in child labor trafficking.
The Office of Refugee Resettlement Director Robin Dunn Marcos acknowledged that while background checks on adult sponsors are conducted in some cases, they are not universal.
Additionally, home visits to check on the UCs’ well-being are not consistently performed.
Reflecting the gravity of these oversight failures, the Department of Labor reported an 88% rise in child labor trafficking incidents in Fiscal Year 2023 compared to 2019, with nearly 6,000 children found in illegal, often dangerous work conditions.
An HHS whistleblower further intensified concerns by testifying that the agency’s handling of UCs amounted to a “multi-billion-dollar child trafficking operation.”
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