A Homestead Witness
Several weeks ago I drove past a temporary overflow facility for unaccompanied minors that crossed the border that is located in Homestead, Florida. A UU Church Service in June made me take a slight detour past the facility which is part of the Homestead Reserve Air Force Base and a former Job Corp Center.
The drive by disturbed me. I have known adults who have been in detention and by all reports at the time, I can only imagine what kids between the ages of 12-17 might be going through in a prison like facility.
I went to the Homestead Facility last Monday arriving at 10:00AM with some church members, a follow up, and to show my displeasure with a broken immigration policy. At least that is what I thought I was doing on the ride down to Homestead. Standing on a ladder waving a heart and watching kids being lead outside while others were marched back into buildings for classes was weird. After about an hour on the ladder, I stood outside the entrance to the facility holding a placard and watching cars enter and leave.
Individually, I'm not sure my presence on Monday made a difference. The facility is off the beaten path and I saw a lot more staff on golf carts to whom our presence had become a part of their routine.
However, it has been reported that the headcount at the facility is down from a high of 3,000 and procedures are being modified to allow more relatives sponsor these kids while cases are being reviewed.
Long story, short, folks in the migration stream are entitled to due process and without the pressure of regular folks on the issue, who knows what the head count would be.
The drive by disturbed me. I have known adults who have been in detention and by all reports at the time, I can only imagine what kids between the ages of 12-17 might be going through in a prison like facility.
I went to the Homestead Facility last Monday arriving at 10:00AM with some church members, a follow up, and to show my displeasure with a broken immigration policy. At least that is what I thought I was doing on the ride down to Homestead. Standing on a ladder waving a heart and watching kids being lead outside while others were marched back into buildings for classes was weird. After about an hour on the ladder, I stood outside the entrance to the facility holding a placard and watching cars enter and leave.
Individually, I'm not sure my presence on Monday made a difference. The facility is off the beaten path and I saw a lot more staff on golf carts to whom our presence had become a part of their routine.
However, it has been reported that the headcount at the facility is down from a high of 3,000 and procedures are being modified to allow more relatives sponsor these kids while cases are being reviewed.
Long story, short, folks in the migration stream are entitled to due process and without the pressure of regular folks on the issue, who knows what the head count would be.
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