SAN DIEGO — Immigration advocates said families continue to be separated at the border. They said at least 1,000 in the last three months.
That's why four local organizations have filed yet another complaint with the Department of Homeland Security.
Once migrants are processed at the border, they are given a court date to seek asylum and taken to a location in City Heights we’ve been asked not to share. The County of San Diego says 50,000 people have been released from there and into our community since September.
"I understand people needing to leave their motherland, it's not an easy thing," Arisha Peabody said, who lives nearby.
They're often taken by bus loads, to transit centers or the airport, to hopefully connect with a family member, or a sponsor.
Alfredo Morales is from Guatemala. He told me he's looking for a better life for his family. I heard the same from a group of men from Turkey.
Morales says he suffered a lot, and it was difficult to cross.
According to immigration advocates, it's even more difficult for families who are separated. The humanitarian group Al Otro Lado says in three months, there have been more than a thousand adult families separations.
"Parents tell me they're worried sick about their young adult children," Meghan Zavala said, who works at Al Otro Lado. She says over a third of the cases are spouses.
Advocates say of the 279 families that have been reunified, some were separated for as long as 48 days.
"Those seeking asylum have a right to seek asylum in the U.S. regardless of entry," she said.
That's why Al Otro Lado, the ACLU, the Center for Immigration Law and Policy and Jewish Family Services have filed a complaint with the Department of Homeland Security. The say the federal government's uncoordinated mass releases are reckless.
"Those of us at Al Otro Lado care about building a permanent infrastructure that really does welcome people in a humanizing way, with dignity, that is not piling onto the psychological torment they've gone through, to arrive at our southern border," Zavala added.
The complaint calls for Customs and Border Protection to broaden their definition of a family group and more accurately document and link family groups.
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