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News // Immigrant Empowerment & Inclusion

Global Refuge CEO Testifies to Congress On Behalf of Migrant Children

August 1, 2019

Global Refuge to Congress: End Family Separation

and recommendations to safeguard the well-being of unaccompanied migrant children

Amid widespread reports of negligence, abuse and deaths of migrant children in U.S. detention facilities, Krish O’Mara Vignarajah, President & CEO of Lutheran Immigration & Refugee Service (LIRS), today addressed the U.S. House Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education and Related Agencies, calling for immediate action to ensure the safety and well-being of unaccompanied migrant children under the care of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).

Vignarajah unveiled a series of recommendations, including urging Congress to require all large-scale influx shelters, such as the notorious Homestead facility, to adhere to strict, well-established child-welfare standards, including employing appropriate child-welfare professionals who are vetted and licensed. Watch her testimony below.

Thumbnail for a video entitled 'LIRS Testimony to Congress on Unaccompanied Migrant Children'

The full list of recommendations is available here.

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