Casa Padre Explained

Prison Name:Casa Padre
Location:3449,7480 Padre Island Hwy, Brownsville, Texas, U.S.
Coordinates:25.9427°N -97.4239°W
Status:Open
Opened:March 2017[1]

Casa Padre is a shelter for unaccompanied or separated immigrant minors in custody of the U.S. Office of Refugee Resettlement, a division of Health & Human Services, located in Brownsville, Texas.[2] The site opened in March 2017, and is still housing children in 2022.[3] [4] The building was formerly a Walmart store. The center is run by the nonprofit group Southwest Key Programs under contract from the federal government. Casa Padre is the largest licensed childcare facility in the United States, housing approximately 1,500 youths.[5] [6] The former Walmart store houses boys ranging from ages 10 to 17.[7] According to the Internal Revenue Service, the group houses approximately 5,129 immigrant children in the United States, approximately 4 percent of the unaccompanied minors in the United States today.[8] [9]

Reaction

On June 3, 2018, Oregon Senator Jeff Merkley was denied entrance to the Casa Padre facility as part of his investigation into the living conditions of the children. After he was denied entry into the facility by the police, he stated that "Americans should be outraged by the fact that our taxpayer dollars are being used to inflict spiteful and traumatizing policies onto innocent minors."[10] The recorded exchange between Merkley and the employees of the facility was uploaded to YouTube and was shared 1.1 million times.[11]

Then-House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi condemned both the detention facility and the Trump Administration's controversial immigration policies, stating, "This is barbaric. This is not what America is. But this is the policy of the Trump administration." Then-Speaker of the House Paul Ryan stated his disapproval of the Trump Administration's policy towards separating children from their parents. Senator James Lankford of Oklahoma tweeted, "I am asking the White House to keep families together as much as we can."[12]

See also

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Closed Wal-Mart in Brownsville to Reopen as Shelter for Unaccompanied Minors . KRGV.com . . June 18, 2018 . en . https://web.archive.org/web/20180618203646/http://www.krgv.com/story/34338118/closed-wal-mart-in-brownsville-to-reopen-as-shelter-for-unaccompanied-minors . June 18, 2018 . dead .
  2. Web site: Can separated immigrant children just walk out of shelters? Technically, yes.. The Texas. Tribune. Edgar. Walters. 12 July 2018. The Texas Tribune. 9 April 2019. 29 July 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210729140239/https://www.texastribune.org/2018/07/12/can-separated-migrant-children-just-walk-out-shelters-technically-yes/. live.
  3. News: Inside the Former Walmart That Is Now a Shelter for Almost 1,500 Migrant Children.. The New York Times. 14 June 2018. 20 October 2022. Fernandez. Manny.
  4. News: Teenager Is Missing After Walking Away From Migrant Children's Center in Texas. Mihir. Zaveri. Manny. Fernandez. The New York Times. 24 June 2018. 9 April 2019. 23 July 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210723175041/https://www.nytimes.com/2018/06/24/us/migrant-boy-leaves-texas-shelter.html. live.
  5. News: Surge in children separated at border floods facility for undocumented immigrants. The nearly 1,500 boys living in the shelter sleep five in rooms built for four. . . Boys in line at Casa Padre in Brownsville, Texas, on Wednesday. It is the largest licensed child care facility in the nation for children brought to the U.S. illegally. . 2022-04-30 . 2018-06-21 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180621190048/https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/surge-children-separated-border-floods-facility-undocumented-immigrants-n883001 . live .
  6. Web site: Gonzales . Richard . Burnett . John . 'These Are Not Kids Kept In Cages': Inside A Texas Shelter For Immigrant Youth . NPR.org . NPR. June 17, 2018 . en . October 20, 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20211020182646/https://www.npr.org/2018/06/14/620085615/these-are-not-kids-kept-in-cages-inside-a-texas-shelter-for-immigrant-youth . live .
  7. News: What I Witnessed at Casa Padre Detention Center . Alliance for Children's Rights. 2022-10-20.
  8. News: Inside Casa Padre, the converted Walmart where the U.S. is holding nearly 1,500 immigrant children. Miller. Michael E.. June 14, 2018. The Washington Post. June 15, 2018. Brown. Emma. en-US. 0190-8286. Davis. Aaron C.. February 6, 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210206172445/https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/inside-casa-padre-the-converted-walmart-where-the-us-is-holding-nearly-1500-immigrant-children/2018/06/14/0cd65ce4-6eba-11e8-bd50-b80389a4e569_story.html. live.
  9. News: Inside the former Walmart holding 1,500 immigrant children in Texas. CBS News. June 15, 2018. en. April 10, 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210410192305/https://www.cbsnews.com/news/casa-padre-inside-the-brownsville-texas-facility-sheltering-illegal-immigrant-children/. live.
  10. Web site: U.S. Sen. Jeff Merkley Was Denied Access to a Detention Center for Immigrant Children, and Somebody Called the Police When He Went to the Door . Willamette Week. 4 June 2018 . October 20, 2022.
  11. Web site: Quito . Anne . A prison or a summer camp? Wildly different spins on the Casa Padre child immigrant center . Quartz (publication). 15 June 2018 . June 17, 2018 . November 10, 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20211110013213/https://qz.com/1306245/casa-padre-different-takes-on-the-child-immigrant-facility-in-brownsville-texas/ . live .
  12. Web site: Burnett . John . Gonzales . Richard . 'These Are Not Kids Kept In Cages': Inside A Texas Shelter For Immigrant Youth . NPR.org . . June 17, 2018 . en . October 20, 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20211020182646/https://www.npr.org/2018/06/14/620085615/these-are-not-kids-kept-in-cages-inside-a-texas-shelter-for-immigrant-youth . live .

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Casa Padre".

Except where otherwise indicated, Everything.Explained.Today is © Copyright 2009-2024, A B Cryer, All Rights Reserved. Cookie policy.