These testimonials about separated immigrant families are absolutely heartbreaking

Child at US-Mexico border.
(Image credit: HERIKA MARTINEZ/AFP/Getty Images)

The Trump administration has instituted a zero-tolerance policy on illegal immigration, pledging to prosecute every single person who is found crossing the border without documentation. In order to do that, officials are separating adults from any children who are traveling with them, sending the kids to government shelters or military bases to stay while authorities give clearance to a long-term sponsor who can assume care.

Until that sponsor is located, children are waiting in shelters or sent to temporary foster parents who volunteer to provide transitional care. The New York Times spoke to several temporary foster families, who described the extreme anxiety and uncertainty that migrant children face after being separated from their parents.

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Summer Meza, The Week US

Summer Meza has worked at The Week since 2018, serving as a staff writer, a news writer and currently the deputy editor. As a proud news generalist, she edits everything from political punditry and science news to personal finance advice and film reviews. Summer has previously written for Newsweek and the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, covering national politics, transportation and the cannabis industry.