Customs and Border Protection is reportedly working to roll out a dystopian-sounding new program.
Federal officials at the border have been performing voluntary DNA tests on migrants for more than a year in an attempt to reunited separated children with their families. But a new draft policy reveals the Trump administration wants to "expand" DNA testing by letting CBP "extract genetic material from undocumented immigrants in its custody," BuzzFeed News reports.
When the first DNA testing policy was rolled out last year, immigrant advocates expressed huge concerns over if the DNA was stored after testing, and whether children could give informed consent to be tested. This reported policy, if it moves beyond a draft, will likely draw even further scrutiny because the tests appear to be involuntary. These tests could implemented on "hundreds of thousands of immigrants" and involve "20,000 additional work hours" from CBP employees per year, BuzzFeed News writes. The draft reportedly does not explicitly prevent Immigration and Customs Enforcement from conducting the tests or accessing their results.
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In a statement, DHS only told BuzzFeed News it is "working closely with the Department of Justice on a path forward for DNA collection." Read more at BuzzFeed News.
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