Report: U.S. government considering payments to migrants affected by Trump's zero-tolerance policy

A father and daughter from Guatemala.
(Image credit: Mario Tama/Getty Images)

Facing several lawsuits filed on behalf of migrant parents and children who were separated at the southern border during the Trump administration, the Biden administration is in discussions to offer families close to $450,000 per person in compensation, several people familiar with the matter told The Wall Street Journal. Psychologists say former President Donald Trump's family-separation policy left many of the minors traumatized

Under the policy, minors were separated from their parents after crossing into the United States to seek asylum. Citing government data, the American Civil Liberties Union, which is representing some of the families suing the U.S., said 5,500 kids were separated. There was no way of tracking the parents, and some children have yet to be reunited with their families.

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Catherine Garcia, The Week US

Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.