US President Donald Trump’s administration has sharply increased the number of unaccompanied migrant children sent to federal facilities in Texas, prompting concerns from immigration advocates about access to lawyers and potential deportations.
According to an analysis by immigration data platform bklg.org shared with The Guardian, almost 80 percent of children in federal custody who entered new immigration court proceedings in July were sent to Texas, rising to more than 90 percent in August.
The analysis found 651 children were sent to Texas during those two months.
Advocates told The Guardian they fear concentrating children in Texas could make deportations easier, although federal officials have not publicly stated that as the reason for the shift.
Roxana Avila-Cimpeanu of the Florence Immigrant and Refugee Rights Project warned the facilities could become “a deportation churn out factory that has attorneys in name but not real representation”.
The analysis found 17.2 percent of children in Houston, 18.6 percent in El Paso and 8.7 percent in San Antonio had a legal representation form filed.
The agency is also seeking contracts for emergency facilities with up to 3,000 beds, despite its existing shelter and foster care network operating at about 27 percent capacity.
