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Recent reports reveal the deportation of three young U.S. citizens, including a four-year-old battling Stage 4 cancer, to Honduras, alongside their mothers. The event has raised significant concerns among advocacy groups and legal representatives.
The family’s lawyer emphasized that the four-year-old was deported without access to vital medication, a troubling detail given the child’s health condition.
Tom Homan, former Director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) under President Trump, defended the actions by stating that the mothers chose to have their U.S. citizen children deported with them. He asserted, “Having a U.S. citizen child does not exempt individuals from our laws,” explaining the mothers’ undocumented status.
During his administration, Trump faced extensive criticism for policies that led to the separation of countless children from their families.
On Friday, the New Orleans ICE officials carried out the deportation of two mothers and their three children—ages two, four, and seven—from Louisiana to Honduras, according to a statement from the ACLU.
The ACLU has highlighted that the two families, including one expectant mother, had been residing in the U.S. for several years before their removal, which they described as a process fraught with serious due process concerns.
One of the U.S. citizen children, who has metastatic cancer, was allegedly deported without any means to consult healthcare professionals.
At a news conference on Monday, Homan maintained that keeping families together during deportation is preferable to separating them. “We’re keeping families together,” he insisted, adding that the decisions were made by the parents involved.
He contested the characterization of the children as having been “deported,” suggesting instead that their removal was the result of decisions made by their parents, not the government.
A federal judge has expressed skepticism over the legality of the process that led to the deportation of the two-year-old citizen, indicating that there may have been a lack of meaningful judicial review.
The New Orleans-born child and her family were apprehended during a standard immigration appointment on April 22, as detailed in court documentation.
In an interview on CBS’s Face the Nation, Homan claimed the legal process was sufficiently robust, asserting that the mother had received due process before an immigration judge.
A hearing is set for May 19 to further examine whether the families were provided appropriate due process prior to their removals.
The second family was detained two days later, and according to the ACLU, ICE ignored attempts by their lawyers and family to make contact.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt recently highlighted the administration’s immigration enforcement activities during its initial 100 days in office. She mentioned that President Trump would soon sign two new executive orders targeting immigration, one of which focuses on identifying “sanctuary cities.”
The term “sanctuary city,” widely used over the last decade, refers to jurisdictions that limit cooperation with federal immigration enforcement. Policies vary significantly among cities, with some enacting formal strategies while others adjust policing protocols.
Leavitt also reported on a significant immigration raid at a nightclub in Colorado Springs, which resulted in over 100 undocumented immigrants being detained along with the confiscation of weapons and illegal substances.
The Drug Enforcement Administration noted in a social media post that 114 individuals were arrested, with many likely facing deportation proceedings.
Since Trump’s return to office on January 20, thousands of undocumented immigrants have been taken into custody, reflecting ongoing debates surrounding immigration enforcement and policy in the U.S.
Source
www.bbc.com