Implications of Immigration Enforcement Activities for the Well-Being of Children in Immigrant Families: A Review of the Literature

I M M I G R A N T S A N D I M M I GR A T I O N R E S E A R C H R E P O R T Implications of Immigration Enforcement Activities for the Well-Being of Children in Immigrant Families A Review of the Literature Randy Capps Heather Koball Andrea Campetella Krista Perreira M IG R A TI ON POL I C Y I N S TI TU TE U R B A N IN S TI TU TE U N IV E R S I TY OF TE X A S A T A U S TI N U N IV E R S I TY OF N OR TH C A R OL I NA A T C H A PEL HIL L Sarah Hooker Juan Manuel Pedroza M IG R A TI ON POL I C Y I N S TI TU TE S TA N FOR D U N IV E R S I TY September 2015 A B O U T T H E U R B A N I N S TI T U T E The nonprofit Urban Institute is dedicated to elevating the debate on social and economic policy. For nearly five decades, Urban scholars have conducted research and offered evidence-based solutions that improve lives and strengthen communities across a rapidly urbanizing world. Their objective research helps expand opportunities for all, reduce hardship among the most vulnerable, and strengthen the effectiveness of the public sector. A B O U T T H E M I G R A T I O N P O L I C Y I N S T I T U T E The Migration Policy Institute is an independent, nonpartisan, nonprofit think tank in Washington, DC, dedicated to analysis of the movement of people worldwide. MPI provides analysis, development, and evaluation of migration and refugee policies at local, national, and international levels. It aims to meet the demand for pragmatic and thoughtful responses to the challenges and opportunities that large-scale migration, whether voluntary or forced, presents to communities and institutions in an increasingly integrated world. Copyright © September 2015. Urban Institute. Permission is granted for reproduction of this file, with attribution to the Urban Institute and the Migration Policy Institute. Cover image from AP Photo/Eric Gay. Contents Acknowledgments iv Executive Summary v Introduction 1 Impacts of Parental Detention and Deportation on Children 5 Broad Impacts on a Large Segment of the Hispanic Child Population 6 Impacts on Children of Unauthorized Immigrants 7 Short-Term Impacts of Parental Apprehension, Detention, and Deportation 9 Long-Term Impacts of Parental Apprehension, Detention, and Deportation 11 Children Leaving the United States 11 Family Dissolution and Child Welfare System Involvement 12 Meeting the Needs of Children with Detained and Deported Parents 15 Needs of Children in the Child Welfare System 15 Food, Shelter, Health Care, and Other Basic Needs 17 Mental Health Care Needs 20 Supporting Children in Public Schools and Early Education Programs 22 US Immigration Enforcement and Changes in the Composition of Unauthorized Populations 23 Unauthorized Population at Risk for Deportation 23 Discretion in Deporting Parents 25 State and Local Partnerships in Immigration Enforcement 29 Deportation of Returning Parents Apprehended at the US-Mexico Border 32 Unanswered Questions and Avenues for Future Research 34 Glossary 37 References 40 About the Authors 46 Statement of Independence 48 IV A C K N O W L E D G M E N T S Acknowledgments This report was funded by the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation and the Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation within the US Department of Health and Human Services. We are grateful to them and to all our funders, who make it possible for Urban to advance its mission. Funders do not, however, determine our research findings or the insights and recommendations of our experts. The views expressed are those of the authors and should not be attributed to the Urban Institute, its trustees, or its funders. The Migration Policy Institute, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and the University of Texas at Austin were subcontractors on this research project. We would also like to thank US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) for facilitating visits to ICE field offices and detention facilities in our study sites, and for providing feedback on earlier drafts of this report. E X E C U T I V E S U M M A R Y V Executive Summary An estimated 5.3 million children live with unauthorized immigrant parents, and 85 percent of these children are US-born citizens. Over the past decade, the United States has devoted significant resources to apprehension of unauthorized immigrants in the US interior. These children remain vulnerable to separation from their parents because of immigration enforcement actions. The federal government has initiated some policies, however, to reduce the impacts of parental deportation on children. The Obama administration has narrowed its priorities for immigration enforcement, resulting in substantial declines in the number of individuals deported over the past few years. In August 2014, US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) issued the “Facilitating Parental Interests in the Course of Civil Immigration Enforcement Activities” directive, which provides some protecti