Senator Durazo Condemns "Barbaric" Treatment of Children in Federal Immigration Custody

LOS ANGELES – Senator María Elena Durazo (D-Los Angeles) today issued the following statement condemning the disturbing video of handcuffed children being led through a federal building in Los Angeles:

"The video of two dozen children with their hands chained, shuffling single file through a parking garage at the federal building in Los Angeles, represent a moral failure of the highest order. These are children – not criminals – and treating them like dangerous felons is not only cruel but fundamentally un-American.

That these children were detained without their parents and subjected to such dehumanizing treatment is absolutely unconscionable. No child should ever be shackled and paraded through a federal facility. This is not who we are as a nation, and it is not reflective of our values.

I call on the Trump administration to immediately end these barbaric practices and to treat all children – regardless of their immigration status – with the dignity and respect they deserve.

Furthermore, I applaud U.S. District Judge Frimpong's ruling on Friday that ordered the Department of Homeland Security to cease the indiscriminate raids that have been terrorizing our neighborhoods and to provide those who have been detained access to legal counsel. The judge's clear directive that immigration authorities cannot rely on race, ethnicity, location, or language to justify detaining individuals upholds our fundamental constitutional rights.

The White House's decision to appeal this common-sense ruling is deeply troubling and suggests that the administration more interested in cruelty than justice. We must ensure that our federal government does not ignore the Constitution and respects our rights to due process and dignity.

I will continue to fight for laws that keeps families together, keeps communities together, and treats all people with compassion. Terrorizing children is never the answer."

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The 26th Senate District includes the communities of a diverse array of Los Angeles neighborhoods, including Boyle Heights, El Sereno, Highland Park, Eagle Rock, Glassell Park, Mt. Washington, Cypress Park, Lincoln Heights, Atwater Village, Elysian Valley, Arlington Heights, Echo Park, Silver Lake, Los Feliz, East Hollywood, Little Armenia, Thai Town, Larchmont, Koreatown, Pico-Union, Westlake-MacArthur Park, Historic Filipinotown, Chinatown, Little Tokyo, the Arts District, Civic Center, City Terrace, East Los Angeles, and the City of Vernon.