**MEDIA ADVISORY**
Thursday, March 18, 2021 @ 11 AM CT
WHAT: Digital Press conference
WHO:
- Sarah Valdes – Director of Released Children’s Services, RAICES
- Marisa Limon Garza – Deputy Director of Hope Border Institute
- Melissa Lopez – Executive Director, Dioceses Migrant and Refugee Services
- Hally Zamora Valerin – Former Migrant Child
- Wendy Lopez – Former Migrant Child
WHEN: Thursday, March 18th, 2021 @ 11 AM CT WHERE: Zoom link
San Antonio, TX – In reaction to the current challenge we are facing at the border and the thousands of children in DHS custody, RAICES will hold a virtual press conference with border organizations, services providers and migrant children who have come to the U.S. on their own, in order to set the record straight on the reality at the U.S.-Mexico border.
As organizations who work with migrant children every day, we know that there is a humane way to address today’s challenges. The current narrative driven by Republicans in Congress and in Texas is rooted in racism and xenophobia, and we will not stand by.
RAICES provides legal services to hundreds of children currently detained in HHS custody. We know what prompted them to embark on the dangerous trek to the U.S. In this press conference, we will speak about what we have seen and experienced through our work with children held in HHS facilities.
We will also speak to the fact that we have seen this so-called “border crisis” unfold every year for over a decade, as migrants continue to make the journey to the United States to seek safety for themselves and their families. Every year there are thousands of people knocking at our door, whether it be under Obama, Trump or current President Joe Biden. What we need is not just a fix to the system that was obliterated by the Trump administration, but rather an entirely different approach to this issue all together. We need an immigration system that recognizes the cyclical reality at hand and seeks to welcome our migrant sisters and brothers, with recognition of why they have and continue to be uprooted from their home countries in the first place.
During the press conference, we will not only hear from two young women who came to the U.S. as children and made the journey on their own, but from border organizations who understand the reality of their communities as well as attorneys currently working with children detained in ORR custody at Carrizo Springs.
Contact: Jessica Ortiz,
[email protected]
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