Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) is letting the Biden administration know reopening a migrant facility for children “never will be okay.”
She posted a tweet on Tuesday citing an article by The Washington Post revealing the news of the Biden administration’s move to reopen a child migrant facility once used by the Trump administration.
“This is not okay, never has been okay, never will be okay — no matter the administration or party,” Ocasio-Cortez tweeted.
She added, “Our immigration system is built on a carceral framework. It’s no accident that challenging how we approach both these issues are considered ‘controversial’ stances. They require reimagining our relationship to each other and challenging common assumptions we take for granted.”
Our immigration system is built on a carceral framework. It’s no accident that challenging how we approach both these issues are considered “controversial” stances.
— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) February 23, 2021
They require reimagining our relationship to each other and challenging common assumptions we take for granted.
Ocasio-Cortez argued, “It’s only 2 [months] into this admin and our fraught, unjust immigration system will not transform in that time. That’s why bold reimagination is so [important]. DHS shouldn’t exist, agencies should be reorganized, ICE gotta go, ban for-profit detention, create climate refugee status [and] more.”
It’s only 2 mos into this admin & our fraught, unjust immigration system will not transform in that time.
— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) February 23, 2021
That’s why bold reimagination is so impt.
DHS shouldn’t exist, agencies should be reorganized, ICE gotta go, ban for-profit detention, create climate refugee status & more.
Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) also joined her colleague in criticizing the Biden administration for this decision.
“Multiple administrations have made the callous choice to lock up thousands of children seeking refuge in the United States of America. As long as we see people seeking a better life as ‘aliens’ instead of fellow human beings, our immigration system will continue to fail us,” she tweeted on Tuesday.
Multiple administrations have made the callous choice to lock up thousands of children seeking refuge in the United States of America.
— Ilhan Omar (@IlhanMN) February 24, 2021
As long as we see people seeking a better life as “aliens” instead of fellow human beings, our immigration system will continue to fail us. https://t.co/xE1lmgSnJj
White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki sought to defend the administration’s decision during a press briefing on Tuesday, as IJR reported.
She told reporters it is a “temporary reopening” and their intention is “very much to close it, but we want to ensure that we can follow COVID protocols as unaccompanied minors come into the United States.”
When asked about criticism from Biden and Harris about the previous administration using the same facility, she said, “This is not kids being kept in cages. This is a facility that was opened that’s going to follow the same standards as other HHS facilities. It is not a replication, certainly not.”