Honduran mother reunites with her children after three years of being separated during Trump administration

The mother of two teenagers surprised them in Philadelphia, where they were sent in 2017 by the government of Donald Trump

Photo: Organization Las Americas / Courtesy

This week, the government of the president Joe Biden reported the start of the reunion of separated families during the administration of Donald Trump .

The first case is that of a mother from Honduras , who surprised his children in Philadelphia and in the midst of tears and hugs they celebrated their reunion, after three and a half years of being separated .

The family was last seen in September 2017, when the mother was detained at the border with Mexico and her children detained and then sent to her extended family. Now they have 17 and 19 years.

“This family in the place of being received with dignity and compassion on the border with Mexico, she was traumatized separated without the right to a translator or access to a lawyer ”, lamented the organization Las Americas, one of the groups that helps in family reunification. “The children were detained by the Border Patrol ( CBP ), then transferred to a shelter and finally reunited with their extended family. ”

The mother was first sent to an Immigration and Customs Control detention center ( ICE ), where he spent almost two years

“Despite the efforts of The Americas to prevent their deportation, was sent in 2019 to the same country from which he fled out of fear ”, it is indicated. The minors lost three years of being with their mother.

Linda Corchado, director of Legal Services of the Americas and lawyer of the mother, highlighted the legal battle of the Honduran.

“Tuesday night For the first time in three and a half years, two children were able to receive a goodnight kiss from their mother, after the United States government separated them from the most important person in their lives ”, He said. “Children like them have fled persecution and in fear of never seeing their families and loved ones again. Our country is capable of honoring our asylum laws and respecting the dignity and security of these families. ”

Corchado highlighted the migrant mother’s struggle to reconnect with their lives.

“On Tuesday we were able to witness the power of the love of a mother who never gave up,” he said. “Let this be the example of the change for which we fight every day.”

The Biden Administration created a Task Force that is in charge of reuniting families separated during the past government. It is estimated that more than 5, 000 families were affected.