Humanity’s Children

Last week, the annual conference of the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) became emotional over unaccompanied minors coming in unprecedented numbers to the US.  The Deputy Secretary of DHS,  Alejandro Mayorkas, followed prepared remarks with a Q&A.  He was asked what was being done to protect these children.  He paused and told the story about how his morning had begun.  He received a graphic report of an alien family, mother and 2 children,  who had crossed into Texas.  The mother and 1 of the children had been run over and killed in an auto accident.  He started his morning learning of a 5-year-old recently orphaned child on US soil—there was an emotionally charged silence by Sec. Mayorkas and by the audience of 3,000 immigration lawyers.