Demonstrators led rallies and protests on Saturday to decry the separation of immigrant parents from their children by U.S. border authorities, while Democratic lawmakers said they aren’t convinced the Trump administration has any real plan to reunite them.
Hundreds of people rallied near a Homestead, Fla., facility where immigrant children are being held. Demonstrators also marched in San Diego carrying signs reading “Free the Kids” and “Keep Families Together.”
Outside a border patrol facility in McAllen, Texas, protesters temporarily blocked a bus carrying immigrants and shouted “Shame! Shame!” at border agents.
The demonstrations came days after the Trump administration reversed course in the face of public and political outrage and had authorities stop separating immigrant families caught crossing the U.S.-Mexico border.
In recent weeks, more than 2,300 children were taken from their families under a “zero-tolerance” policy in which people entering the U.S. illegally face prosecution. While the family separations were ended, confusion has ensued, with parents left searching for their children.
And the administration says it will now seek to detain immigrant families during their immigration proceedings, which has also stoked an outcry.
More protests are planned for next weekend in states from Connecticut to California.
Evelyn Stauffer, a spokeswoman for the Department of Health and Human Services, said her agency is trying to help reunite families or place unaccompanied immigrant children with an appropriate sponsor.