The Negative Impact of Detention on People's Well-Being
Dania, Undergraduate Student (UM-Dearborn) Immigration detention facilities are utilized to detain immigrants in the United States. It is known to be one of the largest and most popular methods to detain and process the removal of undocumented individuals. Although this process is deemed effective in the sense of protecting the nation, the process of detention and removal witnessed by immigrants, community members, and former employees is rather terrifying and dehumanizing. The detention of immigrants has clearly been shown to have critical negative impacts on the well-being of children, families, and communities. Immigrants incarcerated in detention facilities are exposed to several negative behaviors. For example, they are exposed to sexual harassment and physical abuse. There were 33,000 complaints of this issue from 2010 to 2016, yet, the government acknowledged less than 1% of the cases reported. Furthermore, immigrants suffer from malnutrition because they are not given adequate resources. They also experience medical neglect, they are separated from their families and loved ones, and receive inadequate mental healthcare and poor living conditions. All of these circumstances are leading factors that impact an immigrant’s physical and psychosocial well-being. For instance, as Ackerman et al. note, detained fathers who were living with their children prior to detention “experienced anguish as a result of their separation from their children.” Separation has also caused fathers and mothers to experience emotional and behavioral maladjustment. In addition, research shows that children become depressed and shaken by losing a parent to deportation. There is obviously major mental health risks in adults and children as a result of this brutal process of deportation. Considering the separation of families, many undocumented children are held in children detention facilities with “no adequate food, water, and sanitation,” in which teens and infants are left alone to raise themselves without any adult supervision. They are being held in inhumane conditions with minimal medical/mental healthcare and support from the administration. These horrible living conditions attests to the negative impact of deportation on children’s well-being. Immigration detention facilities have also negatively affected former detention officers. A former officer, Doug Epps, described how he was trained to believe that all immigrants were criminals no matter their ethnicity or criminal record. He was given strict guidelines and forced to treat them differently. He described how the environment he created around himself caused him deep distress and paranoia where he constantly felt discomfort and questioned the morality of his profession. Overall, it is evident that detention is affecting people’s well-being both inside and outside these facilities. It is imperative to address these issues to help reinforce a better strategy to manage the immigration system and reform the training, education, and policies on detention officers. Since many immigrants are undergoing mental and physical distress, people need to be more considerate and understanding when speaking and treating those who are detained. Additionally, employees should be aware of which immigrants have been convicted of crimes and which are simply requesting asylum because this can vary the punishment sentences experienced by the immigrants. They should also have background in criminal justice and immigration because this can help change their outlook about the incarceration of immigrants and how to support them. Lastly, the government should not treat immigrants inhumanely for they should be equally treated and supported if they are to be detained in a place until further notice. Ultimately, there are many ways to combat the issues behind the negative impact immigration detention facilities has on many people. Hopefully, the Biden Administration will initiate ways to mitigate this process to assist those seeking refuge in America and desire to become citizens. References: 1. Ackerman, et al. 2014. “Privatizing Immigration Detention Centers.” Pp. 101-114 in The Criminalization of Immigration: Contexts and Consequences, edited by A. R. Ackerman and R. Furman. NC: Carolina Academic Press. 2. Epps, Doug. 2014. “The Impact of Detaining Immigrants on a Detention Officer: An Autoethnography.” Pp. 271-282 in The Criminalization of Immigration: Contexts and Consequences, edited by A. R. Ackerman and R. Furman. NC: Carolina Academic Press. 3. Greenwald, Robert. 2017. “A Look Inside Our Abusive Immigrant Prisons.” The Nation. Retrieved Mar. 22, 2021. (https://www.thenation.com/article/archive/a-look-inside-our-abusive-immigrant-prisons/). 4. PBS News Hour. 2019. “A Firsthand Report of ‘Inhuman Conditions’ at a Migrant Children’s Detention Facility.” Retrieved Mar. 22, 2021. (https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/a-firsthand-report-of-inhumane-conditions-at-a-migrant-childrens-detention-facility).
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