Unaccompanied Minors To Be Detained In New Mexico
Update, April 1, 2021: On Tuesday, 4/1/2021, NMILC staff received the following message from Glorieta Camps staff:
“We actually just received word from the government that they will not be moving forward with using Glorieta as an Emergency Intake Site at this time. They may be interested in using our site in the future, at which point we will reach out for volunteers, donations, etc. but right now we are putting all of these efforts on pause until further notice.” -Glorieta Camps representative
On March 30, 2021, the Sante Fe New Mexican reported that Glorieta Camps in Glorieta, NM, had received instructions to prepare for as many as 2400 unaccompanied minors as an Emergency Intake Site (EIS). The majority of these children are fleeing their home countries in Central America, which have seen increased violence and food insecurity over the last year.
As reported by the Sante Fe New Mexican:
“The operators of an adventure retreat in Glorieta were preparing Tuesday for the potential arrival this week of an influx of immigrant children and youth in need of temporary housing.
According to a volunteer page on the Glorieta Camps website, the organization was asked by the White House and Health and Human Services Department to “house and feed potentially 2400 unaccompanied children.”
Josh Nelson, an executive assistant for Glorieta Camps, said he expected the organization to issue a news release regarding a federal contract for the camp to house the children, but he was unsure when the deal would be finalized. As of late Tuesday night, the camp had not issued the statement.”
“We have been asked by the White House and HHS (Health and Human Services) to prepare our facilities immediately to be able to house and feed potentially 2400 unaccompanied children. We’re asking that you help us with this urgent need as we need people to help with meals, recreation, youth supervision, and housekeeping.”
-Glorieta Camps Website, https://glorieta.org/eis-sign-up/
It is believed that the unaccompanied minors will be detained in Glorieta for only a brief amount of time before they can be united with a sponsor. Because of the shifting policies around this process and the bottleneck caused by COVID-19 (and other factors) there is no way to be certain how long these minors will be detained in Glorieta, NM.
By law, minors who make their way into the country without a parent or guardian must be turned over to the Department of Health and Human Services 72 hours after they're taken into custody by Border Patrol. They are then placed with a sponsor, which can be a parent or relative already living in the United States. For more information about the number of unaccompanied minors, click here.
This is a developing story, please check back for updates. Sign up for our newsletter for more:
Published March 31, 2021
Written by Lydia Phillips, NMILC’s Communications Specialist.
