TASSC Statement on Family Separation at the US Border

The Torture Abolition and Survivor’s Support Coalition issued the following statement today about the family separation policy at U.S. border entry points:

“We are an organization that provides treatment and services to people who have been tortured and persecuted in countries worldwide and come to the United States to seek asylum. We are familiar with the cruelty imposed by governments worldwide seeking to punish and persecute individuals who stand up for their human rights or exercise their legal rights. We condemn in the strongest possible terms the U.S. government’s effort to deter immigrants—some of whom were doubtless tortured or persecuted—from their lawful request for asylum by cruelly separating them from their children. The images and stories that are being documented at the border shock the conscience—not unlike those we hear about from those we help when they arrive from abroad. As those who treat persecuted individuals we can attest to the fact that scars like those being perpetrated by family separation do harm psychologically and emotionally. This will be true for the children and for their parents. Cruelty cannot be tolerated by any civilized nation. There is never any justification for treating people inhumanely. We urge elected officials across the United States to stand against this abhorrent human rights violation and demand that families be reunited.”