UPDATED: No immigrant children being housed at federal facilities in N.Va.

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UPDATED: No immigrant children being housed at federal facilities in N.Va.

Posted by: More Illegal aliens in NoVA ()

Date: July 15, 2014 01:30PM

UPDATED: No immigrant children being housed at federal facilities in N.Va.
http://www.insidenova.com/news/politics/updated-no-immigrant-children-being-housed-at-federal-facilities-in/article_3c85f4d4-0b88-11e4-98c5-001a4bcf887a.html

Some of the immigrant children showing up unaccompanied at the U.S. border in recent weeks have been transferred to Prince William County, Board of Supervisors Chairman Corey Stewart confirmed Monday.

Stewart, R-At Large, said that an official from Youth for Tomorrow -- a Bristow-based Christian nonprofit that provides housing, education and counseling services to troubled kids -- told him more than a week ago the organization had contracted with federal authorities to provide housing and services for some of the young immigrants being transferred from the southern borders.

Stewart said he’s also “heard rumors” that more children might be housed at the National Guard armory near the Prince William fairgrounds.

The Department of Defense on Tuesday said no undocumented children are being housed at the armory in Manassas, or any guard armory in Northern Virginia.

Armories are generally state-operated facilities, said Lt. Col. Tom Crosson, a DoD spokesman.

The DoD is working with the Department of Health and Human Services to identify federal facilities for the recent influx of unaccompanied minors, but no facilities in Northern Virginia are being considered, Crosson said.

Stewart said he has not visited either the fairgrounds or the Youth For Tomorrow campus and could not verify the armory rumor or how many are currently staying on the Youth For Tomorrow campus.

InsideNoVA.com contacted Youth For Tomorrow as well as the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services for further information, but messages were not immediately returned.

Stewart said federal officials had not informed county officials of plans to relocate some of the children to Prince William County. He said he will discuss the situation at Tuesday’s Board of Supervisors’ meeting and will ask County Executive Melissa Peacor to investigate how many immigrant children are being housed in the county and under what circumstances.

Stewart also released a statement on his Facebook page Monday stating that no county facilities or resources are being used to help.

“The crisis at the border has again reached Prince William County. Without providing the county any notice, the federal government is now placing illegal immigrant children at private and perhaps federal facilities in our county,” the statement said.

“Although no county facilities are being used to house the children, I will ask the board tomorrow to direct the county executive to attempt to find out more about the location(s) where these children are being held and whether there is anything that the board can do to stop it. While it may seem cold hearted, it is important that these children be sent back home since letting them stay simply entices even more children to attempt the long and dangerous journey to the United States.”

In an interview Monday morning, Stewart said he told Youth for Tomorrow officials he did not support the decision to transfer children to their campus.

“When you look around the county and see the reaction many of our residents have to illegal immigrants, I just thought it was a tinder box,” Stewart said, adding that he believes the assistance sends the wrong message.

“While that might seem like the humanitarian thing to do, it’s sending a signal to others that maybe they should send their children on that long and dangerous trip,” Stewart said. “And that concerns me.”

Stewart said he “feels strongly” that the children should be deported and said he does not plan to visit either the armory or the YFT campus to personally assess the situation.

“I just think it’s going to be heartbreaking,” Stewart said of his decision not to visit either facility. “It’s a cold, hard decision [to call for children to be deported] … and I don’t want to put myself in the position where my personal feelings get in the way of what I need to do as a government official.”

Stewart also strived to distinguish the current crisis at the border with his recent efforts to determine the whereabouts of undocumented immigrants who have committed crimes in the county, calling them “two very different issues.”

During their meeting last week, supervisors voted to issue a Freedom of Information Act request to the federal Department of Homeland Security and the Immigrant and Customs Enforcement division seeking information about the estimated 7,000 undocumented immigrants who have been arrested and found guilty of committing crimes in Prince William County since 2008.

Stewart said he expects county residents to respond thoughtfully to the immigrant children being temporarily housed in the county. But he said he understands the anger some might have about the federal government’s failure adequately to address immigration issues.

“I think there’s a possibility that people are going to be upset but it’s important to keep the focus on who’s at fault,” Steward said, blaming federal officials for insufficient enforcement. “Our residents are educated and reasonable … I’m not worried they are going to be going up there with pitchforks. But they should be angry.”

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