With @AssociatedPress, an Emmy Award-winning examination into conditions inside federally-funded shelter programs for detained migrant children and the lasting impact on kids who were held in U.S. government custody. (Aired 2019)
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Detention of migrant children climbed to historic levels during President Donald Trump’s first term. Drawing on confidential government data obtained by @AssociatedPress, “Caught in the Crackdown” revealed how many migrant kids were being held — and where — at any given time.
With unique access — including inside a “tender age” shelter that held some of the youngest children in government custody — the film illuminated what happened when a child apprehended by Customs and Border Protection was handed over to the Department of Health and Human Services, known as HHS. The documentary examined how changes in policies for how sponsors were vetted meant kids were held in government custody for longer and longer periods, and in larger and larger numbers.
In 2020, the documentary was honored with a News Emmy in the “Outstanding Continuing Coverage of a News Story in a Newsmagazine” category.
“Kids Caught in the Crackdown” was a FRONTLINE production with Five O’Clock Films in partnership with The Associated Press. The writers, producers and directors were Daffodil Altan and Andrés Cediel. The co-producer was Sasha Joelle Achilli. The reporters were Garance Burke and Martha Mendoza. The correspondent was Daffodil Altan. The senior producer was Frank Koughan. The international investigations editor for AP was Ron Nixon. The editor-in-chief and executive producer of FRONTLINE is Raney Aronson-Rath.
Explore additional reporting on “Kids Caught in the Crackdown” on our website:
https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/frontline/documentary/kids-caught-in-the-crackdown/
#Documentary #Detention #Immigration
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Funding for FRONTLINE is provided through the support of PBS viewers and by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, with major support from Ford Foundation, and The Fialkow Family Foundation, as part of the Plum Bush Foundation. Additional support for FRONTLINE is provided by the Abrams Foundation, Park Foundation, John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, Heising-Simons Foundation, and the FRONTLINE Trust, with major support from Jon and Jo Ann Hagler on behalf of the Jon L. Hagler Foundation, and Corey David Sauer, and additional support from Koo and Patricia Yuen.
CHAPTERS
00:00 – Introduction
02:39 – Examining the U.S. Government’s Shelters for Detained Migrant Kids
08:18 – Why the Number of Migrant Kids in Detention Increased During President Trump’s First Term
14:24 – The Mental Health Toll of Detention on Children
25:56 – Credits
