Via Joaquin Castro's Facebook page
Joaquin Castro, shown here at a Washington press conference, has fired off a letter to the secretary of Health and Human Services about the Tornillo tent city.
The San Antonio Democrat sent a letter to Heath and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar demanding that he explain what's being done to protect the kids, ensure access to legal representation and how long they're expected to remain there. He also asked whether the government plans to open more such facilities.
“I inspected the Tornillo tent camps in June and can attest that it is no place for a child to live,” Castro wrote of the unregulated site in the West Texas desert.
“At the height of the family separation crisis, reports indicated that the shelter would remain open until August. HHS has renewed the Tornillo contract twice and it is now expected to remain open through the end of the year.”
Earlier this week, the New York Times reported that hundreds of teens were transported by bus to the tent city in the middle of the night and without notice. The children had previously been housed in licensed shelters around the country, which are now reaching capacity.
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