Written by Ken Taylor, Kids Forward ED/CEO

When I was asked yesterday how I wanted to spend my Father’s Day, I realized that as a parent I needed to spend some of that day speaking out about the child abuse being perpetrated by our nation’s leaders by separating children from their parents at our southern border.

I use the term child abuse specifically and purposefully, because among the long list of harmful actions being taken by the Trump Administration against immigrant children and families, separating children, including babies, from their parents (nearly 2,000 children in the last 6 weeks), causes the most immediate harm and should be considered child abuse. As a parent, my heart breaks, particularly on the day that celebrates my role within my family, as I realize the trauma that our government is perpetrating on children.

Imagine a family that is persecuted for its religion or targeted by a vicious gang. The family feels that to protect their children they have no other choice but to leave the only place they have ever known and escape to the United States. Finally, they arrive at our border, knowing that the U.S. has historically welcomed families fleeing persecution because so many Americans have a parent, grandparent, or other ancestor who made the same journey.

But instead, the Border Patrol—under a new plan conceived by the Trump Administration, arrests these asylum seekers as criminals and proceeds to remove their children from their protesting arms.

This is certainly traumatic for parents, but it inflicts enormous trauma on the children, which will have significant negative impact both immediately and over the long term—this horrifies me as a parent, cuts against any sense of decency, and violates basic human rights. Yet, although this type of family separation at our southern border reflects a recent change of policy, the act of separating families—especially families of color—is not unique to our current immigration fight. We must acknowledge our nation’s history of family separation, and speak out against the current systems and policies that separate families today. Any and all forms of separating families must end in this country.

Wisconsin is a state that claims to take trauma seriously. Trauma informed care is the signature initiative of First Lady Tonette Walker. Last month, Mrs. Walker released the following statement: “Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) can have lifelong impacts on children’s physical health, mental health, ability to learn, and ability to create and maintain relationships. Trauma-Informed Care (TIC) helps us to address the root of these problems and improve outcomes for these children. Thank you to Congressman Gallagher and Congressman Davis for once again taking the lead in Washington and bringing national attention to the importance of TIC and the Science of ACEs by creating the Trauma-Informed Care Caucus. They are valuable allies in teaching more people nationwide about the power of TIC.”

I agree with Mrs. Walker’s statement and appreciate her work to highlight this important issue. Adverse childhood experiences do have lifelong impacts on children’s physical and mental health, and we should do everything within our power to mitigate trauma. So I ask her to join me in advocating against actions our federal government is taking that create trauma.

I also ask each of you to contact Congress, and tell Senator Ron Johnson and Senator Tammy Baldwin, and tell them to pressure the Trump Administration to stop this harmful policy they have recently chosen to design and implement. You can reach both Senators by calling 1-877-233-9025 or by using this tool provided ACLU.  I also ask those of you that live in U.S. Representative Mike Gallagher’s district to contact his office and ask him to use his leadership on the Trauma-Informed Care Caucus as an opportunity to teach more people nationwide about the lifelong impacts of the trauma inducing anti-immigrant policies of the Trump Administration. You can call his office at (202) 225-5665 or email him here.

After many of us just spent the weekend celebrating fathers and family, it’s only right that we turn our attention to the thousands of families being torn apart by the hands of our government. Let’s stand up for these families and demand that our elected leaders demonstrate compassion, integrity, and basic humanity.