The Psychological Effects of Detention Centers

By: Kenzie Stokes

The image above shows the inside of a detention
ne of the biggest political topics in America is center in Texas. This shows the kids are given a thin
immigration, especially immigrants from Central and South mat and a foilf like blanket. They are forced to sleep
America. There have been debates on what the Government in the ground at close proximity. The children are
should do with these people who come over seeking help, given no personal space and there is a guard posted
and if America should use taxpayers money to build a wall by the door at all times to watch the children to make
on the Mexican-American border. In 2016 there were about sure they behave.
10.4 million undocumented immigrants in the United
States. Every year hundreds of thousands of people cross
the Mexico-American border to enter the United states and
find a safer, better life. People are running from horrors like
gang violence, drugs, and many more dangers. They also
cross to try and find a better home for their children. In a
lot of South American countries children cannot go to
school due to gangs overthrowing their towns. One of the
biggest and most prominent gangs is MS-13, they have
complete control over San Salvador as well as El Salvador
and try to recruit as many children as possible, they watch
children walk to school and then try to convince them to
join the gang. If the children refuse the gang members will
murder them. In one of the most severe cases a boy went
missing on the way home from school and a day later This picture shows two types of brains, on with
police found his dismembered body buried in a field. He depression and one without burying a PET scan . One
was 11. There are so many reasons for parents to send their of the most common mental health struggling child
children over to America. The only problem is they end up immigrants have to deal with is depression. The
battle you find a new way to win the war.” This children were living and how they were being depressed brain doesn't show as much activity
being put in children detention centers, being in these
quote was taken directly from one of his twitter treated reminded him of some of the jails he's toured because they don't release the same amount of
prison-like facilities can cause psychological damage to the
posts from May 2014. At Casa Padre kids are only before. hormones that a non-depressed person shows. This
children. Even in family detention centers minors have
aloud to go outside for two hours a day; one hour PTSD, depression, anxiety, and other mental health causes their brain not to function normally.
shown to have high psychological damage.
is structured time and the other hour is free time. diseases have major impacts on a developing child.
There are detention centers all along the
The rest of the day they are forced to stay inside New Scientific research has shown that the child's
Mexican-American border. One of the biggest immigrant
the detention center, this has shown to be very positive and negative experiences can shape the
child detention centers is Casa Padre, a former
damaging on the children’s overall health, mental brain. Studies show that the more a child witnesses
Super-Walmart, located in Brownsville, Texas (Paiella). In
and physical. One reporter named Jacob Soboroff violence the more neurotransmitters in the brain The Trump
this detention center there are a little over 1,400 boys under
was invited to tour the facility, when he was inside create feelings of fear and violence. Because so administration is
18, and about 5% of them have been separated from their
he was told to smile at the children because “they much of the development in the brain is focused on making it harder
parents. Before these young boys are allowed access inside
feel like animals in a cage being looked at.” In an these feeling it decreases growth in the part of the for children to stay
they are tested for tuberculosis, sexually transmitted
article by the New Internationalist titled, Making a brain that helps with planning, reading, and in the US even
diseases and other life threatening illnesses, they also
Killing they talked about how cruel the behavioral control. The detention centers damage though they have
receive up to date vaccinations. This detention center is
immigration centers really are, specifically the one the children's mental health while they are still in no better place to
currently overcrowded and has harsh living conditions. As
in texas, “In Australia, this facility couldn't even the developing stage. The immigrants go through so Go. They have also started making people pay to seek asylum
soon as one enters Casa Padre they are greeted with a mural
serve as a dog kennel. The owners would be much and are trying to find a better, safer even though they have to money.
of Donald Trump with the words, “Sometimes by losing a
jailed.” (18) Soboroff also said that the way the home.