Advocacy group urges immigration policy overhaul to protect Texas children’s mental health

EL PASO, TEXAS (KFOX14/CBS4) — Children at Risk, a non-profit advocacy group, raised concerns on Wednesday about a mental health crisis among Texas children, attributing it to immigration enforcement practices.

According to Children at Risk, prolonged detention and the threat of deportation are causing lasting developmental harm to hundreds of local children.

In a press conference on Wednesday, the group called for a child-centered overhaul of federal policy to end family detention and redirect resources to other priorities.

Bob Sanborn, CEO of Children at Risk, pointed towards the need for immigration enforcement to prioritize genuine public safety interests.

“We want immigration enforcement to focus on genuine public safety interests, not children or families that are seeking stability,” Sanborn said. “One of the things that we care about at Children at Risk is that public policy should protect children, not traumatize them. And right now what we see is this trauma that’s happening.”

He added, ” We have overwhelming evidence that these environments increase anxiety, depression, and trauma in children, while failing to improve public safety. Protecting children’s mental health should be a non-negotiable standard in federal policy.”

Children at Risk has cited data arguing that immigration practices are harming the mental health of children.

Citing the Associated Press, Children at Risk reveals that in December 2025, court documents revealed that approximately 400 children of immigrants were detained in Texas facilities, with an average processing time of 168 days or more.

Meanwhile, according to The Lancet Regional Health, the detention environment often fails to identify psychological needs among detainees who are children, as these detention centers use non-validated or inadequate mental health screening tools.

Additionally, Children at Risk cited data from Social Science and Medicine that states nearly half of the children forcibly separated from their mothers experienced serious emotional problems, with about 17% showing signs consistent with post-traumatic stress disorder.

KFOX14/CBS4 reached out to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) on Thursday with questions on how the agency tracks and follows up with children showing signs of anxiety, depression, or trauma while in custody.

Additionally, KFOX14/CBS4 has inquired about safeguards in place to ensure detention policies do not harm children.

At the time of publication. DHS has not responded.

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