And yet, until the early 2000s (I wonder what happened right around then...) that was exactly our policy. Even today, +80% of families released show up to thei

And yet, until the early 2000s (I wonder what happened right around then...) that was exactly our policy. Even today, +80% of families released show up to their immigration court hearings after being released[1]. (edit) Here's data going back to 2001 showing +90% appearance rate[2] The idea that we have to hold them indefinitely (and thus split children apart from parents) or else they might slip away and get lost in the system is based on an assumption that the people we're detaining don't want to do the right thing. The vast majority of them do. The reason they're crossing illegally is usually because they are fleeing a time-sensitive problem (domestic violence, gangs, etc.) that they can't wait for our immigration bureaucracy to sort out and let them in "the right way." Once they're here, they seem very willing to be in the system if it means getting a chance to stay. [1] https://trac.syr.edu/immigration/reports/562/ https://trac.syr.edu/immigration/reports/562/ [2] https://www.humanrightsfirst.org/resource/fact-check-asylum-seekers-regularly-attend-immigration-court-hearings https://www.humanrightsfirst.org/resource/fact-check-asylum-...