The Harmful Consequence of Separating Families 

The presidents of NAS, NAE, and NAM have issued a statement urging the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to immediately stop separating migrant children from their families. Reports from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine contain an extensive body of evidence on the factors that affect the welfare of children – evidence that points to the danger of current immigration enforcement actions that separate children from their parents. In addition, the Committee on Human Rights stresses that the practice of separating parents from their children at the border is inconsistent with U.S. obligations under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.  

 Read about the Presidents' statement in the news: 

• "'Children must not be abused for political purposes': What health groups say about family separation" in the Los Angeles Times
• "Separating Families May Cause Lifelong Health Damage" in Scientific American 
• "Biggest U.S. doctors group condemns family separation policy" in Politico 
• "Top medical, science groups sharply denounce Trump's family separation policy" in the Houston Chronicle 
• "Splitting families may end, but migrant kids' trauma needs to be studied" in ScienceNews 
• "As a doctor and father, I'm relieved Donald Trump won't separate more children from parents" in USA Today
• "Separated Migrant Children Face Lasting Psychological Trauma" in Live Science 
• "Border separations could have traumatic impact on children, doctors say" in The Baltimore Sun
• "Trump now claims migrant children will be reunited with their families. Here are the lifelong psychological consequences these kids face." in Business Insider