The Trump administration’s indefinite refugee ban, stop work orders and prolonged delays in reimbursement for resettlement agencies have had a devastating impact on tens of thousands of refugee families and communities across the country and around the world. Welcome to the latest edition of State of Play from Church World Service. This resource will provide regular updates from the CWS Policy Team on the current state of play; updated asks for national, state and local leaders; and the latest headlines and community resources. Subscribe now to receive daily updates on the latest developments and ways to support impacted communities.
State of Play |
The latest: Pattern of ICE and CBP sexual violence demands congressional action; Senator seeks answers on treatment of unaccompanied children; complaints filed against DHS for Midway Blitz apartment raid.
Pattern of sexual violence involving ICE and CBP employees spurs call for accountability and oversight. Yesterday, the Southern Border Communities Coalition (SBCC) urged Congress to halt additional funding to ICE and CBP in light of a pattern of sexual misconduct within both agencies. Journalist John Carlos Frey compiled more than 170 records of sexual abuse and misconduct by ICE and CBP personnel spanning decades, including 16 identified cases within the last ten years. In addition to halting immigration enforcement funding, SBCC urged Congress to establish an independent commission to investigate sexual abuse within DHS, request a Government Accountability Office report on sexual misconduct at DHS, and restore oversight offices at DHS, including the Office of Immigration Detention Ombudsman which was recently shut down.
Senator expands investigation into abuse and neglect of unaccompanied children in government custody. Senate Finance Committee Ranking Member Ron Wyden (D-OR) sent letters to the Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy and HHS Office of Inspector General (OIG) on Tuesday seeking answers about prolonged detention, coercion to self-deport, and documented mistreatment of children in the care of the Department. Wyden argues that HHS “has gutted the Office of Refugee Resettlement’s (ORR) child-welfare mission and converted it into a front door for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) deportation operations.” The letters note several alarming trends, including a five-fold increase in the average length of care for children in ORR custody and reports that ORR’s sponsor records are being used to assist with deporting families that the agency previously vetted.
Despite these concerns, the OIG has no active investigations into the prolonged detention of children or conditions in ORR shelters. Per its own policy, ORR is required to process Category 1 (parent or legal guardian) sponsor applications within ten calendar days, yet legal service providers report that reunifications often stall for weeks or months. Notably, 176 children with Category 1 sponsors were suddenly released in March 2026, coinciding with the construction of a new family holding facility in Louisiana. The proposed facility is designed to detain families and unaccompanied children for three to five days prior to their deportation, raising concern that the sudden releases were intended to facilitate their removal from the United States.
18 residents of raided Chicago apartment complex file tort claim against DHS. On Tuesday, the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund (MALDEF), University of Chicago Immigrants’ Rights Clinic (IRC), MacArthur Justice Center, and National Immigrant Justice Center (NIJC) filed complaints on behalf of 18 people who were held at gunpoint, arrested, and brutalized during the infamous warrantless, military-style raid in September 2025 during Operation Midway Blitz. Hundreds of federal agents in combat gear broke into apartment units and zip-tied adults and children at gunpoint.
Under the Federal Tort Claims Act, the Trump administration has six months to respond to the complaints, and if they refuse to respond or deny the complaints, the residents can sue in federal court.
Stories of Impact |
| Loni is a mother of six children who fled violence and torture in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The family’s flight to Houston to reunite with her husband and the children’s father was scheduled for February – but it was cancelled after the ban went into effect. Loni and her children are now stuck indefinitely in Malawi.
The Sung family are refugees from Myanmar who were split up as they fled for safe harbor. Part of the family has been resettled in Texas, and they have been waiting for years as the rest of the family goes through the resettlement process. The flight was scheduled for early February, and the family here bought a four-bedroom home just to accommodate them. Their flight was cancelled at the last minute. Taq, a resettlement caseworker in Ohio, has witnessed first-hand the devastating impact of recent Executive Orders that have halted refugee arrivals, leaving families like his own in limbo. Taq’s cousin and his family were scheduled to arrive in the United States on February 20th but had their flights canceled, and his brothers, who are awaiting asylum interviews, are living in fear. “They are now left stranded…those still in [Afghanistan] have seen their hopes crushed.” Find more stories of impact here, and watch this space for new stories as they arise. Have a story to share? You can share it with us via this form for refugees overseas or this form for refugees, immigrants and service providers in the U.S. |
