Immigrant Children Begin School In New Mexico Detention Center
About 200 immigrant children held in a remote facility in New Mexico began school this week.
The children are being held at a temporary detention facility in Artesia, which began operating this summer. Children between the ages of 4 and 17 attend school from 8 A.M. to 2 P.M., which includes a lunch break.
Classes include science, math and physical education. They're taught by the Florida-based nonprofit AMIkids, which specializes in schooling youth in juvenile detention.
The Artesia houses close to 500 women and children, most from Central American countries, who entered the country illegally. Some are awaiting court dates, others face deportation. A group of legal organizations is suing the federal government, saying it failed to give due process to immigrants with legitimate asylum claims. A new family detention center is set to open in Texas before the end of the year.
