Toxic Stress: Issue Brief on Family Separation and Child Detention

By Jack P. Shonkoff, M.D.
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The separation of children from their parents and their prolonged detention for an indefinite period of time raise profound concerns that transcend partisan politics and demand immediate resolution. Forcibly separating children from their parents is like setting a house on fire. Preventing rapid reunification is like blocking the first responders from doing their job. And subjecting children to prolonged detention (even with their parents) is like dripping gasoline on smoldering embers that will keep the fire going.

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