2014: Years of record-breaking violence and poverty, massive increase in gang activity and civil unrest forced hundreds of thousands of Latin Americans to flee to the United States
On World Refugee Day, a day meant for advocacy and education, the Obama administration announced a crackdown on undocumented immigrants, calling for increased mandatory detention and speedy deportation of children and families. One week after this announcement, the Artesia Family Detention Center opened. For a timeline of the more recent (2014 - 2019) developments in family detention, click here.