In a victory for human rights and dignity in the United States on Thursday, a federal court ruled that the government must provide hygienic necessities such as showers, towels, toothbrushes and soap to migrant children detained at the border in a blow to President Donald Trump’s campaign of cruelty.
Back in June, Department of Justice lackey Sarah Fabian had the gall to disgustingly argue before a panel of Ninth Circuit Court judges in San Francisco that the Trump administration should not have to provide such things for children detained in migrant detention camps as required by the 1997 decree stemming from the Flores settlement.
From the start, the judges were not amused by her argument.
“It’s within everybody’s common understanding that if you don’t have a toothbrush, you don’t have soap, you don’t have a blanket, those are not safe and sanitary,” Judge A. Wallace Tashima said.
“You’re really going to stand up and tell us that not being able to sleep isn’t a question of safe and sanitary conditions?” Judge Marsha Berzon chimed in.
Indeed, children were forced to sleep on cold concrete floors with the lights turned on and only an aluminum blanket. It’s the kind of conditions a prisoner of war might face. But innocent children certainly should be treated better.
“No one would argue that this is safe and sanitary,” Judge William Fletcher said.
Needless to say, Trump lost. Because the court issued a ruling ordering the administration to provide what it has been denying these kids for months.
“Assuring that children eat enough edible food, drink clean water, are housed in hygienic facilities with sanitary bathrooms, have soap and toothpaste, and are not sleep-deprived are without doubt essential to the children’s safety,” the ruling stated.
Trump will likely stubbornly appeal to the Supreme Court, but the law is the law, and even the Supreme Court will surely agree and uphold the ruling. If not, the high court will have once again proven that it has been corrupted by Trump and that this nation truly has disregarded the values of compassion and humanity that have served us well for many decades.
For now, Trump has been defeated and these children are going to get what they need. And that is worthy of celebration.
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