Smithsonian
Institute seeks to preserve 'History as It Unfolds'
The Smithsonian's National Museum of
American History requested drawings made by recently released migrant children,
it was reported Monday—the same day that the United Nations human rights
chief said she was "appalled" at the conditions faced by migrants in
U.S. custody.
"The museum has a long
commitment to telling the complex and complicated history of the United States
and to documenting that history as it unfolds," the museum said in a
statement to CNN.
Indeed, the Smithsonian's mission says
it seeks to "explore the infinite richness and complexity of American
history" and "help people understand the past in order to make sense
of the present and shape a more humane future."
Indeed, the Smithsonian's mission says
it seeks to "explore the infinite richness and complexity of American
history" and "help people understand the past in order to make sense
of the present and shape a more humane future."
The drawings in question were made
by two 10-year-olds and one 11-year-old, and were shared with media last
week by the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP).
The children made them while at the Catholic Charities Humanitarian Respite Center in McAllen, Texas, after being released from a U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) processing center.
The children made them while at the Catholic Charities Humanitarian Respite Center in McAllen, Texas, after being released from a U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) processing center.
Conditions inside Border Patrol
detention centers in Texas—including deprivation of prompt medical attention
and lack of basic hygiene supplies—have already been sharply criticized in
first-hand accounts from the Department of Homeland Security's Inspector
General, Democratic lawmakers, lawyers,
medical professionals, and even border agents.The drawings captured the horrors on another level, showing the detained children's experiences through their own eyes.
"The fact that the drawings are
so realistic and horrific gives us a view into what these children have
experienced," Dr. Colleen Kraft, immediate past president of the
AAP, told CNN.
Renee Romano, a professor of history
at Oberlin College, told CNN that the museum's recognition of
the children's drawings as historically significant was "an amazing"
and "brave stance."
The heart of the human rights
catastrophe, however, is the conditions that triggered the drawings in the
first place, which prompted rebuke from U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights
Michelle Bachelet.
"As a pediatrician, but also as
a mother and a former head of state," Bachelet said in a statement Monday,
"I am deeply shocked that children are forced to sleep on the floor in
overcrowded facilities, without access to adequate healthcare or food, and with
poor sanitation conditions."
"Detaining a child even for
short periods under good conditions can have a serious impact on their health
and development—consider the damage being done every day by allowing this
alarming situation to continue," she said.
Bachelet's call for humane treatment
extended to adult migrants as well, and she urged U.S. authorities to comply
with "human rights obligations."
"In most of these cases, the
migrants and refugees have embarked on perilous journeys with their children in
search of protection and dignity and away from violence and hunger," said
Bachelet.
"When they finally believe they have arrived in safety, they may find themselves separated from their loved ones and locked in undignified conditions. This should never happen anywhere."
"When they finally believe they have arrived in safety, they may find themselves separated from their loved ones and locked in undignified conditions. This should never happen anywhere."
