A new report from the Brookings Institution reveals that more than 145,000 U.S. citizen children have likely been separated from at least one parent due to detention in the second Trump administration's immigration enforcement push. The study, released Monday, estimates over 22,000 children have lost both parents to custody.
The nonprofit policy group warns that only about 1,000—or 5 percent—of these children have received any support from the child welfare system, based on interviews with community organizations and agencies. The rest are either staying with relatives or friends, or have left the country with a deported parent.
“The bottom line is that there is no systematic approach to protecting the children of those detained by ICE,” the report states. It adds that Immigration and Customs Enforcement “does not directly involve itself in safeguarding the well-being of a detainee’s children,” only referring cases to child protection when minors are present at an arrest and no alternative care is immediately available.
Administration Defends Policy Amid Criticism
ICE countered by telling The Hill that it offers undocumented immigrants $2,600 and a free flight to self-deport. The agency asserted, “ICE does not separate families. Parents are asked if they want to be removed with their children or ICE will place the children with a safe person the parent designates.” It called the policy consistent with past administrations, adding, “Being in detention is a choice.”
Critics, however, point to the scale of the separations. Brookings estimates 36.5 percent of affected children are under age 6, 36.1 percent are ages 6 to 12, and 27.4 percent are 13 to 17. Over half—53.7 percent—have a detained parent from Mexico, followed by Guatemala (15 percent) and Honduras (10.7 percent).
Geographic and Demographic Disparities
Washington, D.C., and Texas see the highest rates, with more than 5 per 1,000 children facing parental detention. The Department of Homeland Security reported 18,277 detainees in fiscal 2025 who are parents of U.S. citizen children, though Brookings calls that figure “almost certainly a substantial undercount.”
The report used data from the Detention Data Project, matching detainee demographics with American Community Survey responses to infer the number of affected children. The findings come as Republicans scramble to advance immigration legislation and public anxiety over Trump's economic policies grows.
The Hill has sought comment from DHS and USCIS.
