Care in Containment: Exploring the Role and Challenges of Social Workers in Detention Facilities for Unaccompanied Children

Abstract

This dissertation consists of an ethnographic study of clinical social workers inside detention facilities for unaccompanied children in the Southwestern United States. In the U.S., unaccompanied children are detained by Border Patrol or the Bureau of Immigration Customs Enforcement (BICE) and then transferred to private nonprofit facilities funded by the Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR). Since the inception of the ORR system in 2003, over 600,000 children have been detained in enclosed facilities. This anthropological study sheds light on the complex articulations of care by professionals inside these detention facilities that are tasked with providing mental health and child advocacy within compulsory programs. The dissertation captures the voices of workers employed inside these facilities who currently or previously provided therapy, released recommendations, and performed child advocacy for children in detention awaiting reunification with a family member in the U.S. This research provides a critical perspective on the reception context, specifically on unaccompanied children and, more broadly, on governmentality and bordering practices. This research also highlights the various forms of disciplining and surveillance endured by NGO workers. Finally, this project also has an applied component. Findings from this dissertation may also inform immediate efforts to improve reception services for unaccompanied children and staff as they continue to face ongoing forms of violence within the detention system and after their release.