{"id":23249,"date":"2019-07-12T17:42:31","date_gmt":"2019-07-12T17:42:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.jww.org\/?p=23249"},"modified":"2019-07-12T17:42:31","modified_gmt":"2019-07-12T17:42:31","slug":"is-us-border-crisis-a-mass-atrocity","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/jww.org\/site\/is-us-border-crisis-a-mass-atrocity\/","title":{"rendered":"Is the U.S. border crisis a mass atrocity?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Kids in cages.  Scenes of chaos and filth, where basic necessities are denied to the most vulnerable: children in a foreign land forced to fend for themselves.  We at Jewish World Watch (JWW) have, unfortunately, come to somewhat expect such conditions in the crisis situations where we work, but we have been shocked to learn of such egregious rights violations occurring on our own turf.  <\/span><\/p>\n

As individuals, we were gutted by the unconscionable conditions spotlighted by a team of lawyers who visited a Customs and Border Patrol child migrant facility in Clint, Tex. last month.  As an organization, we were faced with the question of whether Jewish World Watch \u2014 as a group focused on mass atrocities and genocide \u2014 should engage. We have decided that the answer to that question is: yes.  <\/span><\/p>\n

Even though the border crisis, particularly as it affects innocent children in detention facilities, may not currently qualify as a clearcut mass atrocity situation, we are also a prevention organization, and we are concerned now that many of the telltale signs that signal a mass atrocity already exist.  The risk of devolution is clear and imminent enough for Jewish World Watch to take a stand and educate our constituents on the potential atrocity dimensions of what is going on. <\/span><\/p>\n

The conditions in migrant detention facilities along the border of the United States and Mexico, particularly the facilities housing children, have rocked the conscience of the American people.  Children as young as 7 and 8, many of them wearing clothes caked with snot and tears, are caring for infants whom they\u2019ve just met, overseen by guards in full uniform, including weapons, wearing masks to protect themselves from the filth and disease.  Across the board, these children\u2019s prolonged stays in these facilities have been shaped by similar conditions: exposure to extreme temperatures, overcrowding, inadequate food and accompanying complaints of hunger, sleep deprivation, physical and verbal abuse, and chronic lack of water, sanitation, beds, clothing, and medical attention.<\/span><\/p>\n

Is this a mass atrocity?<\/b><\/h3>\n

Mass atrocities encompass war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide.  When we talk about whether a mass atrocity is underway in regards to the detention of migrant children along the U.S. border, what we\u2019re specifically talking about are crimes against humanity.  Crimes against humanity are generally understood to encompass a government\u2019s deliberate, systematic actions against any civilian population causing great suffering, physical or mental health injuries.  The key is that the violations are deliberate<\/em> and either systematic<\/em> or widespread<\/em>.<\/span><\/p>\n

Article 7 of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court defines crimes against humanity.  And, while the United States is not a signatory of the Rome Statute establishing the International Criminal Court, this definition codifies a customary international criminal law norm widely understood to be binding on all countries.  When any one of a list of 11 acts is <\/span>committed as part of a widespread or systematic attack directed against any civilian population, with knowledge of the attack<\/span>, they qualify as crimes against humanity.  The list of acts includes:<\/span><\/p>\n