The leader of South Florida’s nearly 5 million Catholics called Gov. Ron DeSantis’ latest decree on immigrants “bogus” and called on lawmakers not to make the mistake worse by approving related legislation.

The DeSantis order, issued on December 10, could. withdraw state license from the 60-year-old house run by the Archdiocese of Miami, where around 50 unaccompanied and undocumented immigrant children stay, according to archdiocese officials.

“This policy harms vulnerable populations”, Mgr Thomas wenski wrote in a mini editorial for the Sun Sentinel published on Sunday.

Monsignor Bryan Walsh Children’s Village open to take care of Cuban children coming to Miami via “Operation Pedro Pan,” Wenski said.

The house just celebrated its 60th anniversary^e anniversary last weekend, archdiocese officials said. Known at the time as “Boys Town”, it was part of the resettlement of some 14,000 unaccompanied Cuban minors.

Contributions from former residents of Florida and beyond, Wenski wrote, “show that magnanimity rather than meanness is a ‘best practice’ for solving immigration problems.”

Christina pushaw, the governor’s spokeswoman, said homes like the one managed by the Archdiocese of Miami will be granted a 45-day grace period starting December 10 for the transition to this new emergency rule. It’s part of DeSantis’ efforts to stop what she called the clandestine resettlement of illegal aliens. The governor defends Floridians because the president Joe biden and the federal government does not enforce immigration laws and properly control incoming children, Pushaw said.
“We hope this action will have a chilling effect on the Biden administration’s massive human trafficking operation,” she wrote in an email.

She said the way these homes are paid – a fraction of what Florida pays its U.S. children’s home providers who need homes – creates an incentive for bad policy.

“There is no incentive for group home providers to provide appropriate care for children in Florida,” she wrote.

Peter Routsis-Arroyo, CEO of Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Miami, said he’s trying to work with the DeSantis administration to keep the home’s doors open and his license up to date. He said he finds it difficult to understand why the house has become a target after so many years.

“It’s part of our mission – it’s who we are,” said Rousis-Arroyo. “It’s about taking care of the most vulnerable children out there. Parents who send their children with the hope of a better life, they are parents who are no different from other parents anywhere.

the emergency rule decreeing this change of status for institutions like that of the Archdiocese of Miami, more than 11,145 of these unaccompanied minors were installed in Florida during the federal fiscal year 2021 and 1,190 others were placed in the state during the current fiscal year. He also cites the federal government’s failures to properly monitor and control these newcomers and a murder charge against a recently arrived Honduran who provided false ID to police who said he was 17, according to reports.

Pushaw, in the governor’s office, said she disputes the Archbishop’s parallel between the wave of immigration that is currently happening with Cubans who came to Miami 60 years ago.

She said that unaccompanied minors who come here are not really refugees because a refugee is a person who flees their country to escape persecution and seeks refuge in the nearest safe place.

“Florida shares a maritime border with Cuba, which is a Communist dictatorship known for its human rights violations,” Pushaw wrote. “Therefore, Cuban nationals of any age crossing the sea border into Florida are likely to have a valid asylum claim. Mexico is considered a safe country, but migrants from 100 countries have traveled to Mexico and then illegally crossed the border between Mexico and the United States this year.

The Routsis-Arroyo of the Archdiocese sees this population having a lot in common with the Cubans who arrived on the shores of Miami in 1960.

“Cubans at that time were in the throes of a huge, enormous crisis, similar to what is happening now in the countries of Central and South America,” he said.

Pushaw left the door open to some way for the Miami facility to remain open, however.

“The new DCF (Department of Children and Family) emergency rule states that a license could be granted for a public facility housing unaccompanied minors only if the state of Florida and the federal government enter into a cooperative agreement requiring the Biden administration to consult with the state government of Florida before any relocation operation She said.. “This would require the federal government to agree to share information with the state of Florida regarding the relocation of unaccompanied minors. “

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