A Statement from the Executive Director: Immigration Policy and Its Impact on Nebraska’s Children

At Voices for Children in Nebraska, we believe that every child deserves the opportunity to grow up healthy, secure, and surrounded by love. For 38 years, we have advocated for equitable opportunity for children through research, policy, and community engagement. While immigration policy is not a direct focus of our work, its consequences ripple through the systems we do engage with—child welfare, health care, education, juvenile justice, and family economic stability.

We are heartbroken and outraged by this week’s announcement of a new immigration detention facility here in Nebraska. This policy choice is not just about adults; it is about children. It is about the child who will lose access to food and consistent medical care because of their parent’s immigration status. It is about the student who struggles to stay in school, while their family is torn apart. It is about the child who may enter foster care because their parent has been suddenly deported, and the trauma that follows.

These are not abstract policy debates. These are real children, in real Nebraska communities, whose futures are being shaped by decisions made today.

We know from our justice work that detention is not a solution – it is a harm. We should be working together to build systems that promote health, well-being, and loving family connections. Our Pro-Kid Policy Plan calls for data-driven, compassionate approaches that remove barriers and create opportunity. Detaining parents for non-violent immigration violations does the opposite. Investing any of our precious state resources in these ventures compounds the harm by creating missed opportunities. These are resources that could be spent instead feeding hungry kids, expanding quality and affordable childcare, closing gaps in our mental health system, or preventing child abuse and neglect through supportive resources and timely intervention.

We call on our leaders to center Nebraska’s children in every policy decision. To ask: Will this make a child’s life better? Will this strengthen families? Will this build a Nebraska where every child can thrive?

We know what the answers should be. Let’s raise our voices together.

Juliet Summers
Executive Director
Voices for Children in Nebraska