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Fact check: What are the documented statistics on family separations at the US border from 2009-2020?
Checked on June 13, 2025
1. Summary of the results
The documented statistics on family separations show a clear escalation during specific periods, particularly during the Trump administration's zero-tolerance policy. Key figures include:
- 2,654 children separated as of October 2018, with 1,033 under age 10 and 103 under five years old [1]
- During May 5-June 9, 2018 alone, 2,342 children were separated [2]
- Between April 19 and May 31, 2018, 1,995 children were separated from 1,940 adults [3]
- Prior to zero-tolerance (Oct 2016-Feb 2018), 1,768 separations occurred for medical/security reasons [3]
2. Missing context/alternative viewpoints
Several crucial contextual elements are missing from the original query:
- The DHS has struggled to provide accurate, complete data on family separations [1]
- Family separations were rare before the Trump administration and became systematic under the zero-tolerance policy [3]
- The issue extends beyond 2020: Over 1,000 family separations occurred between September-December 2023 under the Biden administration [4]
- As of the latest reporting, approximately 270 children remained unreunited with their families [2]
- The government failed to locate parents of 545-666 children by January 2020 [2]
3. Potential misinformation/bias in the original statement
The original query's timeframe (2009-2020) might create misleading conclusions:
- Most comprehensive data exists for the 2017-2021 period [2]
- While the DHS issues monthly reports, specific numerical data for 2009-2016 is not provided in any of the sources [5]
- Focusing only until 2020 omits the ongoing nature of family separations, including under the Biden administration [4]
- The demographic composition is important context: majority were male (64.5%), from Guatemala (55.8%) and Honduras (33.2%) [1]
- Children were distributed across 121 different detention centers in 17 states, showing the systematic nature of the separations [1]
Want to dive deeper?
What was the Trump administration's zero tolerance policy and how did it affect family separations?
How many children were separated from parents under Obama administration border policies?
What are the long-term psychological effects of family separation at the US border?
Which government agencies were responsible for tracking separated families at the border?
What legal challenges were filed against family separation policies from 2017-2020?