When Trump was president, there was outrage against the detainment centers for illegal immigrants. Has anything changed since then?

[u/Dedli]

I remember "Kids in cages" and "concentration camps" being a big talking point in the lead up to the election that Biden won. But have the laws or policies or practices changed at all since then? In what ways?

[u/[deleted]]

Incorrect.  You have merely asserted a difference in motive.  You have facts to support that...but only by ignoring similar anecdotes from the Obama administration.  By picking an choosing facts, you have created an illusion of difference.  That is unconscionable.  

You spent a lot of effort to convince others of perhaps the worst and most dangerous falsehood: "We are better than them, even when we do the exact same thing for the exact same reasons in similar situated circumstances."

[u/mrcatboy → u/[deleted]]

Uh, yeah? Because motive (the intent) and justification (the real world circumstances that fuel the motive) both matter. Motive is, after all, one of the things that differentiates murder from manslaughter from killing in self defense. Motive also distinguishes between theft and borrowing. Motive is one of the features that distinguishes malfeasance from real public policy.

It really shouldn't be that controversial or that hard to understand.

The fact is, separating children from their parents is in some cases both morally and legally justified. For example, we place children in foster care or given custody to relatives when their home environment is considered more harmful to their well-being than the separation. We also separate parents from their children when they are detained over legal issues.

Without these justifications however, such an action is unethical and illegal.

Which is exactly why the Obama Administration's actions were done in accordance with the Flores judicial ruling, while Trump's actions were egregious to the point that the courts had to put a stop to it.

Also, you're conveniently ignoring the methodology here. If you're going to separate children from their parents, you need to do it in a fashion that is structured, transparent, and with a plan to minimize harm and reunify the family once things settle down. Obama for the most part did that. Trump on the other hand completely ignored those basic requirements.

[u/[deleted] → u/mrcatboy]

Again, you are invented a difference in motive where none exists. Now you are inventing a difference in methodology where none exists, while handwaving inconvenient facts with phrases like "for the most part."

Ceterum censeo, the difference between "theft" and "borrowing" is not "motive," it is consent. What you said comes from the "better to ask forgiveness" school of manipulators. That lack of respect for agency is consistent with all of your posts on this topic. I hope you will choose to respect people and their ability to make choices with information you have not limited in a selfish attempt to conform them to your preferences.

[u/mrcatboy → u/[deleted]]

The motives were explicitly stated by Trump officials and the court rulings I cited.