The first compensation trial over family separations is a step closer after a decision by a federal judge in Arizona, reports Rafael Carranza of the Arizona Republic.  

Migrant families separated under the U.S. Federal Tort Claims Act are seeking financial compensation for the damage caused. The lawsuit is separate from the settlement between the Biden administration and plaintiffs early this month on a class-action suit filed against the federal government in 2018, which didn’t include monetary compensation. 

Separately, a recent analysis by experts from Northwestern University and the Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago raises awareness about addressing the needs of all families separated by U.S. government policies, reports Kristin Samuelson for Northwestern Now. 

"[T]he privileges and support families do receive will expire, and reparations are absent. Reunification is a goal but not the end point for the trauma that happened to these families," said the study’s corresponding author, Diana Madden. 

Meanwhile, following a committee hearing we noted yesterday, new bills to protect unaccompanied migrant children and combat child labor violations have been introduced in Congress, reports Mica Rosenberg of Reuters. 

One bill would put more scrutiny on companies with federal contracts that employ children, and another would increase reporting requirements to Congress. A third bill aims to improve protections for unaccompanied migrant children both upon their arrival and once they are settled. 

Welcome to Friday’s edition of The Forum Daily. I’m Dan Gordon, the Forum’s strategic communications VP, and the great Forum Daily team also includes Clara Villatoro, Jillian Clark and Katie Lutz. If you have a story to share from your own community, please send it to me at [email protected]. 

SUPPORT — According to a new poll from advocacy group With Honor, most Americans still support more assistance for our Afghan allies, reports Leo Shane III of the Military Times. Nearly 90% of those polled said the United States must keep its promise to provide immigration options to Afghans who served alongside the U.S. military. 

This week in local welcome: 

BOOMING BUSINESS — Business remains good for smugglers serving as "trusted guides" for migrants' difficult journey to the United States, reports Juan Forero of The Wall Street Journal. The absence of legal pathways has led many desperate people to trust smugglers, and demand keeps increasing. According to a 2021 United Nations study, smugglers have gotten $1.7 billion a year from migrants just from Honduras, El Salvador and Guatemala. (Our June report with partners has more on migration narratives in these three countries.) 

DECREASE — Preliminary U.S. Customs and Border Protection data indicates that crossings of Venezuelans have decreased by at least half since the Biden administration announced that deportations to Venezuela will resume, reports Nick Miroff of The Washington Post.  

WARNING ON RIGHTS — As three border-focused bills advance in the Texas Legislature, the nonprofit Border Network for Human Rights announced that it is issuing a human and civil rights warning for the state, reports Shelby Kapp of KTSM. In an op-ed earlier this week in the El Paso Times, Marisa Limón Garza of Las Americas Immigrant Advocacy Center called for humane solutions: "It’s time that Texas prioritizes innovative and humane solutions that will protect border communities and vulnerable people seeking safety." 

NEW RESOURCE — This week the Forum published a new fact sheet on illicit fentanyl and drug smuggling at the border, including data, background and recommendations. As our colleague Christian Penichet-Paul writes, "Illicit fentanyl is being smuggled predominantly by U.S. citizens and through ports of entry." 

Thanks for reading, 

Dan