Migrant “Children” Evoke Sympathy But How Many Really Are Minors?

For years, critics of open border policies have claimed that most migrants to Europe from third world countries who claim to be underage are, in fact, adults. The National Board of Forensic Medicine in Sweden released, in 2017, a report which claimed that around 84% of migrant “children” were not actually minors. Now, a study out of France has revealed that the number of false “minors” in 2019 was 80%.

These numbers are significant because French authorities say they spend two billion euros annually on the 41,000 immigrant minors living in France. It also puts into perspective the debacle surrounding British Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s decision to water down child refugee protections in the recent Brexit Withdrawal Agreement Bill.

Labour Shadow Brexit Minister Keir Starmer heavily criticized Johnson and accused him of trying to “tear up protections” for refugee children as the U.K. is preparing to leave the E.U. Instead, it now turns out that Johnson may have had the foresight to relieve British taxpayers of a significant burden.

The problem is not limited to lying about age but also false claims of persecution. In 2017, the German Office for Migration and Refugees reported that the number of people who vacation in the very countries they allegedly fled was at an all-time high.

Children as a Weapon

The issue of migrant children is particularly problematic because Europeans care about the young and vulnerable and therefore could be prone to making decisions they otherwise would not. The left knows how to use this widespread empathy and exploit children as human shields in their fight for open borders.

One example of this is the little Syrian boy in 2015 who drowned on the way to Europe. A photograph of the deceased child was heavily used by the media and the left to burst the gates of Europe open. The Independent, a British newspaper, said so explicitly in its headline: “If these extraordinarily powerful images of a dead Syrian child washed up on a beach don't change Europe's attitude to refugees, what will?”

Similar emotional manipulation strategies have been employed in America, using “children in cages,” and images of a dead Mexican infant washed ashore. Western nations have a soft spot for children in need, and facts are the only way to protect people against emotional exploitation.

Even more important, however, is the fact that children themselves are likely to be the victims of adult migrants who claim to be underage. From genuine child refugees who may lose out when "competing" with adults for placement in a new country, to European kids who are forced to attend school with adult males posing as minors – it is precisely this compassion for children that should drive us to seek out the facts.

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