Business leaders call for an end to child separation policy

DETROIT — Business leaders are condemning the Trump administration’s decision to separate children from parents who are accused of crossing the border illegally.

The Business Roundtable, a lobbying group that includes the CEOs of Walmart Inc., General Motors Co., Boeing Co. and Mastercard Inc., released a statement Tuesday urging the immediate end to the policy.

“This practice is cruel and contrary to American values,” said Chuck Robbins, the chairman and CEO of Cisco Systems Inc. and the head of the Business Roundtable’s immigration committee.

The group called for comprehensive immigration reform that protects DACA recipients who arrived in the U.S. as children. The group also doesn’t want to curb legal immigration, which it says helps U.S. businesses.

The Business Roundtable joined several other companies, including Microsoft and Airbnb, who have spoken out against child separations.

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