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Answering your questions about President Trump's zero tolerance border policy

Some of you want to know more about what's happening, there's some who do not like the way we are covering the story, and then there are those who don't feel it is a story at all.

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As coverage of what is happening on the border has picked up, so have your questions.

Some of you want to know more about what's happening, there's some who do not like the way we are covering the story, and then there are those who don't feel it is a story at all.

ABC10's Michael Anthony Adams is taking some of your questions...and answering them directly.

The first comment we look at, from Ladon Pariion, simply states, "Get a U.S. citizenship! Simple."

However, the pathway to becoming a United States citizen is complex and, for some, non-existent.

According to the American Council on Immigration, for a majority of immigrants, permanent residency in the U.S. requires either employer sponsorship, a petition from an immediate family member who is already a U.S. citizens, or humanitarian protection, the latter of which can only be claimed if the person can prove they're being persecuted for their race, race, religion, nationality, political opinion or their particular social group.

Earlier this month, Attorney General Jeff Sessions ruled that the U.S. would no longer consider asylum claims from those citing fears of domestic abuse or gang violence in their country — such has been the case with a handful of Central American countries — without also proving their government "condoned the private actions or demonstrated an inability to protect the victims."

Which is what many have tried to do, but here's the rub: they're being told to come back.

During Monday's press briefing, Secretary of Homeland Security Kristjen Nielsen said, "We are not turning them away. We are saying, 'We want to take care of you in the right way; right now, we do not have the resources at this particular moment in time — come back."

For greater clarity on the process, we spoke with Gina Manciati, the managing attorney of Opening Doors, who said people that don't come in directly at the border, and come in illegally, without presenting themselves at the port of entry, then they're being placed into detention. Since children can't be detained with adults, they're separated from their families and placed in the care of the Department of Health and Human Services.

The supposed law that many are citing was actually a settlement agreement, which the Justice Department negotiated during the Clinton Administration. The terms of the settlement, known as the Flores Settlement, require the government to detain minors in "the least restrictive setting appropriate" and release them "without unnecessary delay" to a parent, legal guardian or licensed program that is willing to accept custody as long as it doesn't put the child at risk or interfere with the child's timely appearance before an immigration court. It says nothing about mandated separation.

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