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As the Tribune reports, the zero-tolerance policy means that "all adults who cross the border illegally between official ports of entry will be criminally prosecuted."
Since children cannot be sent to federal jail, those who are detained with their parents are separated from them while their parents go through the legal system.
The children's affairs are being handled by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' Office of Refugee Resettlement, according to the Tribune.
A temporary 'tent city' was opened and running by Friday to hold up to 360 minors, and could expand to house more, the Tribune reported.
The Trump administration began testing the zero-tolerance policy in October. The New York Times reported that between then and April, over 700 children were separated from adults.
Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced the "zero-tolerance" policy in April. The policy is meant to deter immigrants from attempting to cross the border illegally, according to the Tribune.
The Department of Homeland Security reportedly said that from April 19 and May 31, 1,995 children were separated from 1,940 adults.
Some parents, according to the Tribune, said their children were separated from them immediately, while others said the separation didn't happen until they reached a processing facility.
Last week, reporters were allowed to tour a shelter in Brownsville, Texas, which previously occupied a Walmart store, and housed 1,400 boys.
The boys attend school for six hours each day, and are allowed two hours outside. The boys are also allowed two phone calls a week, and officials say the average stay is 49 days.
Reporters were also allowed to tour a processing center McAllen, Texas, where the following video was taken:
At the temporary shelter in Tornillo, Texas, state Representative Mary Gonzalez (D-Clint) reported seeing doctors and caseworkers in the facility.
Representative Will Hurd (R-Helotes) also toured the facility and told Texas Monthly, "they get three meals a day and snacks, it's the same food that the staff eats. There are fifty caseworkers that are working to get them placed with other family members."
The Tribune also reported that Texas Senator Ted Cruz (R) announced emergency legislation designed to keep immigrant families together. The legislation would double the number of federal immigration judges from around 375 to 750, and authorize shelters to house families together.
Comment: As a sovereign nation, the US certainly has the right to prevent illegal immigration from coming accross the border. It is also true that the separation of families was not initially established maliciously, but rather as a consequence of the fact that children cannot be sent to federal prisons. However, there are a number of more humane alternatives to process illegal immigrants without splitting their families apart, and in this respect it is good news that Trump has issued an order to keep families together. After all, families crossing the border in order to find better life opportunities are not on the same league as thieves, murderers or rapists - so there is no reason to make their lives harder while enforcing the law.
The article above and the Texas Tribune show a rather rosey picture of the facilites for children. Unfortunately this is not always the case, at least for one case in Virginia and another in Texas:
US court documents reveal immigrant children tied down, hooded, beaten, stripped and drugged under Democratic Governor Terry McAuliffe