The global community cannot be silent on the human crisis at the US-Mexico border. Enough is enough!

The photo released this week of a Salvadorian father and his toddler daughter who drowned in the Rio Grande is a sharp reminder of the dangerous risks that families are taking to flee a crisis of violence and poverty in Central and Latin America.

We must protect children in our families, in our communities, at our borders, and globally. Families taking this dangerous journey right now are only seeking a fair and safe chance for their children.

How many individual stories must we hear about the harm and human toll of the crisis at the US-Mexico border, before action is taken? Children must be protected at all costs. It is traumatizing, inhumane, and unacceptable to separate children from their families at the border.

We must act together at local and global levels to protect children who are crossing borders.

Here's what you can do now if you're in the US:

• contact your local or state government representatives and demand they keep children together with their families and pass legislation to address the growing border crisis in a humane manner

• support local response agencies at the border and in your community, who address the needs and rights of children.

And wherever you are, please:

• raise your voice on social media using #familiesbelongtogether

• learn more about the root causes of migration and displacement.

A child is a child first. All nations must protect and treat children with dignity.

Children should never be forcibly removed from their parents or held in detention centers. Take action today to ensure that children are protected at our borders. This is not a political story. This is a human story that needs a humane response.