Or they ARE kids. They have names like Cathy, Zugey, Arturo, Jack, Daisy, Jessica, Erendira, Esther, Fernando, Daniel, Maria, Evelyn, Michael, and Gabriela. They like sports and dancing. The little girls like to wear jewelry and clothes that sparkle, shoes that light up with each step. They are so proud of those shoes. The boys like to climb trees. They toss or kick balls back and forth to each other when the weather allows.
The United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has estimated that 11.4 million unauthorized immigrants lived in the United States in January 2012. According to DHS estimates, “the number of illegal immigrants peaked around 12 million in 2007 and has gradually declined to closer to 11 million
Those numbers represent another piece of social science estimation at best. Our illegal immigrants avoid the Census Taker. They sometimes give even their doctor a false name and address, a fact which drives an M.D. friend of mine nuts. Sometimes those test results reveal conditions that matter, but the patient with elevated sugar has vanished. Sometimes these families forego free breakfasts and lunches at school, plus any other programs that might force them to reveal their name and location. Families move often, too, as they chase jobs. The factory two hours away that pays an extra $1.22 per hour may result in both school and housing changes.
Let me be clear: The current presidential campaign is terrifying some of our immigrant children. Even those who are citizens are worried that mom and/or dad may be deported, taken away suddenly in the night. All the talk of building a wall along the U.S. southern border sounds threatening to these kids. What if family and friends are deported and can never return?
When we talk about sending these children “back” we are creating a fiction. These children can’t simply step into some previous life. Some of them don’t even speak the language of the country they might be sent “back” to. Many of them have few or no memories of that country. They are as American as any other kid on their block whose grandparents were born here. They have never seen an open air market. They shop at Target, Walmart or the mall. They have no clue how many pesos or quetzals a pair of new shoes might cost
Eduhonesty: Scared kids become underachieving, disruptive students. They have trouble focusing, and may get up to wander the classroom often. They have trouble taking school seriously. Too often, they don’t dream the big dreams that might provide motivation to spend the evening studying. They don’t have enough confidence in the future to dream big dreams — or any dreams at all, sometimes.
I don’t know how to fix this problem but I thought I would lay it out on the table.