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Democracy

12 real stories that show why ruthless immigration laws are the wrong move.

Immigration policies that rip families apart are a travesty.

Photo by Nicola Fioravanti on Unsplash

If there's ever been a particularly bad time to be an undocumented immigrant, it's right now.

President Donald Trump, who launched himself into the 2016 presidential race with his support for a multibillion-dollar border wall, has been cracking down on immigration as promised. In addition to tightening border security, he's pledged to remove 2 to 3 million undocumented immigrants "immediately." And he appears to be keeping his word.

Deportation is nothing new, but Trump's plans are unprecedented. Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images.

It's a scary climate we're facing, but unfortunately, it's not just Trump and it's not just America. All over the world, people are more concerned with their countries' borders than seemingly ever before.Nations all over Europe, for example, are tightening up immigration rules and/or ramping up deportations themselves.

Amidst all the noise and rhetoric — every "radical Islamic terrorist" attack that gets waved about by politicians with something that eerily resembles pride, every horrific crime committed by white Americans that's met with deafening silence, every press conference faux pas — there are real people and real families being ripped apart in the name of patriotism.

Their stories are terrifying and heart-wrenching, but they're massively important.

1. A DREAMer gave a powerful speech about deportation. Moments later, she was arrested.

Daniela Vargas, who has lived in the U.S. since she was 7 years old, spoke at a news conference in Jackson, Mississippi, about the importance of the DREAM Act, which aims to help immigrant children who have lived in the U.S. for more than five years and graduated high school receive permanent legal status.

After the event, Vargas and a friend were pulled over and arrested by immigration agents.

2. A Sri Lankan student studying in North Wales was saved from deportation only by a last ditch effort hours before her flight.

Shiromini Satkunarajah, an electrical engineering student at Bangor University, was nearly sent back to Sri Lanka earlier this year. Despite having lived in the U.K. since she was 12 and being only three months shy of graduation, Satkunarajah was only allowed to stay after receiving an outpouring of community support.

3. A woman living in Great Britain was sent back to Singapore without being allowed to say goodbye to her husband and two children.

Irene Clennell had lived in the U.K. since 1988 but was abruptly sent back to Singapore after having her indefinite leave to remain revoked. Clennell is married and has two children with her husband but was not afforded the chance to see them one last time.

4. A mom living in Phoenix was sent back to Mexico. Her children would later face Trump as he addressed a joint session of Congress for the first time.

Guadalupe Garcia de Rayos' children were reportedly in attendance as Trump addressed Congress. Photo by Jim Lo Scalzo/AFP/Getty Images.

Guadalupe Garcia de Rayos was sent back to Mexico in January this year for having a criminal record. Her crime? Working under the table to provide for her young children.

5. A beloved restaurant manager in a deep-red town in Illinois was arrested, and now the community is reeling.

Most of the people in West Frankfort, Illinois, voted for Trump. They never thought anything would happen to Juan Carlos Hernandez Pacheco, the friendly restaurant manager who seemed have done at least one kind deed for everyone in the community. Now, he's been detained by ICE and is currently waiting to find out if he'll be sent back to Mexico.

6. A Kuwaiti man and father of two living in Ann Arbor, Michigan, on the other hand, was miraculously spared from deportation because it would cause his family too much hardship.

Yousef Ajin has lived in the United States for 18 years with his wife, with whom he has four children. He reportedly met with immigration officers frequently, but on Jan. 30, 2017, he was suddenly detained.

In February, a judge granted a deportation waiver in order to spare Ajin's family from hardship. Many other immigrants aren't so lucky.

7. One man was caught trying to cross the border and returned to Tijuana. He appears to have jumped to his death shortly after.

The man, Guadalupe Olivas Valencia, had reportedly worked in the U.S. before to provide for his family back home before being deported multiple times. Caught trying to enter the country once again, he seemingly decided jumping from a bridge was his only option.

8. A single mother in California was sent back to Mexico, leaving her two young children in peril.

Photo by Jose Cabezas/AFP/Getty Images.

On Feb. 7, María Robles-Rodríguez was nabbed by U.S. Border Patrol and sent back to Mexico, leaving her twin 18-year-old daughters to fend for themselves.

9. Gay men being deported from Britain to Afghanistan are being told to pretend they're straight.

The British government's advice to gay men being sent home to Afghanistan, where they can be freely persecuted for their sexual orientation? Just don't act gay and everything will be fine!

Seriously.

10. Jose Escobar was detained after a routine meeting with immigration officers. He's a husband and father of three.

Escobar, who has lived in the United States for 16 years, had a deportation scare a few years back but was told he'd be safe if he checked in with immigration agents every year. Only this year, an agent reportedly told his wife, "We're just doing what President Trump wants us to do with the new rules."

Escobar will likely soon be deported.

11. A Mexican man living in Idaho was deported. His wife and the mother of his children could be next.

Tomas Copado ran his own auto body shop in Idaho Falls until he was sent back to Mexico earlier this year. His wife, for the sake of their children, recently had her own deportation deferred.

For now.

12. Some undocumented immigrants may be deported to Mexico even if they're not from there.

Photo by John Moore/Getty Images.

According to several reports, the Department of Homeland Security plans to send anyone who crosses illegally over the southern border of the U.S. back to Mexico, even though they may be citizens of another country.

Needless to say, this is horrendous and possibly in violation of international law.

Statue of LibertyPhoto by Guzmán Barquín on Unsplash

Every modern nation needs smart, empathetic paths to citizenship. Any immigration policy that tramples on human rights and rips families apart is a travesty.

It's time to bust the narrative that foreigners primarily come to our country — or any country — to do harm. They come mostly to find opportunity, to escape persecution, or to be with family.

If we can't come to see them as human beings rather than inanimate outsiders, finding the money to pay for a giant wall will be the very least of our problems.

This article originally appeared on 03.02.17

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It turns out Trump's child separation policy was even more monstrous than we knew

FRONTLINE/Twitter

Of all the harsh immigration policies the Trump administration has enacted, from slashing America's refugee resettlement program to building "The Wall," taking thousands of children away from their parents is by far the worst. The "zero tolerance" policy of separating families at the border drew so much international outrage that the administration eventually abandoned it and was ordered by the courts to reunite the families. In some cases, that process took far more than a year.

Now, an investigation shows that the implementation of the policy was even more inhumane than we knew.

According to the New York Times, five prosecuting attorneys who were told about the new policy in May of 2018 "recoiled" when Attorney General Jeff Sessions told them "We need to take away the children." The attorneys told officials in the Department of Justice that they were "deeply concerned" about the welfare of the children subject to that policy.

A week later, deputy attorney general Rod J. Rosenstein told the prosecutors on a call that it didn't matter how young the children were. Government attorneys had apparently refused to prosecute two cases in which the children were barely more than infants, and it was made clear that they should not have done that.

"Per the A.G.'s policy, we should NOT be categorically declining immigration prosecutions of adults in family units because of the age of a child," John Bash, the departing U.S. attorney in western Texas, wrote to his staff immediately after the call. Bash was the one who had declined the cases involving babies, but Rosenstein overruled him.

This information comes from a draft report of a two-years investigation by the DOJ's inspector general, which included more than 45 interviews with key officials in addition to emails and documents. Officials say the final report could change, but what was revealed is shocking, even for those who are familiar with the policy and its implementation.

ACLU lawyer Lee Gelernt expressed his shock at the report on Twitter.

— (@)

Among the revelations in the report:

- A secret pilot program in 2017 along the Mexico border in Texas alarmed government attorneys. "We have now heard of us taking breastfeeding defendant moms away from their infants," one government prosecutor wrote to his superiors. "I did not believe this until I looked at the duty log."

- Border Patrol was stretched so thin from the family separation prosecutions that they missed serious felony cases, with one Texas prosecutor warning the DOJ that "sex offenders were released" as a result.

- U.S. Marshals had no warning before the policy was announced, which led to overcrowding and budget overruns because there was not preparation for it.

- DOJ officials have long claimed that they thought children would be reunited with their parents within hours, but there was no actual plan in place to get families reunited. "We found no evidence, before or after receipt of the memorandum, that DOJ. leaders sought to expedite the process for completing sentencing in order to facilitate reunification of separated families," the inspector general wrote.

Reading the NTY report, when confronted with who was ultimately responsible for the welfare of the children and for reuniting the with their parents, the officials involved in the policy either refuse to comment or point fingers elsewhere. No one wants to be the one to say, "I'm the monster," and of course the individual ultimately responsible for all federal policy is the president himself.

In fact, according to the Times:

"Gene Hamilton, a top lawyer and ally of Stephen Miller, the architect of the president's assault on immigration, argued in a 32-page response that Justice Department officials merely took direction from the president. Mr. Hamilton cited an April 3, 2018, meeting with Mr. Sessions; the homeland security secretary at the time, Kirstjen Nielsen; and others in which the president 'ranted' and was on 'a tirade,' demanding as many prosecutions as possible."

When "Prosecute 'em all!" becomes the policy or even misdemeanor illegal entry cases of asylum-seekers crossing the border in an area other than a port of entry, and no one plans for the fallout, chaos is inevitable and children ultimately pay the price.

"The department's single-minded focus on increasing prosecutions came at the expense of careful and effective implementation of the policy, especially with regard to prosecution of family-unit adults and the resulting child separations," the draft report said.

And what of the Border Patrol agents charged with carrying out the assignment of taking babies out of their parents' arms? One of them spoke to PBS Frontline about what that was like:

— (@)

Make no mistake—children were traumatized by this policy. How could they not be? And that cruelty was exactly the point. Our government decided that punishing parents by traumatizing children would be an effective deterrent for people trying to enter the U.S., no matter what their circumstances.

There are certain lines that we, as a civilized society, simply should not cross. Knowingly causing harm to children is one of those lines. And the U.S. not only crossed that line, but hurdled over it with Trump's "zero tolerance" policy. Our own "of the people, by the people" government deliberately hurting babies and children is what we should truly have zero tolerance for. Not in our name. Not our watch.

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On June 30, Americans plan to come out in droves with Families Belong Together, an organization resisting the Trump administration's zero-tolerance immigration policy.

The march — which will take place in more than 700 U.S. locations, including a mass march on the White House — is calling for a day of action around the country.

On the organization's website, it declares this:

"Families Belong Together opposes the cruel, inhumane, and unjustified separation of children from their parents along the U.S. border with Mexico and at other ports of entry into the U.S. We protest the conditions in which these children are kept. We protest the irreversible trauma that has already been perpetrated on these children and their parents for the crime of seeking a better life."

Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images.

The march comes at the end of a month that has seen an unusually high level of controversy over issues of immigration.

In late May, the Trump administration issued an immigration policy that separated thousands of families at the Texas-Mexico border en masse.

Most immigrants arrive seeking asylum from violent situations in their home countries, and children experience irreversible trauma when separated from their parents. Despite this, the Trump administration has repeatedly mischaracterized immigrants as being largely criminals, sparking fear in many citizens and creating an unsafe environment for the large proportion of immigrants who abide by the law.

After the child separation policy was put in place, organizations around the country sprung into action.

One Texas organization raised millions of dollars to help provide migrant families with legal representation, while Upworthy's own Parker Molloy helped raise money by encouraging Americans to show that we "really do care" about immigrant families.

On the legal end of the issue, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) demanded a reversal of the policy and for kids to be reunited with their parents. At their request, a federal judge in California issued a preliminary injunction that orders all children detained or misplaced be reunited with their parents within 30 days (children younger than 5 must be returned to their families within 14 days).

Photo by John Moore/Getty Images.

Though the order to reunite has been issued, there's much work to be done.

It took Trump weeks of public backlash to actually sign an executive order to end family separation, and there's no clear plan in place to reunite the 2,300 children who have been detained with there families.

It's why thousands of people are planning to march — and you can too.

On the Families Belong Together/Famalias Unidas No Divididas website, you can enter your zip code and find which of the more than 700 organized protests is near you.

Don't see one in your neighborhood? You can create one! By filling out a form on the website, you can organize a march in your area.

Photo by John Moore/Getty Images.

If you're asking, "What if I can't go this weekend, but I still want to help?"

You're in luck! One great way to support the fight against the zero tolerance immigration policy is by donating to Human Rights Watch, which strives to reduce the detention of immigrants and asylum seekers. Families Belong Together also has a list of organizations that are fighting for or helping immigrants and asylum seekers, including RAICES, Al Otro Lado, and KIND (Kids in Need of Defense).

Lastly, you can email or write to your Congressman asking them to support legislation that reunites families that have been separated at the border.

It's true that much of the damage this immigration policy will cause has already been done. But by raising our voices and supporting organizations that have the power to create real change, we can end many families' pain — and make sure this never happens again.

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Due to new border policy, there's been no end to the horrifying stories of parents and children being separated as they try to cross into America.

Under the "zero tolerance" policy in 2018 that criminalizes all border crossings — previously only a civil offense — even those seeking refuge and asylum are punished as criminals. And families are being ripped apart. It all feels like something out of a novel about a terrifying dystopian regime. And yet it's all truly, terrifying real.

Attorney General Jeff Sessions is defending the law using some circular logic — and the Bible.

Speaking in Indiana on June 14, 2018, Sessions justified the policy by suggesting that it's "good" because "it's a law." His primary source of evidence? The Bible.

"First, illegal entry into the United States is a crime, as it should be. Persons who violate the law of our nation are subject to prosecution. I would cite you to the Apostle Paul and his clear and wise command in Romans 13, to obey the laws of the government because God has ordained them for the purpose of order."

Stephen Colbert shot back at Sessions' hypocrisy.

On Colbert's show, the devout Catholic took Sessions' policy to task, referring to it as "evil" and exhorting his audience to fight the government's use of "cruelty as a deterrent."

As for Sessions' cherry-picked Bible passage, Colbert had this to say:

"I will give Sessions this. That is what Romans 13:1 says. You gotta have laws. But if he just read a little bit further into Romans 13:10, it says 'love your neighbor as yourself. Love does no harm to a neighbor. Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law.' But I'm not surprised Sessions didn't read the whole thing. After all, Jesus said 'suffer the children to come unto me,' but I'm pretty sure all Sessions saw was the words children and suffer and said 'I'm on it.'"

Colbert wants people to see this policy for what it is and to do something about it.

Colbert also urged his audience, "Call your elected representatives and demand they do something. Because I sincerely believe that it doesn't matter who you voted for. Because if we let this happen in our name, we are a feckless country."

Watch Colbert's full segment below:

The stories of parents and children being forcibly separated at the U.S.-Mexico border are unfathomable.

The Justice Department's "zero tolerance" policy for families attempting to cross the border has led to heartbreaking stories. Advocates and lawyers who have traveled to the border describe scenes one might expect to see in a Holocaust film:

— A mother was told by agents that they needed to take her son "to give him a shower," but then she was denied information about when and where she would see him again.

— A 5-year-old girl who'd never before been separated from her mother screamed and vomited when they took her away, and her mother was refused even a moment to comfort her.

— A mother seeking asylum after escaping a country that offered no legal protection from the beatings and attempted murder from her child's father was mocked by border agents before having her child taken from her arms.

Seriously unfathomable stories.

Photo by John Moore/Getty Images.

The border policy being used now criminalizes all attempts to cross the border — even for those seeking asylum. And it's simply cruel.

Border crossings have traditionally been treated as civil offenses, with families being detained together while the administrative logistics are figured out. Family separation is new and has been touted as a deterrent. But tearing a child from a parent's arms when neither knows where the other is going crosses a line into inhumane treatment.

In fact, a recent Washington Post article equates such separation with literal torture. The U.N. human rights council has called on the U.S. to "immediately halt" the practice, stating there is "nothing normal about detaining children" and that the policy "runs counter to human rights standards and principles."

— (@)

Even some who would normally support conservative politics have voiced opposition to Trump's policy. "There's nothing conservative about illegal immigrant parents being ripped from their children," wrote conservative writer Liz Wolfe in the Washington Examiner.

This isn't a partisan issue; it's a human one. As Glennon Doyle said, "We know immigration is complicated. We understand that. But still — not this."

Photo by John Moore/Getty Images.

Here's what average Americans can do to advocate for these families.

There are two big ways people can help the kids and parents being harmed by this policy:

— Support organizations that provide legal aid and advocacy to migrant families.

The most important thing these families can get is legal representation and advocacy. That doesn't come free, but there are many nonprofit organizations that specialize in this work. Here are a few examples:

ASAP: Asylum Seeker Advocacy Project connects families seeking asylum to community support and emergency legal aid.

The Florence Project for immigrant and refugee rights provides free legal and social services to detained immigrants in Arizona and ensures that people facing removal have access to counsel, understand their rights under the law, and are treated fairly and humanely.

KIND: Kids in Need of Defense ensures that no child appears in immigration court alone without high-quality representation.

Tahirih Justice Center provides a broad range of direct legal services, policy advocacy, and training and education to protect immigrant women and girls fleeing violence.

Photo by John Moore/Getty Images.

— Call lawmakers and demand an end to this policy.

Many of us might not be used to getting on the horn with our reps. The good news is that the folks at Together Rising have done all the legwork to make it super simple to contact your senators and representatives in Congress — even if you have no idea who they are or how to contact them. Just go to this post and follow the directions. It'll take less than 20 minutes. Easy peasy and so, so important.

It's up to citizens to rise up when government falls to cruelty. When we hear stories of inhumane treatment being done in our country's name, we must act. People's lives — and our collective humanity — depend on it.

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Houston's mayor sent a blunt message of support to undocumented immigrants fleeing Harvey.

With President Donald Trump's immigration crackdown looming and Hurricane Harvey's devastating effects still unaccounted for, many undocumented Houstonians were left to wonder if it was safe to leave their homes and seek help during the storm.

But Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner, who is also a lawyer, is standing up for his city's undocumented residents.

At a press conference on Aug. 28, 2017, he offered an unambiguous show of support.

"If you need help and someone comes and they require help, and then for some reason, then somebody tries to deport them, I will represent them myself, OK?" Turner said.

The mayor, who is a member of the State Bar of Texas, stood by his controversial decision not to issue an evacuation order for the city. He urged residents to seek help regardless of their immigration status. "I and others will be the first ones to stand up with you," he said.

An estimated 575,000 undocumented immigrants live in the Houston metropolitan area.

During 2008's Hurricane Ike, the last major hurricane to hit Texas, federal officials de-emphasized immigration enforcement in their communication to the public.

Airmen assess the damage after Ike. Photo by Paul Flipse/US Air Force via Getty Images.

"We're not going to be bogging people down with checks or doing things to delay the rapid movement of people out of the zone of danger," Michael Chertoff, Homeland Security secretary at the time, said.

In sharp contrast, the Texas Tribune reported on Aug. 24 that U.S. Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) checkpoints would remain open during Harvey, prompting fears that undocumented residents of the city could be apprehended while trying to evacuate.

The following day, the agency clarified that the checkpoints would "close as state highways close" but that those outside the hurricane's range would remain open during the storm. In a joint statement, CBP and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) announced they would be suspending enforcement operations at evacuation sites, shelters, and food banks.

As rumors swirl about immigration enforcement, at least Houston's city government is working to calm anxious residents enough to request the services they need.

"We want you to call," Turner said in the press conference. "There is absolutely no reason why anyone should not call."

— (@)

A mayor shouldn't have to stand up and offer legal services just so his city's residents can get help in a life-threatening crisis. But it's good to see he's willing to do whatever it takes to bring people to safety.

"Citizens?"

San Diego middle school teacher Shane Parmely was driving with her family in New Mexico when she was asked that question at a Border Patrol checkpoint miles from the actual border.

Parmely refused to answer. A member of her family filmed the encounter, which has since gone viral on Facebook.

Parmely, who is white, told KGTV-San Diego that many of her Latino friends are frequently stopped at such checkpoints.

As a result, she believes they are unconstitutional and wanted to register her opposition.

"The people that we see you actually making show papers are all brown," she tells the arresting officer in the video. Parmely and her family were held for about 90 minutes before being released.

According to the ACLU, Border Patrol agents may ask "a few, limited questions to verify the citizenship of the vehicles' occupants," and may not detain drivers for an extended period of time "without cause."

In an email statement to KGTV, the Border Patrol affirmed its right to question Parmely about her immigration status.

A Border Patrol agent stops a vehicle at the U.S.-Mexico border in 2013. Photo by John Moore/Getty Images.

"At a Border Patrol checkpoint, an agent may question a vehicle’s occupants about their citizenship, place of birth, and request document proof of immigration status, how legal status was obtained and make quick observations of what is in plain view in the interior of the vehicle," the agency argued.

Nonetheless, Parmely felt it was important to stand up to something she believes is an affront to American values.

Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images.

"We would have no civil rights if people didn't question authority or challenge the status quo," she said in an interview with KGTV.

As a white woman, Parmely explains, she realizes she likely had the privilege of being waved through with a quick "yes, I'm a citizen."

Nonetheless, she couldn't simply tolerate the brief inconvenience because many of her non-white friends and colleagues don't have that luxury. As she told the station, "When you see something that is clearly racist, you have a choice."

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