Devastation and Deportation

As students studying Latin American history and sociology, it is important that we examine elements within this field of study from new perspectives.  Immigration is one of these issues that arguably needs more in-depth research.  Much of the time these investigations have focused on the economic and political impacts that immigration has on society, specifically from Latin American countries to the United States.  However, one important element of study within the impacts of immigration that has a more social influence is centered on family life.  The family is the nucleus of any society, and as such, should be closely examined in how immigration affects it on many levels.  One aspect is particularly detrimental to migrant family units: deportation.

          

  Deportation is the act in which a foreigner is deported out of a country.  In recent years, the United States has deported close to 400,000 people per year. *  The Immigration and Customs Enforcement, also known as ICE, is a government program which controls and monitors the deportation process.  “The agency defines three ‘priorities for the apprehension, detention, and removal of aliens’:

·      “Aliens who pose a danger to national security or a risk to public safety.”

·      “Recent illegal entrants.”

·      “Aliens who are fugitives or otherwise obstruct immigration controls.”’ **

ICE is also responsible for setting up private detention centers to house these foreigners with a criminal background, but unfortunately, that’s not always the case.  As many as 20% in these detention centers are merely undocumented immigrants.  These undocumented immigrants are often picked up by random chance, or because of minor traffic violations or tickets, and in most cases, by no means dangerous.  These men and women, some mothers and fathers, have come to the United States to seek employment and an honest living, often to provide for their families in their native country, and their children who they’ve brought to the United States.  A mother pulled over for a broken tail light can quickly be swept off to a detention center and eventually deported, leaving her young, American born children to be placed in a poor foster care system.  A father trying to provide for his wife and children is deported, tearing his family apart, leaving his wife to struggle as a single mother.  These are the realities of many deportation cases which ICE is responsible for.  When these types of stories are addressed, ICE simply brushes them off as “collateral damage.”

            While it is understandable that national security be of utmost importance, it seems as though this “collateral damage”- real families who, regardless of their country of origin, deserve basic human rights under the Universal Declaration on Human Rights (UDHR), which includes, “the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and wellbeing of himself and of his family, including food, clothing, housing and medical care and necessary social services” (Golash-Boza 1215)- is taking a serious toll on migrant families and communities.  It instills fear and anxiety in a population that is, in many regards, innocent of any activity that ICE is claiming to be searching for and apprehending.  These families and communities are a special area of interest in the study of sociology and immigration, and should be treated with more care and respect. 

           

*https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/immigration/report/2012/08/20/27082/how-todays-immigration-enforcement-policies-impact-children-families-and-communities/

**http://www.immigrationpolicy.org/just-facts/misplaced-priorities-most-immigrants-deported-ice-2013-were-threat-no-one

Tanya Golash-Boza & Cecilia Menjívar (2012): Causes and consequences of international migration: sociological evidence for the right to mobility, The International Journal of Human Rights, 16:8, 1215