Thread: Children of Illegals: Another Facet of a National Problem

http://www.9news.com/news/article.aspx?storyid=66942

Children of illegal immigrants: Another facet of a national problem
written by: Thanh Truong , 9NEWS Reporter created: 3/25/2007 6:31:05 PM
Last updated: 3/25/2007 6:32:18 PM

KUSA - As the sunlight poured into the stained glassed halls of Our Lady of Peace, Juana Velazquez sat on a pew crying.

"The kids are starting to ask for him at night, and now they're not eating," she said in Spanish.

Velazquez says she's an illegal immigrant. She and her husband came to the U.S. from Guatemala. Velazquez's husband was among hundreds of suspected illegal immigrants arrested in December following an Immigration and Customs Enforcement raid on a Swift and Co. meatpacking plant in Greeley. Velazquez fears that if and when her husband is deported, she and her five children will be stranded. Only her youngest child is a legal resident.

"I don't know what to do. I can't go back to Guatemala, I can't afford it. I can't afford rent without my husband right now," Velazquez.

She, like many other suspected illegal families, have turned to the Father Mario Ramirez and Catholic Charities. Father Ramirez is the vicar at the Our Lady of Peace.

"Right now, I would say there are about 150 local children who either have a parent detained or is facing deportation," said Father Ramirez.

Since the raid, the church has been giving rental and food assistance to many of the impacted families. It's an effort that's drawn criticism and opposition.

"We received many threats from organizations that are against illegal immigration," said Father Ramirez.

The illegal immigration problem can be very polarizing. Father Ramirez understands that all too well. While the Catholic Church has clear positions on abortion, homosexuality and contraception Father Ramirez said he couldn't take a position on illegal immigration.

"It is part of my ministry to help those in need. Regardless if they're legal or illegal, if they need help, the Church is there to offer it," said Father Ramirez.

Maricela Landeros is also seeking help from the church. She was also working at the meatpacking plant at the time of the raid. She was recently released from jail and is facing possible deportation. Her 3-year-old son, David, was born in the U.S.

Lately he and his two siblings have been asking their mother some questions she can't answer.
"They're asking, 'Mommy is everything OK? Are they going to send you back Mexico,'" said Landeros.

An ICE spokesman told 9News that there are procedures in place that allow ICE agents to seek out information about suspected illegal immigrants and their dependents.

The spokesman said ICE often works with local, state and county agencies to make sure some arrangements are made for the affected children. Those children often find themselves in limbo. Since some of the children were born here, they are legal. The legal status of the parents often put the children in a grey area.

"It's quite unfortunate when there are some kids in the family that find themselves caught in the middle of this problem, to me that shows more so why we need to get our arms around this," said State Representative Kevin Lundberg.

The Republican State Representative from Berthoud is a strong supporter of the immigration raids and crack downs.
"They're necessary, we need to get back to enforcing the law in this country when it comes to immigration policies, "said Representative Lundberg.

It's true that if suspected illegal immigrants stayed out of the U.S. there would be few problems or dilemmas with their children. Lundberg says the reality of having illegal immigrants within the border demands some kind of reform.

As much as he supports the raids, Lundeberg says it's unclear what should happen to children of suspected illegal immigrants.
"I'm not sure I'm prepared to really cast judgment on the children. I believe that there needs to be a soft landing if possible."

While many will disagree on how much help should be given to these families, most agree that the current approach to illegal immigration enforcement is flawed. The challenge for lawmakers is to develop an approach that will address a problem that keeps manifesting more problems.

(Copyright KUSA*TV, All Rights Reserved.)

Comments have been posted below this story, as I post this 22 replies. Check em out

"Right now, I would say there are about 150 local children who either have a parent detained or is facing deportation," said Father Ramirez.

With the centralization of the Vatican, and it's stand AGAINST supporting Illegal Immigration, it should be relatively simple to fax the Bishops responsible in the country of origin of all the lost children. The Church can step in, and show it means business, by sponsoring all those abandoned children with a bus ticket BACK TO WHERE THEY BELONG!

If their parents need to serve jail time, then the Church can "act as Guardian" in said land of origin until the parents are repatriated.

But wait---there may be a complication...would you want your children left in the custody of Catholic Priests?

KUSA - As the sunlight poured into the stained glassed halls of Our Lady of Peace, Juana Velazquez sat on a pew crying.

I am so sick of the slick way reporters write a story!!
It is apparent in the first two sentences where they are taking a story.
They are reporting the facts. But that isn't the issue. It is the slant
that they format into their story! It makes me crazy.
I don't doubt that Juana was crying in a pew. But what is the true cause of the tears? who made the decision to breach our borders and take such a chance? Who decided to disregaurd our laws? Who took the gamble?
Was Juana held accountable?
I am sorry for anyone's tears. But my first obligation is to my country and my countrymen/women. I cannot concern myself with the consequences that people must face when they make bad decisions.
My sympathies are for the American children who are displaced because of the onslaught of illegals entering our country.
I care for the father that loses his job. The mother that is the victim of violence. The child killed by a drunken alien. Those are the tears that shake me to the core. Through no fault of their own they became victims. No one gave them a choice.
Are there no reporters that can tell the story from an American perspective? Let's try and have some integrity shall we?

The church committing a crime and in my opinion is worse then most immigration harboring crimes,
There are a larger number of American families that can use the good fathers help.

gray area

No that is capitalizeded Gray area for Chief Justice Horace Gray on whose lousy opnion the current bad interpretation of the 14th Amendment is based on. Justice Gray's opinion was written as an addendum to the Wong Kim Ark case which was on whether the America born child of two legal immigrants could be denied an American citizenship as their birthright. This was a landmark decision but to extend it as is
the current precedent based on Chief Justice Horace Gray is a serious mistake. We can change it by 2012. The writing is on the wall.

The 1898 Wong Kim Ark case was judicial activism. At the time Chinese were barred by law from becoming American citizens. This was a way for the justices to partly nullify this law by allowing the children at least of Chinese immigrants to become citizens. If Chinese at the time had been allowed to become Citizens this case never would have happened.

But in this very same case the Supreme Court said the children of foreign invaders ARE NOT US citizens. I think it is clear the illegals from Latin America are not immigrants but foreign invaders/colonizers, thus the 14th Amendment does not apply to them.