The NY Times has a “heart-wrenching” (if I had a sarcasim emoticon, I would insert it here) story about the MancÃa family in New Bedford, MA — an illegal immigrant family fighting for their (non-existant) right to stay in our country.
The mother of the family, MarÃa Briselda Amaya, has already been deported back to Honduras. Where she belongs.
The husband, also an illegal immigrant is fighting his deportation. Instead of going back to Honduras so that he and their children can be with their mother.
Where they belong.
Helping fight his deportation? Your tax dollars: the state’s Department of Social Services is assisting them, and Mr. MancÃa has even been given emergency aid to pay his bills while his deportation case proceeds.
Still, thousands of illegal immigrants like the MancÃas with no criminal history have been caught in raids, the officials acknowledge.
No criminal history (that we know of) except for the obvious one: they’re here illegally. Which is — by definition, breaking the law.
But what about the children? One of their children is an anchor baby — a U.S. citizen born here after his parents entered our country illegally. Of course this child has every right to remain in this country. But his parents don’t.
Ms. Jenks, of NumbersUSA , said the responsibility for the impact on children of the deportations rests with their parents.
“If parents are going to come here illegally, unfortunately the child faces the consequences as well,†she said.
Exactly. Don’t blame our system for tearing children away from their families. It was their choice to risk these consequences.
____________
From the Austin American-Statesman, in a story about today’s protests and “work boycotts” (in exceptionally stormy weather):
“Comprehensive immigration reform means that legislators must recognize that undocumented immigrants cannot continue living in the shadows of our society,” said Leslie Helmcamp of Catholic Charities’ Office of Immigrant Concerns in Austin.
I agree. Illegal immigrants cannot continue living in the shadows of our society. They should be located, rounded up, and deported back to where they came from, allowing them to live openly and “out of the shadows” of their own society.
h/t to Memeorandum
I read a similar story in the LA Times. The LA Times boo hooed over this illegal immigrant family. The mother and father were deported. They decided to leave their 3 teenage kids in the U.S. with an aunt who moved into their $300,000 house in SanDiego to take care of the kids. Now they are afraid of losing their SanDiego house because they can’t make any decent money in Mexico, certainly not comparable to the $1,000/week papa was making in San Diego where he was working as an UNLICENSED (illegally) electrician.
The mean old immigration judge suggested they sell their $300,000 house and that would give them more than enough to start out a decent life in Mexico WITH their children, but mama and papa didn’t want to do that. Instead, they left their kids behind with an aunt who isn’t living up to their expectations, the kids’ grades are going to hell and everybody is unhappy.
My heart bleeds. Illegally entered in the first place. Committed fraud by working as an unlicensed electrician (I’m sure there aren’t enough Americans willing to work or $52,000/year), cared more about keeping their house than their kids (at least in my book) and the LA Times passes out the crying rags expecting the rest of us to feel sorry for them.
Left by dianne on May 1st, 2007 at 11:27 am