“Missing” children? No, although many unaccompanied children have not received Immigration Court dates, they have all been issued document called a Notice to Appear. No, they are not “missing.” Immigration Courts are totally backed up, mainly because they don’t have the personnel to set court dates or sufficient judges to hear cases, something the bipartisan border security bill would have done until it was tanked by the Republicans in the House for political reasons.
Many, if not most, would qualify for a special status, first enacted when George W. Bush was President. Some of these minors were exploited by being forced to work rather than going to school. Most were fleeing gangs and abusive situations in their home countries, and like the Dreamers, have completed school and are productive members of our society.
It is part of our calling as a Nation to welcome those who were abused or persecuted; it is part of our duty – remember that word, duty? – to care for those who look to us for protection. This is who we are supposed to be, and, hopefully, who we are.
Prayer for the Day
Torn and jagged, children and adults seek us out,
A Nation built on hope for the hopeless;
Abused and persecuted, refugees look to us,
We who claim to be the city on the hill.
In redeeming others, you redeem us, O God,
As we respond to your call to protect the vulnerable.
In the name of the One who walks with all,
Even Christ Jesus our Lord. Amen.
Thoughts for the Day
Refugees are neither seen nor heard, but they are everywhere. They are witnesses to the most awful things that people can do to each other, and they become storytellers simply by existing. Refugees embody misery and suffering, and they force us to confront terrible chaos and evil.
Arthur C. Helton, lawyer, advocate, killed in Bagdad (1949-2003)
Nearly all Americans have ancestors who braved the oceans – liberty-loving risk takers in search of an ideal – the largest voluntary migrations in recorded history… Immigration is not just a link to America’s past; it’s also a bridge to America’s future.
George W. Bush, President 2000-2008
The same law applies to the native-born and the foreigner residing among you.
Exodus 12: 49