YSIDRO, Calif. – There are many questions surrounding why thousands of Central Americans children are setting off alone and risking their lives to migrate to the United States.

One woman who made that journey wants to shine a light on the issue.

Kenia Calderon was just 11 years old when her family fled El Salvador nine years ago, after she says their neighborhood was overrun by gangs, crime and a general feeling of despair.

"The violence was horrible,” she stresses. “You know, you just didn't feel safe, and gang members would kidnap girls and force them into the gangs and make them be sex slaves."

Calderon says the economic and political situations in many Central American countries and Mexico have deteriorated because their economies have failed to produce jobs, which in turn fuels hopelessness and violence.

In El Salvador, police report so far this year the murders of children 17 and under are up 77 percent from a year ago, while a city in northwestern Honduras has the world's highest homicide rate, according to the United Nations.

Calderon rejects the notion that children are being sent to the U.S. by their parents because they think some sort of window of lax border enforcement has opened up.

She says children subjected to rampant daily violence and horrific conditions are forced to grow up very quickly.

"They're the ones making the decision, and sometimes they just tell their family, 'I'm coming, be ready for me,’ because they cannot wait for anything, for any change,” she relates. “They know that nothing's going to change that's going to better their lives."

Calderon points out the record-high number of deportations under the Obama administration is well-known in Central America, but many desperate youths still feel migration is their best hope.

She says children have actually been fleeing these countries for several years, a fact well documented by groups such as the Pew Hispanic Trust.

"A lot of Americans feel like the situation is being exaggerated, and I feel like it's because we lack a sense of curiosity,” she maintains. “I think we need to be aware a lot more of what's going on around the world, not just in the countries that benefit us."

Calderon hopes more Americans will take the time to research what is happening and why, and instead of using the situation for political gain, to look for ways to help families reunite, to treat immigrants with respect and to take a long look at U.S. policies in the region.

"I feel like we all should be looking for another solution that will help these kids, because this is a cry for help,” she says. “Something must be done, not because they want to win the next election, but because we are humans."

This story was made possible in part by the Voqal Fund.





get more stories like this via email

During last week's Republican National Convention, Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, said Americans are not safe due to immigrants committing violent crimes.

That's just one claim being challenged by leading immigration experts.

Nancy Foner, Ph.D., professor of Sociology at City University of New York's Hunter College, said labeling immigrants as criminals is an old, but persistent, myth.

She pointed to data showing that the vast majority of immigrants are not violent criminals.

"The foreign born, in fact, are much less likely than the native-born to commit violent crimes," said Foner. "And in fact, cities and neighborhoods with greater concentrations of immigrants have much lower crime and violence than comparable non-immigrant neighborhoods."

Immigrants were also blamed for smuggling fentanyl across the 2,000-mile southern border.

But according to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, 90% of the drugs linked to overdose deaths are smuggled by U.S. citizens through legal ports of entry.

Cruz also said immigrants were being allowed into the U.S. to vote in the upcoming elections - a conspiracy theory about something that never, or almost never, happens.

David Becker, executive director of the Center for Election Innovation & Research, pointed out that non-citizens are not legally allowed to vote in federal elections, and don't in part because they could be immediately deported if caught.

"To cast one ballot in an election in which 160 million ballots are going to be cast, it happens exceedingly rarely," said Becker, "largely because the states and federal government already have really good policies in place."

Others claimed immigrants were "receiving welfare."

Pia Orrenius, vice president and senior economist at the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, said immigrants are not eligible for the SNAP program (formerly known as food stamps), Social Security or other benefits - although they do pay payroll and other taxes that fund those programs.

She said immigrants actually strengthen America's economy, but local governments can feel squeezed if immigrants earn low wages.

"That negative impact, it mostly comes from education," said Orrenius. "K-12 education is expensive. The spending on education is an investment. Those investments are going to pay back many times what's invested."



get more stories like this via email

Leaders at the 5th annual Immigration Summit, which wrapped up in Los Angeles Friday, have vowed to stand strong no matter what happens with the November election.

The Republican candidate for president has called for mass deportations.

Miguel Santana, president and CEO of the California Community Foundation, said it alarms many people in a county where more than one-third of the residents of all ethnicities are foreign-born, and about 60% of children have at least one immigrant parent.

"We've been engaged in scenario planning," Santana explained. "We've prepared our immigrant community so that they know their rights, that we have the proper defense, but also, we're advancing comprehensive immigration reform. That is really what's needed."

The summit was co-sponsored by the California Community Foundation, the Council of Immigrant Inclusion and the Equity Research Institute at the University of Southern California.

Manuel Pastor, director of the institute, said deportations would leave a huge hole in the economy and tear families apart.

"In L.A. County, about a fifth of all Angelenos are either undocumented themselves or living with a family member who is undocumented," Pastor pointed out. "Fear of deportation, problems with accessing services because of status, affect a wide number of families."

Researchers also released the 5th annual State of Immigrants in Los Angeles report, which found naturalizations and wages for immigrants are up over the past few years. It also recommended continued support for county programs providing legal aid and help people access services in their preferred language.


get more stories like this via email

The Missouri House of Representatives has formed a special committee to look into what the House Speaker refers to as crimes committed by immigrants living illegally in Missouri.

The formation of this committee has sparked a debate between those who see it as a necessary step for public safety and those who view it as a misuse of resources driven by political motives.

House Speaker Dean Plocher - R-St. Louis County - said he's convinced this committee's findings will increase the safety of Missourians.

"The message needs to be," said Plocher, "'If you're not here in the state of Missouri legally, you're going to be detained - and you're going to be deported if you're committing crimes.'"

Data provided by Customs and U.S. Border Protection show last year, there were more than 1,200 violent crimes by committed non-citizens in the U.S. nationwide, and more than 2,000 related to drug trafficking and possession.

The first committee hearing will be in Jefferson City on July 11.

State Rep. David Tyson Smith - D-Columbia - said this isn't an issue in Missouri, and believes the committee is a waste of time and resources. He said it's all being done for political talking points.

"If we are really serious about these issues," said Smith, "we would form a special committee on gun violence to crack down on the shootings that are happening all over our state, that need to be clamped down on."

Studies have repeatedly shown that immigrants - legal and illegal - are more law abiding than people born here.

Research from The Marshall Project has found no correlation between undocumented immigrants and a rise in violent crimes.

However, some committee members believe people living in the U.S. illegally are to blame for an increase in Fentanyl and sex trafficking.




get more stories like this via email