It is expected for a child to cry for a toy, but devastating when you see a child cry because he or she is unable to be with his or her parents. More importantly, a child should never have to choose between going to school or illegally stowing away on a train to obtain the slight chance to cross the border to America.
Seventeen-year-old Ernesto Orellano from Honduras made it as far as Granjeno,Texas, before he was apprehended by six Border Patrol cars. He was trying to reach the border in order to be with his family in Houston, Texas. Ernesto is one of about 57,000 children apprehended this year, thus far. Although the rest of Orellano’s story is untold, Kevin, Fito, Jairo, Jose, Olga, Freddy, and Juan Carlos' stories are told in the powerful documentary “Which Way Home.” This film depicts some of the perils and heartbreak children trying to cross the border go through to either be with their families in America or reach America to support their families.
Children as young as nine leave their impoverished towns to take the dangerous journey to the border and at most times alone. Onlookers who are accustomed to watching illegal minors take on their brave journey give food, water, and a place of rest, but these children, along with other immigrants, still face the risks of being captured, forced into human trafficking, developing hyperthermia and heat stroke, enduring bad weather and difficult terrain, encountering wild animals, and suffering dehydration or death by travel (i.e. crushed by train). In a report by Jacob Silverman, southern Arizona has had over 3,000 deaths by people trying to cross the border this year alone.
The Washington Times has stated that “the second wave of unaccompanied illegal immigrant children has begun, with more than 3,000 of them surging across the Mexican border into the U.S. last month — the highest rate since the peak of last summer’s crisis”. The numbers of illegal immigrants is down 40 percent compared to last year’s numbers at this point, but there is an expected influx towards the closing of the summer. Last year the increase in illegal crossings led the Obama administration to uproot an action plan in dealing with illegal immigration.
The Washington Times further claims that “authorities report having captured over 3,138 minors in the month of March [and] 647 children [report] traveling without parents who tried to jump the border in the first six months of the fiscal year. Through this point in 2014, they had apprehended 28,579. So far this fiscal year, authorities have captured 13,911 families”. In order to manage the border more efficiently, the Obama and George W. Bush administrations have more than doubled the Border Patrol’s size. They have also spent billions on drone sensors to monitor the border, making the border more secure. For those who have illegally crossed the border successfully, there are alternatives to avoid deportation for a certain time span. The “guest worker” program allows employers to hire illegal immigrants in areas that Americans refuse to work, for a set amount of time. In doing so the “guest worker” is tracked and must pay some taxes. There is also an incentive for him or her to return home, such as retirement benefits only claimable in the worker’s country of origin.
95 percent of illegal minor immigrants “are returned to the border within 72 hours and handed over to Mexican consulate officials,” reports Pew Research. The rest that are found and apprehended are placed in the custody of family members or in a temporary home in the United States while their immigration cases are processed. Even so, from July to February of this year, only 62 percent of these minors have appeared for their cases.
The Obama administration's increase in security with U.S. Customs and Border Protection has discouraged many from trying to illegally cross. Expenses, the Border Patrol’s ability to fire a weapon, and an improvement in some economies, mainly in Mexico, are also obstacles that deter many. But, waves of children are still smuggled in along with illegal drugs, weapons, and foreign pests and diseases. By way of shipping containers, vehicles, rafts, or jet-skis, these children will fight their way into America.
Only about 1.2 million people can legally enter United States daily, yet billions of children from all over the world take on the deadly challenge to illegally cross into the country. According to NY Daily News, there are immigrants from over 75 countries illegally crossing the U.S. border. Although the number of people trying to illegally cross the border is down at the moment, this year is expected to be record breaking in the influx of illegal immigrants that will enter the U.S. This means that thousands upon thousands of children, by the end of this year, will travel, run, and die trying to get to “the land of the free and the home of the brave.” What will happen next?
"Which Way Home"
