The Impact of Raids on Children
Children of undocumented parents suffer from the raids that take place either at workplaces or sometimes at homes. In the past several years, the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has conducted raids in rural Midwestern meatpacking plants, arrested undocumented workers, and taken them to detention centers. ICE officers conduct raids forcefully, and obviously they do not give advance notice of the raid to immigrant parents. The sudden disappearance of their parents has a significant physiological effect on young children who are not capable of understanding these situations.
According to a report by the National Council of La Raza and the Urban Institute, “many children face traumatic circumstances and insecure care…in the period after raids” [1] Child psychology experts state that children suffer most from the disruption of armed agents coming into their homes and taking away their parents and sometimes themselves. Children can experience stress, depression, and anxiety disorders[2].
References:
1. The Urban Insitute and The National Council of La Raza. "Paying the Price: the Impact of Immigration Raids on America's Children"2007.
2. Thronson, David B. “Creating Crises: Immigration Raids and the Destabilization of Immigrant Families.” 42 Wake Forest Law Review 391 July (2008).
