This is America's Biggest Threat

This is Camila, she's a Florida college student who is currently sitting in jail for a crime she did not commit and the government knows it. Worse than sitting in jail for something she didn't do, she will most likely be deported. She will never see her home, friends, or the country she calls home EVER AGAIN.

We can stand there and cry and pray for people who lose their homes in a disaster. What if you not only lost your home but everyone and everything you ever knew and could never see them again? This is what the U.S. government is doing to this innocent girl.

Our tax dollars are spent ruining this poor girl's life while dangerous criminals roam the country because of a lack of resources. Yet they seemed to find the money to arrest and jail this girl for something she didn't do.

If you haven't already, sign the DREAM Act petition which would spare kids like Camila.

Children In Prison

Click here to read the story of an innocent 19 year old girl jailed by immigration officials for over 7 months.
Click here for a post regarding the sexual abuse of minors in immigration dention faciitles.

The Lost Children -article in the New Yorker

Vigil for Sarjina Emy

Sarjina Emy is a 19 year old teenager who has been detained at the Broward Transitional Center for over seven months. Sarjina came to this country when she was four years old. Her parents have already been deported. The family's lawyer Dr. Petia Knowles has a case pending in Federal Court to keep Sarjina and her brothers here, but is asking ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) to release them to their friends and family while their cases are pending. This vigil is to ensure that ICE knows how much Florida cares about Sarjina's family.

Before all this happened to me I had a good life, good people around me,and a good family, We never did anything to hurt anyone. But now I feel we have lost everything. My family is torn apart. I haven’t seen my mom in 7 months, since the day they took us and split us up. I can only see my brothers for an hour and a half every week, even though they are in the same facility. I spent my birthday and every holiday in jail (Broward Transitional Center).

Date:	Friday, February 22, 2008
Time:	12:00pm - 5:00pm
Location:	In front of Broward Transitional Center
Street:	3900 N. Powerline Rd.
City/Town:	Deerfield Beach, FL

Sarjina did nothing wrong yet she is being jailed for over 7 months for something she unwittingly did as a four year old. If Florida residents have any sense of justice, they will come out and support her.

If you would like to learn more about the conditions in detention facilities click here and here.

Her brothers Sam and Rumy were also brought here as children. Since their detention, Rumy is expecting his first child with his wife Solange, a US Citizen. Sam's wife, Munmun, a Legal Resident soon to become a citizen, has lost her home because she could no longer afford to live there due to her husband's detention.

Here is a statement from Sam's wife.

"All that I can say is I really want my family back. I have no support here. I didn't work before. My husband was the one that supported me. Since my husband has been detained I have been really sad and depressed. I can't sleep. I wake up in the middle of the night with bad panic attacks. I even had to go to the hospital and even saw a psychiatrist. I have to take sleeping pills to sleep. I work every day to support myself. Last month, we lost our home because we couldn't afford it. I feel like we have been left with nothing. I really hope my husband can come back home. I really wish we can all be a family again. "

Click here for a news story on Sarjina.

Angleina Jolie Looking Out For Migrant Children

Sen. Brownback -left, Angelina Jolie- center, and Sen. Feinstein right

A few days ago I did a post on the sexual and physical abuse unaccompanied minors face in the hands of our immigration services. I forgot to mention that these children are not completely forgotten and the abuse might not have come to our attention if wasn't for certain measures taken by some very compassionate people.

In 2005, the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) and the U.S. Committee for Refugees and Immigrants (USCRI) launched the new National Center for Refugee and Immigrant Children (Center). The Center wad funded by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees through a generous grant from actress and UN Goodwill Ambassador, Angelina Jolie.

Just last year Jolie renewed her commitment to the cause.
Angelina Jolie, once again contributed $150,000 to (USCRI) to support the National Center for Refugee and Immigrant Children (The Center). The mission of the Center is to provide pro bono legal and social services for unaccompanied immigrant children as they navigate the U.S. Immigration Courts. "This money will be used to protect the most vulnerable of populations. Each year, over 7,000 unaccompanied immigrant children arrive in the United States. Many of the children that we see are coming from areas where they have been subjected to trafficking, persecution or domestic violence. I applaud Ms. Jolie's efforts to alleviate the dire plight of these children. I wish we had more humanitarians like her."

Links
More on unaccompanied immigrant children

Sexual abuse of these children in U.S. detention facilities

Senator Feinstein's Website on legislation she worked on with Sen. Brownback to help these children.

The Story of Sarjina Emy

Migrant Children Sexually Abused at Detention Center

Nine immigrant children were repeatedly sexually molested and beaten last year while housed in a government-operated youth detention center near San Antonio, and their cries for help were covered up by administrators and state and federal officials, according to a lawsuit filed Friday.
Click here for more.

Immigrant children who enter the U.S. without parents or guardians are repeatedly denied access to legal counsel and often dumped into detention facilities with criminals. In a survey of detention facilities, Amnesty International found that immigrant children are subjected to a number of callous treatments, including the excessive use of force, restraint and strip searches.
Click here for the full article

Thanks to the DREAM Deferred Blog

For more on this topic click here, here, and here.