U.S. Returns Young Girl, a Citizen, to Guatemala

[Carol]

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alp227 (1000+ posts) Journal Click to send private message to this author Click to view this author's profile Click to add this author to your buddy list Click to add this author to your Ignore list Tue Mar-22-11 10:59 PM
Original message
U.S. Returns Young Girl, a Citizen, to Guatemala

Leonel Ruiz, a landscaper in Brentwood, N.Y., was waiting at Kennedy International Airport on the early morning of March 11 for his 4-year-old daughter, Emily, to arrive home from a trip to Guatemala. The plane arrived hours late, but Emily was not on it, and neither was her grandfather, who was supposed to be escorting her back.

It took several hours for Mr. Ruiz to learn what had happened. Emily, a United States citizen, and her grandfather, a Guatemalan traveling with a valid work visa, had been detained by immigration authorities at Dulles International Airport near Washington, where the plane had been diverted because of bad weather. The officials had told Emily’s grandfather that because of an immigration infraction two decades ago, he would not be allowed to stay in the country.

That has left Emily, a pigtailed native of Long Island, in an unusual limbo. As a citizen, she has the right to re-enter her country. But her parents are illegal immigrants, which has complicated the prospect of a reunion.

Today, Emily is in Guatemala, her parents are struggling to bring her home, and lawyers and federal officials are arguing over parental responsibility and citizenship rights. The Ruizes find themselves on the front lines of a heated immigration debate: how to treat families in which the parents are here illegally, while their children, born in the United States, are citizens.

Full story: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/23/nyregion/23citizen.ht...

Is this really what the Republicans want? For children to suffer the consequences of their parents' misdeeds?

HEyHEY (1000+ posts) Tue Mar-22-11 11:00 PM
Response to Original message
1. More republican family values for ya.

Republican family values - You obey the law. If you don't, you pay the consequences. Parents are responsible for their children and need to take them into consideration when they make decisions. When they make bad choices the children sometimes pay the consequences. That's life.

The parents can go back to Guatemala and be reunited with their child. Or their child can stay here with someone they designate and they can see her periodically when she goes to visit them. It's their decision. They knew that when they broke the law to come here that that could be one consequence.

I feel badly for the kid but it's the decision the parents made. I feel badly for kids whose parents get divorced and fight all the time too. When parents make decisions for their kids there isn't much we can do and in this case I don't think there is anything we should do to change it.

Liberal moral values - Breaking the law has no consequences. If you are one of the "protected classes" - (illegal immigrants, liberals, minorities etc ) you don't need to have personal responsibility.

Angry Dragon Donating Member (1000+ posts) Tue Mar-22-11 11:04 PM
Response to Original message
3. You have to remember they do not care about anyone

except themselves. They do not care about their families, they do not care period.
They go through life with blinders. Seeing only their petty ideals of what life should be for everyone.
They care only for power and riches. They are just basic scum.

dkf Donating Member (1000+ posts) Tue Mar-22-11 11:10 PM
Response to Original message
4. What did the parents expect would happen?

I don't understand why people expect things will be okay when you break the law. The child can stay here if someone agrees to take care of her. Otherwise she needs to wait until she is old enough to take care of herself and then she can come back.

What is crazy is thinking that you can come here illegally, have a child and that becomes your instant citizenship paper. If that were true, then there is no point to citizenship.

And that comment ended the thread.

[Novaheart]

Deport the parents and the kid.

[aka:PBS]

What does this have to do with republican values. Last time I checked we had a democrat president.

[SarasotaRepub]

What does this have to do with republican values. Last time I checked we had a democrat president.

Why nothing of course, it's just another sad, sad, terrible tale of eeeevil ReThugs insisting laws be followed by everyone...

[noonwitch]

I don't care what the law is in this case, the parents have a moral responsibility to care for their child, even if that means they have to move back to Guatamala to do so.

[SarasotaRepub]

I don't care what the law is in this case, the parents have a moral responsibility to care for their child, even if that means they have to move back to Guatamala to do so.

:eek:
:D

[Adam Wood]

I can have Lionel on a plane to Guatemala City this afternoon. He can have little Emily back home by Saturday for $450 if he just takes his lazy butt down to Guatemala and picks her up.

[fettpett]

The officials had told Emily’s grandfather that because of an immigration infraction two decades ago, he would not be allowed to stay in the country.

That has left Emily, a pigtailed native of Long Island, in an unusual limbo. As a citizen, she has the right to re-enter her country. But her parents are illegal immigrants, which has complicated the prospect of a reunion.

anyone find this confusing? the Grandparents were the ones with immigration issues...how does that maker her parents illegal immigrants?

[Phillygirl]

I can have Lionel on a plane to Guatemala City this afternoon. He can have little Emily back home by Saturday for $450 if he just takes his lazy butt down to Guatemala and picks her up.

But will Leonel be let back into the country when he flies back in? Emily never should have been sent back to Guatemala when they detained her grandfather. She should have been detained at the airport until her parents could come pick her up.

[fettpett]

But will Leonel be let back into the country when he flies back in? Emily never should have been sent back to Guatemala when they detained her grandfather. She should have been detained at the airport until her parents could come pick her up.

The Grandfather should have been the only one sent back