— by Margie Doyle —
My dad died when I was 21 and I’ve often thought about what my life might have been like had he been around to advise me about my education, my career, my marriage, my children, my country. I wish I’d had more time with him.
And as with Mother’s Day, whether or not we ARE mothers or fathers, physically, we’ve all had mothers and fathers — otherwise we wouldn’t be here. So, as with so many other good Americans, I’m haunted and angry about our government’s policy and actions in separating children from their parents, who in their desperation, are breaking the law to enter the United States. I believe in a merciful God and try to follow the compassionate teachings of Jesus Christ. I have the good example of my parents, flawed humans like me, and for the most part, I stand by my decisions, try to rectify my mistakes, and take pride in my achievements.
The way our country is dealing with these vulnerable, innocent children is wrong and it’s harmful; not just to the children and families directly involved, but to all of us. These separations must stop now and an emergency Mercy Corps should be directed to reunite over 2,000 children, now incarcerated in cement floor, iron-fenced compounds, with their families. This is an attack on our values more harmful than any cyber-attack, sexual harassment, terrorist attack or natural catastrophe has ever been. We must respond and make every effort to remedy.
My dad, who had dual US-Canadian citizenship, kept every copy of the weekly Time magazine from 1939 to 1969. As a child, I would read through them, afraid of the Soviets and horrified by the Gestapo and the concentration camps of World War II. I began a lifelong study of “the good German” phenomenon, where ordinary people — like my family — ignored what was happening in their names, on their streets, to their neighbors. How does this happen? When is civil disobedience called for? What should we fear?
I never fully comprehended the admonishment of Franklin Roosevelt, “The only thing to fear — is fear itself,” until 9-11 and the Great Recession of 2008. I’ve seen how fear can make us vulnerable to bullies. We teach our children to be compassionate and caring about others, to stand up to bullying; we can’t be too busy to model civic responsibility even when we live far away from injustice. We can’t just say, “Not in my name.” We have to act on it.
What we can do without leaving our homes about the inhumane treatment of children separated from their parents (This is from an employee at an immigration assistance center in the Puget Sound region):
“It is easy to not care about this situation. Most of us, in our daily lives, are unaffected. But I urge all of you to pause and consider the humanity of the individuals that are affected. Practice empathy, and imagine what this could be like. We look back at history and wonder how societies allowed governments to perpetrate systematic acts of violence and evil. I believe we are living one of those moments now with regard to the inhumane practices of ICE. We cannot tolerate this.
“Below are ways for folks to to be heard by the government:
“Is this the America you want to live in? If you don’t, please voice your strenuous objection to:
Even Melania Trump wants this tragedy to end.
Thank you Margie !
Thanks for writing such an eloquent essay, and for urging us to act against the travesty of children beng separated from parents for political gain. This policy must stop and can …. it is not a law, it is just policy. Anyway, thanks.
Once again you have done a community service by writing this letter, Margie. I just read that nine out of ten Americans oppose this policy of separating families. So I am hoping that at least 90% of the people who read this will take action. The only way real change takes place is when the people lead, and eventually our government follows.
Thank you Margie. Something we can do!