WASHINGTON — Thousands of foster care children in California may be reunited with their parents if immigration reform passes in Congress.
Currently, millions of children — even those who are U.S. citizens — risk becoming “immigration orphans” if their undocumented parents are deported.
California is home to the highest population of undocumented immigrants in the country, and more and more children have been left parentless, and even institutionalized, as growing numbers of undocumented immigrants are expelled.
In Santa Cruz County, roughly 150 immigrants are deported each year according to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, though it is unknown how many of them leave children behind.
A 2011 study by the Applied Research Center identified more than 5,000 children who have been “orphaned” by the immigration system, and said that the number is likely many times higher.
The separation of families is often the result of a simple lack of collaboration. Immigration is handled by the federal government while child welfare is handled by the states.
The bill written by the Senate”s “Gang of Eight” would give states the authority to consider the welfare of immigrants” children as part of deportation decisions. It would also allow previously deported parents the chance to return to their children in the U.S.
No chance to call
Under current procedures, some immigrants are deported without even a chance to phone their children or those who might take care of them.
“We have seen numerous cases of parents who have been removed without being able to make decisions about their children, whether it is to bring them [along] or to leave them behind in the care of a relative or family friend,” said Wendy Cervantes, vice president of Immigration and Child Rights Policy with First Focus.
Current immigration laws were designed for single, male migrants who could move more easily than families between their homeland and the U.S. However there are growing numbers of entire families crossing the border.
“There”s more women coming here and staying to work,” Cervantes said. “A lot of women have also increasingly come by themselves as single mothers trying to find a better life for their children.
Cervantes also said that there has been a significant increase in mixed families with both documented and undocumented members.
There are 4.5 million children who are U.S. citizens and live in families where at least one parent is undocumented, she said.
Family reunification is central to the immigration debate. Many, including Rep. Mike Honda, D-San Jose, have criticized the leading proposal for giving work skills more weight than family relations.
However, for the “immigration orphans,” as they have been called, the current bill offers an otherwise unlikely hope for children and parents who have been torn and kept apart.
California has nearly a quarter of the country”s undocumented immigrants, with approximately 21,000 living in Santa Cruz County, according to the Public Policy Institute of California.
The proposed bill allows judges to prevent the deportation of undocumented immigrants if they have U.S. citizen family members.
Keep families intact
Nearly half of all undocumented immigrants have children younger than 18 years old, and more than three-quarters of these children are U.S. citizens whose families might be kept intact by immigration reform.
Cervantes estimated that more than 200,000 parents were removed nationwide between July 1, 2011 and Sept. 30, 2012, though what happened to the children is not known.
Opponents of illegal immigration say that the loss of their children is the parent”s fault.
“The responsibility is on the people who chose to break our laws,” said Ira Mehlman, a spokesman for the Federation for American Immigration Reform.
Mehlman suggested that some parents choose to leave their kids behind.
“It”s unfortunate, but it is created by the choice the parents made,” he said.
However, no current policy ensures that parents will be able to make arrangements for their kids upon detainment.
In California, the state strives to ensure that families can reunite when children are placed in foster care. However, in order to regain custody, parents must be physically present, which deported individuals are unable to do. In these cases, children are essentially orphaned.
Cervantes cited examples in which a detained woman”s son was put up for adoption and a deported man”s three children were placed in the child welfare system. Only fierce advocacy allowed them to claim their kids.
Congress fails to act
There have been several legislative attempts to aid “immigrant orphans,” such as the Foster Children Opportunity Act and the HELP Separated Families Act, however Congress has voted on neither.
The leading immigration reform bill will introduce important modifications to integrate child welfare and immigration law.
The bill will give states the authority to delay the termination of immigrant parents” rights if they are not able to be present at the hearing. It also requires states to meet certain conditions before removing children from their parents” custody.
If a parent is ultimately deported, the legislation would ensure that parents be allowed to make arrangements for their kids” care before removal, and that the children be placed with relatives, even if undocumented, when possible.
Judges would also be able to waive a deportation order if an individual”s removal might result in hardship for a parent, spouse or child of U.S. citizenship.
California does not keep track of “immigration orphans.” The 2011 Applied Research Center study said the number increasing significantly and would reach more than 20,000 by 2016.
The Senate Judiciary Committee will begin deliberations on the immigration bill next week.
The California News Service is a journalism project of the University of California Washington Center and the UC Berkeley School of Journalism. Email the California News Service at cns@ucdc.edu.
