Comentario:
By Norma Montenegro Flynn

Hundreds of volunteers and people who work with migrants, refugees, victims of human trafficking and other migrant populations including unaccompanied children, have just gone back to their communities with renewed energy after spending time in Washington at the National Migration Conference (NMC).

And while some protesters have expressed opposition to having these children sheltered in their communities, many volunteers, churches and religious organizations like Catholic Charities of the Rio Grande Valley and the Diocese of Brownsville, continue their constant work to assist and show Christ’s love to this vulnerable population. They not only provide them with food, clean clothes, and other basic necessities, but they constantly work with an army of volunteers to show that migrants matter, and that they are children of God and deserve to be treated with dignity.

It is difficult to imagine the desperation that might push parents or relatives in Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador and Honduras to send these children on such a perilous journey that exposes them to possible abuse and violence at the hands of gangs, drug and human traffickers who prey upon their vulnerabilities.

A recent report from USCCB’s Migration and Refugee Services shows that the circumstances of violent oppression that these minors face in their home countries are greater than their fears to migrate. Many of the minors said that gangs would threaten to kill them if they did not join them or pay what they call “renta” for protection from being harassed, beaten or even killed. And girls are subject to sexual harassment and even rape. In desperation, many parents seek to send them to a relative or friend living in the United States. Other causes cited in the report are the desire to reunify with family in the United States, home situations of domestic violence, extreme poverty and lack of educational or employment opportunities.

The issue was addressed by Cardinal Oscar Rodríguez Maradiaga of Tegucigalpa, Honduras, and president of Caritas Internationalis, during the National Migration Conference’s opening plenary and it might help us understand the reasons behind this exodus and its possible consequences. “Fear, grinding poverty and no future mean we are losing our lifeblood,” he said. “If this continues to happen, the hearts of our nations will stop beating,” he added as reported by Catholic News Service.

The USCCB Committee on Migration has urged the Administration and Congress to treat these children with respect and dignity, focus on protecting them, give them access to legal representation, and work with their home countries to ensure that those who go back will have the necessary protections and resources to grow up in a safe environment.

Among the latest efforts, Bishop Mark Seitz of El Paso, Texas, recently testified before a Congressional Committee on the issue.

In many ways, whether it is continuing efforts in Congress, or volunteering in our parishes, many in our Catholic Church are showing these children -the love of Christ.

Norma Montenegro Flynn es asistente al director de la oficina de enlace de prensa de la Conferencia de Obispos Católicos de los Estados Unidos.