Family Separation in America’s Fields

Every day at the crack of dawn, farmworkers leave their homes to endure long difficult days cultivating and harvesting the food we all enjoy. Like undocumented workers across the country, many farmworkers leave their homes in fear—fear that they may not return home that night to their children.

Recently, Farmworker Justice had the opportunity to speak with farmworkers about their lives and work. When asked “how does immigration impact your life,” the farmworkers shared stories of painful separations from their family members due to deportation. Because the majority of farmworkers are undocumented, the broken immigration system and the cost of harsh immigration enforcement is omnipresent and impacts every facet of farmworkers’ lives. Farmworker families face a variety of challenges in their working conditions, such as low wage rates, and pesticide exposure, but the constant fear of being deported weighs heavily on farmworker communities. One farmworker, Lupita, explained how difficult this omnipresent fear of separation is for children and the toll this wears on parents, when sometimes they do not have the words to reassure their children. Like other workers, farmworkers deserve the right to live and work without fear. Immigration reform must be passed to fix the broken immigration system.

Lupita shared her personal story with tears in her eyes. Her husband had recently been detained after a routine traffic stop and she was left alone with her five children. She tried to get him released but he was transferred to a detention center so quickly that she did not have the chance to even say good bye to him. She didn’t know how to tell her children about what had happened and told them that their father had gone to visit his grandmother because she was sick. But the news had spread around the community and another child told her kids that their father was in jail. The children came home in a panic, crying, and she tried to explain the situation to them. But the children were too young to really understand and were distraught at the thought of their father in jail. They refused to eat and were distracted at school. Lupita herself was suffering from anxiety to such an extent that she was afraid to take a shower because she feared an immigration raid. 

Lupita’s children were not handling the separation well and Lupita was desperate to help her children. She found a distant relative that was willing to drive the children to Texas to visit their father in the detention center. The children came back from the trip less upset with their father’s detention but still fearful of police officers. 

Now Lupita is scared to drive for fear that she too will be stopped and detained. She has been unable to drive her son, who has Down’s syndrome, to his occupational and speech therapy appointments. And her long hours in the fields and the lengthy hour-and-a-half bus ride make alternative transportation unworkable. Lupita spoke with emotion as she told me “My heart hurts to think that my son will be less developed because I can’t get in the car and drive him to therapy. What happens if I get deported, who will take care of my child with Down’s syndrome.”

Sadly, Lupita’s story is not unusual. As the Obama Administration approaches its 2 millionth deportation, families across the country are being torn apart with a devastating impact on the lives of the families, children, and communities. The separation of families must stop. Congress must act now to enact immigration reform. Last summer, the Senate passed a comprehensive immigration bill which included a roadmap to citizenship as well as an agricultural stakeholder agreement to address the dire situation for farmworkers and agricultural employers. Now the House must do its part by passing immigration reform legislation that includes the agricultural stakeholder agreement and a path to citizenship for the 11 million aspiring citizens, including farmworkers and their families. The time is now. For its part, the Obama Administration must take action to end the devastation of its deportation and enforcement policies on families, workers and communities across the country. For up to date information about immigration, click here!

Every day at the crack of dawn, farmworkers leave their homes to endure long difficult days cultivating and harvesting the food we all enjoy. Like undocumented workers across the country, many farmworkers leave their homes in fear—fear that they may not return home that night to their children.

Recently, Farmworker Justice had the opportunity to speak with farmworkers about their lives and work. When asked “how does immigration impact your life,” the farmworkers shared stories of painful separations from their family members due to deportation. Because the majority of farmworkers are undocumented, the broken immigration system and the cost of harsh immigration enforcement is omnipresent and impacts every facet of farmworkers’ lives. Farmworker families face a variety of challenges in their working conditions, such as low wage rates, and pesticide exposure, but the constant fear of being deported weighs heavily on farmworker communities. One farmworker, Lupita, explained how difficult this omnipresent fear of separation is for children and the toll this wears on parents, when sometimes they do not have the words to reassure their children. Like other workers, farmworkers deserve the right to live and work without fear. Immigration reform must be passed to fix the broken immigration system.

Lupita shared her personal story with tears in her eyes. Her husband had recently been detained after a routine traffic stop and she was left alone with her five children. She tried to get him released but he was transferred to a detention center so quickly that she did not have the chance to even say good bye to him. She didn’t know how to tell her children about what had happened and told them that their father had gone to visit his grandmother because she was sick. But the news had spread around the community and another child told her kids that their father was in jail. The children came home in a panic, crying, and she tried to explain the situation to them. But the children were too young to really understand and were distraught at the thought of their father in jail. They refused to eat and were distracted at school. Lupita herself was suffering from anxiety to such an extent that she was afraid to take a shower because she feared an immigration raid. 

Lupita’s children were not handling the separation well and Lupita was desperate to help her children. She found a distant relative that was willing to drive the children to Texas to visit their father in the detention center. The children came back from the trip less upset with their father’s detention but still fearful of police officers. 

Now Lupita is scared to drive for fear that she too will be stopped and detained. She has been unable to drive her son, who has Down’s syndrome, to his occupational and speech therapy appointments. And her long hours in the fields and the lengthy hour-and-a-half bus ride make alternative transportation unworkable. Lupita spoke with emotion as she told me “My heart hurts to think that my son will be less developed because I can’t get in the car and drive him to therapy. What happens if I get deported, who will take care of my child with Down’s syndrome.”

Sadly, Lupita’s story is not unusual. As the Obama Administration approaches its 2 millionth deportation, families across the country are being torn apart with a devastating impact on the lives of the families, children, and communities. The separation of families must stop. Congress must act now to enact immigration reform. Last summer, the Senate passed a comprehensive immigration bill which included a roadmap to citizenship as well as an agricultural stakeholder agreement to address the dire situation for farmworkers and agricultural employers. Now the House must do its part by passing immigration reform legislation that includes the agricultural stakeholder agreement and a path to citizenship for the 11 million aspiring citizens, including farmworkers and their families. The time is now. For its part, the Obama Administration must take action to end the devastation of its deportation and enforcement policies on families, workers and communities across the country. For up to date information about immigration, click here!