Like many of you, I have been appalled by the news of families separated at the U.S.-Mexico border. As I’ve read of children being torn away from their parents, I know two things: This is not the first time U.S. policy has condoned this–but it should be the last. Here’s what you can do to help stop these tragedies.
No, this is not new. We have separated families as part of the institution of slavery and removed indigenous children from their parents in order to “assimilate” them, as the Washington Post has recently detailed. It is a shameful history.
We must act to put an end to it. Here are a few ways you can help.
- Call your Senators using this short and simple script from the ACLU (and their handy service that will automatically connect you). You may also want to tell them to support the HELP Separated Children Act and the Keep Families Together Act.
- Sign the ACLU petition to the Director of Homeland Security.
- Follow Families Belong Together via their website, Facebook, or Twitter. They have a number of resources, including event listings (protests, vigils, and more). One of the events is Lunchtime for Change, a “virtual lunch” on June 20, when they encourage people to spend an hour taking action, such as signing several other petitions, contacting your elected officials, donating, or helping to spread the word—but you can visit the page anytime to find the links and do the things.
- Donate, if you are financially able, to one or more of the organizations helping refugee families with humanitarian and legal efforts. Act Blue has a page where you can make a single donation and have it automatically split among a number of the organizations. Some organizations not on their list, but which are also helping, are the Tahrir Justice Center, Border Angels, the Young Center for Immigrant Children’s Rights. Slate also has a list of organizations that they are updating daily. (Do your own due diligence and investigate any organization you give to, of course.)
- Show up on June 30 for one of the events being organized nationwide.
- Organize an event in your own community. RAICES has a toolkit to help.
- Volunteer translation or legal services, if you have the expertise. Mashable has a list of organizations providing legal support that may need volunteers.
- Read to stay informed (but then take action). A few pieces I recommend as a starting point:
- “The Trump administration’s separation of families at the border, explained,” from Vox. A good overview of the policy and statistics around it.
- “‘I wanted to stop her crying’: The image of a migrant child that broke a photographer’s heart,” from the Washington Post. A personal look at the human cost and the impact on children.
- “Families divided at the border: ‘The most horrific immigration policy I’ve ever seen’,” from the Guardian. Further details about the challenges for separated families.
- “Listen to Children Who’ve Just Been Separated From Their Parents at the Border,” from Pro Publica. Both a read and a listen, and heart wrenching.
- Vote. In November and in any primaries your state has before then. We must take back at least one house of Congress in order to have any hope of stopping the current administration’s immigration policy.
No, this is not an LGBTQ-specific issue (although I don’t doubt there are LGBTQ people and families impacted by the policy). It is a human issue, however, and as humans, we should care and act.