Immigrants in limbo: why are the children of illegal workers at risk?

What should the United States do about its estimated 12 million undocumented immigrants? A year after hundreds of thousands of demonstrators protested in U.S. cities for immigrant rights, Congress is still debating immigration reform. Many families are caught in the middle.

Consider the plight of Jessica Guncay. Born in the U.S., the fifth-grader is an American citizen. Her parents, originally from Ecuador, are not. Last month, immigration authorities raided the Dixie Printing and Packaging Corp. plant in Baltimore, Maryland. Jessica's parents, who both worked at the plant, were arrested. Now officials are trying to deport them. "I feel sick inside," Jessica recently told The Washington Post.

According to the Urban Institute and the Pew Hispanic Center, at least 3.1 million U.S. citizens are the children of illegal immigrants. When parents are caught and deported, families must choose between splitting up or taking their children back to countries with few opportunities.

Last month, authorities raided a manufacturing plant in New Bedford, Massachusetts. Of the 361 illegal immigrants arrested, about 90 are the sole caregivers for children. Parents were taken to jail, in some cases out of state, while children were stranded at day-care centers, schools, or relatives' homes. "We need to change the broken immigration system," Senator Edward M. Kennedy (D-Massachusetts) later wrote.

Advocates of strict immigration laws also may sympathize--up to a point. "Kids often pay for the bad decisions of their parents," said Mark Krikorian of the Center for Immigration Studies.

"Family Values"

Last year, the U.S. Senate passed an immigration-reform bill. The legislation called for a guest-worker program that would help undocumented immigrants work toward citizenship. But conservative members in the House of Representatives called this "amnesty," saying that it would pardon people who broke the law. In the end, no bill emerged.

Last month, two U.S. Representatives tried again. Their bipartisan immigration bill attempts a compromise by offering both tougher law enforcement and a guest-worker program. But lawmakers, like other Americans, remain divided over the issue.

Meanwhile, immigrant-rights groups are lobbying the federal government in growing numbers. One group recently arrived in Washington, D.C., with children wearing T-shirts that read, "Born in the USA. Don't take my mommy or my daddy away."

"Once the average American citizen learns the facts, they are not going to want these families to be separated," said one activist. "This is about the family values our country holds most dear."

Think About It

Should undocumented workers have the right to stay in the U.S. if their children are U.S. citizens? Explain.