Seventy years ago, the US signed on to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, vowing to recognize individuals’ rights to protection from arbitrary interference with family life and the right to seek asylum from persecution.
Today, these fundamental rights are under assault.
Separating families and making it harder for people to claim asylum in the US are just the latest moves in this administration’s persecution of immigrants, refugees, and people of color. Aggressive and arbitrary immigration enforcement stokes widespread fear among new legal residents, like the Dreamers, as well as millions of long-time legal residents and undocumented immigrants.
When the leaders of our country regularly lash out at immigrant communities with hostile and dehumanizing language, that also takes a toll on immigrant communities, creating a traumatic psychological climate and leading to spikes in hate crimes against immigrants and people of color.
Beyond any single policy decision, communities suffer when fear and uncertainty reign. The trauma of separating families, arresting and deporting people who have long lived in the US or sought refuge here, and creating a climate of fear reverberate across entire communities. For too many people, the damage that has already been done is irrevocable: lives uprooted and even ended, the trauma of separation, and time with loved ones lost. Traumatic experiences like these have a significant impact on child development, health, and wellbeing, and can linger for generations in families and communities alike. Healing the trauma communities are experiencing will require us to repudiate the policies that are tearing communities apart, and invest time and support in rebuilding the social fabric and sense of belonging that enables people to thrive.
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