From the Future of DACA and Family Separation to the Status of Asylum Seekers and International Students
This specific panel was both captivating and informative while still drawing out anger and sadness as a response. I admit that immigration policies and human rights are not my forte, so I was excited to listen to the panelists and learn about how immigration looks like in the United States in 2020. In Spring 2020, my Dynamics of Modern Asia professor, Claudia Lau, asked our class to attend a panel with a journalist from the New York Times who reported on family separations and immigration camps. That panel left me feeling like I was not doing enough and so I decided to take a Human Rights class at FIU to understand more. It was refreshing to feel the drive and the need to get involved again after being involved in this panel as well.
I also had a personal connection to this panel, especially in response to International Students. In the midst of a global pandemic, the Trump Administration tried to deport International Students if they did not have at least (1) in-classroom class. Universities like FIU promised to do all that they can to ensure international students were able to stay and receive their education. However, while this did not apply to me, I watched my friends and my coworkers go into panic mode. They were scared, they were angry and they were frantically trying to figure out ways to be able to stay in Florida and receive their education. I witnessed first-hand how xenophobic the current administration is in terms of immigrants and international students. Watching people that I care about worry about the possibility of being sent back to South Korea really opened my eyes and made me want to educate myself further.
I already know how xenophobic the political climate is in the United States, but I don't think I really understood the worst of it. I was disgusted when I learned that despite court rulings that children cannot be held for more than twenty days, the Trump Administration uses private contractors to hold children in hotels. Families are being separated while trying to seek asylum and are given the ultimatum of staying in the U.S. without their children or being deported to remain a family. More so, those that wish to seek asylum risk deportation for misrepresentation and the judge holds the power to rule insufficient basis for asylum with no specific guidelines to be met. All immigrants want to do is escape their country and come to the "land of opportunity" - the United States. These individuals are trying to do so legally and are met with opposition at every end. We must remember that these are people who want to do better for themselves and for their families.
As I near graduation, I realize that I need to use my voice and advocate for those who cannot advocate for themselves. I am inspired to join organizations that advocate for the rights of immigrants and will continue to educate myself on the topic further. As I have plans for higher education, I am interested to take more classes in International Law and learn more about immigration in the United States, but more so about asylum seekers and refugees around the world.
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