Should I Stay or Should I Go: Why Immigrant Reunification Decisions Should Be Based on the Best Interest of the Child.

UNITED States immigration policy; BEST interests of the child (Law); CHILD welfare; PARENT-child legal relationship; CHILD abuse; DEPORTATION

Blanca is a nineteen-year-old undocumented immigrant from Guatemala. Blanca speaks no English and only a little Spanish. She comes from a remote region in Guatemala where the primary language is an indigenous dialect called Xinca. The village Blanca grew up in is incredibly poor. There is no hospital, illiteracy rates are high, sanitation is inadequate, and nutritious food can be scarce. She entered the United States without documentation, hoping to make a better life for herself. Her son Xavier was born a year later. Xavier is now 19 months old and Blanca is being deported. Xavier was removed from Blanca's care shortly before she was detained. At that time, the state welfare agency determined that Blanca's living arrangement, a studio apartment she shared with two other families, constituted neglect. Since her detention, Blanca has had little contact with Xavier, but she wishes to take Xavier with her when she is deported. The family court denied her request finding that returning to Guatemala with Blanca is contrary to Xavier's best interest. The judge then severed Blanca's parental rights and Xavier was adopted by Mark and Sandra, a middle class couple from Encino, California who have been foster parents to Xavier during Blanca's year-long detention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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