Mavericks Singer Raul Malo Blasts Trump Administration’s Immigration Policy: ‘I Am the Son of Immigrants’
As a crisis raged at the southern border between the U.S. and Mexico over immigrant children being separated from their parents, Mavericks lead singer Raul Malo turned to social media to share his own family's story.
"I AM the son of immigrants," Malo wrote on Wednesday (June 20). "My parents gave me life because this country offered them hope. They were given a chance...an opportunity that my family used to full advantage. My parents have seen their grandchildren graduate high school. They’ve seen their daughter graduate college. They’ve seen their son build a life around a dream that can only happen here."
Malo shared a series of photos to drive his point home, illustrating his family's journey through the American Dream by showing multiple generations of family highlights, beginning with a black-and-white photo of his parents smiling into the camera.
"The country they came to did not separate children from parents and put them in cages. The country they came to did not treat them as 'rapists' or 'gang' members," he added in a reference to President Trump's oft-repeated characterizations of immigrants. "This is reprehensible and immoral. Not to mention completely unnecessary. This is deliberate. Deeming this policy even crueler. We should all be outraged. I will NOT be quiet about this. I AM the son of immigrants. The last picture is my family. They are all children and grandchildren of immigrants."
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Trump has come under criticism all over the country and the world over his "zero tolerance" interpretation of immigration law, which has seen more than 2300 children separated from their parents since he instituted it in May. Trump's new interpretation of existing law punishes every person who crosses into the U.S. illegally, even if they are fleeing from persecution or violence and trying to seek asylum.
The resulting influx of children needing to be housed apart from parents has overburdened an already strained system, and the administration has even resorted to erecting tent cities to house the overspill. NBC News reports that move will cost taxpayers millions more than simply keeping kids and their parents together.
The policy has drawn fire not only from the news media and the public, but also from the United Nations and Pope Francis. Trump initially blamed the policy on Democrats, calling on them to cooperate with Republicans to help fulfill his immigration agenda if they wanted to see the policy change, but in a sudden reversal on Wednesday, the president issued a new executive order that he says will stop children from being separated from their families, Time reports.
That executive order has also drawn widespread criticism. According to NBC News, instead of separating children from their parents, the new order creates a scenario where entire families will be held together in family detention centers until the parents' case goes to court. Critics charge that will exceed the previously-decided limit of 20 days
“Their plan is to detain families together indefinitely. This is a step up from family separations, but detaining families is not the answer,” Sarah Pierce, a policy analyst at the Migration Policy Institute, tells NBC.
Trump's executive order also does not provide a framework for reuniting children and parents who have already been separated.
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