 These children do not know how to resolve their legal status – most adults find the legal system daunting, much less a child. |
Have you ever met a little boy who by the young age of six had many scars on the top of his head where he’d been hit with a broom? Clorox bleach was poured over his head and he was scrubbed with SOS because he was too dark. If he tore his pants and didn’t mend them properly, the needle was jabbed into his hand repeatedly. This little boy suffered all of this abuse and more at the hand of the one person he trusted most—his mom. When she put an inch-and-a-half gash into the back of his head, he was finally removed from her care by Child Protection Services and placed in foster care. The reunification process ended when his mom took his brothers and sister back to Mexico, abandoning him and leaving him a dependent of the courts. When a judge deemed that it was not in his best interest to return to Mexico, parental rights were consequently terminated by the courts. Now a dependent of the courts, he was bounced from foster home to foster home for two years.
You have just been introduced to Vicente.
When Vicente was eight years old, my husband and I adopted this precious little boy who had endured so much. A year later when applying for his social security card, I was informed that Vicente did not have legal status in the United States. After several phone calls to the State Adoption Agency, immigration attorneys and the Human Services Dept., I learned that you can legally adopt a child who does not have legal status. My son was therefore subject to being deported at any time. My fears escalated to the point of devising a plan to hide Vicente—my son—to protect him if need be. I thank God that this plan never had to come to fruition…at least for my family.
After five years of headache and heartache, my son gained legal status and became a citizen of the United States. My son is now safe, but there are so many children that are not. Out of this five-year battle, SueCares evolved. |
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