Jun 25, 2018
While tearing children away from parents under a policy designed to keep asylum seekers from entering U.S. society, the Trump administration is forcing those same children to pledge their allegiance to the country that is actively trying to expel them.
\u201cWe make the children recite a pledge of allegiance to the country that took them from their parents. This is calculated sadism.\n\nhttps://t.co/pYHl4VBxRt\u201d— matt blaze (@matt blaze) 1529895897
President Donald Trump signed an executive order last week stating that families would be detained together under his "zero tolerance" immigration policy, but thousands of children remain separated from their parents.
The Washington Post on Monday detailed the conditions in which many of those children are living, in detention centers like Casa Padre in Brownsville, Texas, describing "a converted Walmart where each morning they are required to stand and recite the Pledge of Allegiance, in English, to the country that holds them apart from their parents."
A facility employee told the Post, "We tell them, 'It's out of respect.'"
\u201cHey, kids-you don't speak English, we ripped you from your parents, we've put you in cages and you'll never be Americans-so now recite the Pledge of Allegiance. https://t.co/HRGz0uszsp\u201d— Amee Vanderpool (@Amee Vanderpool) 1529932445
\u201cAbducted little refugee kids forced to recite the pledge of allegiance to the country abusing them as a sign of respect. Because nothing says respect like abducting kids.\n https://t.co/TgKS7lNCpa via @Splinter_news\u201d— PEZ (@PEZ) 1529940873
As Common Dreams reported earlier this month, Casa Padre also features a prominently displayed mural of President Donald Trump.
As details about the treatment of children in detention facilities have emerged, many have drawn comparisons to internment camps for Japanese-Americans that were established during World War II. Actor and activist George Takei's memories of the camp he lived in as a child mirror the descriptions of children reciting the Pledge of Allegiance.
As the Post's report coincided with much discussion of the Virginia restaurant whose owner refused to serve White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders over the weekend--and other public protests against administration officials--many critics strongly pushed back against the notion that Americans should be concerned with "civility" toward the Trump administration--while children are being forced to show "respect" for the government holding them hostage.
\u201cAnd they want us to believe that the big moral outrage here is that the people behind this aren't welcome at nice restaurants.\u201d— matt blaze (@matt blaze) 1529895897
\u201cLet me make sure I have this straight: babies and children who have done nothing wrong are being ripped away from their parents, locked in cages, and being forced to recite the Pledge of Allegiance in front of murals of Donald Trump, but the biggest crisis of today is "civility"?\u201d— Evan Greer is on Mastodon (@Evan Greer is on Mastodon) 1529932913
Join Us: News for people demanding a better world
Common Dreams is powered by optimists who believe in the power of informed and engaged citizens to ignite and enact change to make the world a better place. We're hundreds of thousands strong, but every single supporter makes the difference. Your contribution supports this bold media model—free, independent, and dedicated to reporting the facts every day. Stand with us in the fight for economic equality, social justice, human rights, and a more sustainable future. As a people-powered nonprofit news outlet, we cover the issues the corporate media never will. |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
While tearing children away from parents under a policy designed to keep asylum seekers from entering U.S. society, the Trump administration is forcing those same children to pledge their allegiance to the country that is actively trying to expel them.
\u201cWe make the children recite a pledge of allegiance to the country that took them from their parents. This is calculated sadism.\n\nhttps://t.co/pYHl4VBxRt\u201d— matt blaze (@matt blaze) 1529895897
President Donald Trump signed an executive order last week stating that families would be detained together under his "zero tolerance" immigration policy, but thousands of children remain separated from their parents.
The Washington Post on Monday detailed the conditions in which many of those children are living, in detention centers like Casa Padre in Brownsville, Texas, describing "a converted Walmart where each morning they are required to stand and recite the Pledge of Allegiance, in English, to the country that holds them apart from their parents."
A facility employee told the Post, "We tell them, 'It's out of respect.'"
\u201cHey, kids-you don't speak English, we ripped you from your parents, we've put you in cages and you'll never be Americans-so now recite the Pledge of Allegiance. https://t.co/HRGz0uszsp\u201d— Amee Vanderpool (@Amee Vanderpool) 1529932445
\u201cAbducted little refugee kids forced to recite the pledge of allegiance to the country abusing them as a sign of respect. Because nothing says respect like abducting kids.\n https://t.co/TgKS7lNCpa via @Splinter_news\u201d— PEZ (@PEZ) 1529940873
As Common Dreams reported earlier this month, Casa Padre also features a prominently displayed mural of President Donald Trump.
As details about the treatment of children in detention facilities have emerged, many have drawn comparisons to internment camps for Japanese-Americans that were established during World War II. Actor and activist George Takei's memories of the camp he lived in as a child mirror the descriptions of children reciting the Pledge of Allegiance.
As the Post's report coincided with much discussion of the Virginia restaurant whose owner refused to serve White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders over the weekend--and other public protests against administration officials--many critics strongly pushed back against the notion that Americans should be concerned with "civility" toward the Trump administration--while children are being forced to show "respect" for the government holding them hostage.
\u201cAnd they want us to believe that the big moral outrage here is that the people behind this aren't welcome at nice restaurants.\u201d— matt blaze (@matt blaze) 1529895897
\u201cLet me make sure I have this straight: babies and children who have done nothing wrong are being ripped away from their parents, locked in cages, and being forced to recite the Pledge of Allegiance in front of murals of Donald Trump, but the biggest crisis of today is "civility"?\u201d— Evan Greer is on Mastodon (@Evan Greer is on Mastodon) 1529932913
While tearing children away from parents under a policy designed to keep asylum seekers from entering U.S. society, the Trump administration is forcing those same children to pledge their allegiance to the country that is actively trying to expel them.
\u201cWe make the children recite a pledge of allegiance to the country that took them from their parents. This is calculated sadism.\n\nhttps://t.co/pYHl4VBxRt\u201d— matt blaze (@matt blaze) 1529895897
President Donald Trump signed an executive order last week stating that families would be detained together under his "zero tolerance" immigration policy, but thousands of children remain separated from their parents.
The Washington Post on Monday detailed the conditions in which many of those children are living, in detention centers like Casa Padre in Brownsville, Texas, describing "a converted Walmart where each morning they are required to stand and recite the Pledge of Allegiance, in English, to the country that holds them apart from their parents."
A facility employee told the Post, "We tell them, 'It's out of respect.'"
\u201cHey, kids-you don't speak English, we ripped you from your parents, we've put you in cages and you'll never be Americans-so now recite the Pledge of Allegiance. https://t.co/HRGz0uszsp\u201d— Amee Vanderpool (@Amee Vanderpool) 1529932445
\u201cAbducted little refugee kids forced to recite the pledge of allegiance to the country abusing them as a sign of respect. Because nothing says respect like abducting kids.\n https://t.co/TgKS7lNCpa via @Splinter_news\u201d— PEZ (@PEZ) 1529940873
As Common Dreams reported earlier this month, Casa Padre also features a prominently displayed mural of President Donald Trump.
As details about the treatment of children in detention facilities have emerged, many have drawn comparisons to internment camps for Japanese-Americans that were established during World War II. Actor and activist George Takei's memories of the camp he lived in as a child mirror the descriptions of children reciting the Pledge of Allegiance.
As the Post's report coincided with much discussion of the Virginia restaurant whose owner refused to serve White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders over the weekend--and other public protests against administration officials--many critics strongly pushed back against the notion that Americans should be concerned with "civility" toward the Trump administration--while children are being forced to show "respect" for the government holding them hostage.
\u201cAnd they want us to believe that the big moral outrage here is that the people behind this aren't welcome at nice restaurants.\u201d— matt blaze (@matt blaze) 1529895897
\u201cLet me make sure I have this straight: babies and children who have done nothing wrong are being ripped away from their parents, locked in cages, and being forced to recite the Pledge of Allegiance in front of murals of Donald Trump, but the biggest crisis of today is "civility"?\u201d— Evan Greer is on Mastodon (@Evan Greer is on Mastodon) 1529932913
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.