Reports of sickening conditions in children's detention facilities, along with renewed threats by the administration to attack migrant families, have cast a dark shadow over the lives of families like mine. (Photo: Shutterstock)
Fund Head Start, Not Internment Camps
One policy gives children lifelong benefits. The other destroys lives.
I came to this country from Mexico as a small child because my mother was escaping poverty and wanted to give my sisters and me a better life. She worked hard to make sure we had food on our table and a roof over our heads, often doing two and three jobs at a time.
Because of poverty and systemic racism, undocumented families like mine must work multiple jobs and get paid under the table, and that often comes with mistreatment and discrimination on the job.
Because of poverty and systemic racism, undocumented families like mine must work multiple jobs and get paid under the table, and that often comes with mistreatment and discrimination on the job. To get by, people in our community have to develop our own survival methods, such as getting together with neighbors to share meals or take care of each other's kids.
This difficult situation is made worse by the threat of detention, deportation, and family separation. Reports of sickening conditions in children's detention facilities, along with renewed threats by the administration to attack migrant families, have cast a dark shadow over the lives of families like mine.
Much of this is made possible by misplaced spending priorities.
I recently traveled to Washington, D.C. from my home in Los Angeles to testify before Congress. This was an opportunity to tell members of the House Budget Committee that they have tremendous power to shift U.S. priorities to help millions of families lead better lives.
They could decide, for example, that it's more important to put children into Head Start than into detention centers. Last year, one of the corporations that operate detention centers got $234 million to buy beds for children. With that money, we could instead fund Head Start for more than 26,000 children.
One policy gives children lifelong benefits. The other destroys lives. In fact, at least five migrant children have died in detention this year. Many thousands more will be traumatized.
Congress could also decide that it's more important to send kids to college than to send more ICE agents to raid workplaces. Many poor people like me would like to go to college, but there's not enough financial support -- even though the benefits of public investment in higher education outweigh the costs by over 4 to 1, according to a California study.
Meanwhile, the government has had no trouble finding money to stop people from pursuing their right to live with dignity and humanity. The United States now spends more than eight times as much annually on immigration, deportation, and border enforcement as it did in 1976.
President Trump claims immigrants are an economic burden--that we steal jobs and public assistance money. The exact opposite is true. The Congressional Budget Office found that if the United States accepted more immigrants and created a path for more undocumented people to get legal status, the benefits would outweigh the costs by nearly $20 billion per year.
Immigrants contribute every day to this society--whether it's the gardener mowing your lawn, the cook (like my mother) preparing your meal, the farm worker picking your fruits and vegetables, or the nanny helping to raise your children. Many of us, like myself, have become leaders in movements that unite poor people of all backgrounds to fight--not just to survive another day, but for the right to live a full and vibrant life.
My mother crossed a desert to give me a life with dignity and basic human needs--a home, food, and education. I will continue to fight to make sure everybody lives without poverty, systemic racism, ecological devastation, and violent militarism. I hope our elected officials will too.
We are at a crossroads
This country and this world are at a monumental crossroads. In a few short weeks, US voters will have an opportunity to beat back the forces of fascism and confront the billionaires who are rigging the economy, our media system, and our democracy, making it increasingly impossible for ordinary people to get by. We’re not just talking about the election. We’re talking about what must be done once these fascist elements are vanquished from power. We need a bolder set of solutions than what either major party has so far been willing to offer and a working-class movement ready to fight like hell for it. Trump didn't emerge from nowhere. The conditions that fueled MAGA authoritarianism were created by decades of radical neoliberal economic policies and a corrupt political system dominated by corporate interests. They slashed taxes on the super-rich, promising that the benefits would trickle down. They said giveaways to the corporate titans would make life more affordable for the rest of us. It was all bullshit. And when a bitter, betrayed populace searches for someone to blame, right-wing demagogues have little trouble finding scapegoats. People know when they're being lied to, but you won't hear any of this from the corporate media. Only independent journalism—powered and funded by people who believe in building a better world—can deliver truly trustworthy daily news. Our Fall Campaign is underway, and we need your help. To power our newsroom through the rest of the year, we need to raise $125,000 by midnight on October 31. So if you share our vision, please contribute whatever you can to sustain our work. |
I came to this country from Mexico as a small child because my mother was escaping poverty and wanted to give my sisters and me a better life. She worked hard to make sure we had food on our table and a roof over our heads, often doing two and three jobs at a time.
Because of poverty and systemic racism, undocumented families like mine must work multiple jobs and get paid under the table, and that often comes with mistreatment and discrimination on the job.
Because of poverty and systemic racism, undocumented families like mine must work multiple jobs and get paid under the table, and that often comes with mistreatment and discrimination on the job. To get by, people in our community have to develop our own survival methods, such as getting together with neighbors to share meals or take care of each other's kids.
This difficult situation is made worse by the threat of detention, deportation, and family separation. Reports of sickening conditions in children's detention facilities, along with renewed threats by the administration to attack migrant families, have cast a dark shadow over the lives of families like mine.
Much of this is made possible by misplaced spending priorities.
I recently traveled to Washington, D.C. from my home in Los Angeles to testify before Congress. This was an opportunity to tell members of the House Budget Committee that they have tremendous power to shift U.S. priorities to help millions of families lead better lives.
They could decide, for example, that it's more important to put children into Head Start than into detention centers. Last year, one of the corporations that operate detention centers got $234 million to buy beds for children. With that money, we could instead fund Head Start for more than 26,000 children.
One policy gives children lifelong benefits. The other destroys lives. In fact, at least five migrant children have died in detention this year. Many thousands more will be traumatized.
Congress could also decide that it's more important to send kids to college than to send more ICE agents to raid workplaces. Many poor people like me would like to go to college, but there's not enough financial support -- even though the benefits of public investment in higher education outweigh the costs by over 4 to 1, according to a California study.
Meanwhile, the government has had no trouble finding money to stop people from pursuing their right to live with dignity and humanity. The United States now spends more than eight times as much annually on immigration, deportation, and border enforcement as it did in 1976.
President Trump claims immigrants are an economic burden--that we steal jobs and public assistance money. The exact opposite is true. The Congressional Budget Office found that if the United States accepted more immigrants and created a path for more undocumented people to get legal status, the benefits would outweigh the costs by nearly $20 billion per year.
Immigrants contribute every day to this society--whether it's the gardener mowing your lawn, the cook (like my mother) preparing your meal, the farm worker picking your fruits and vegetables, or the nanny helping to raise your children. Many of us, like myself, have become leaders in movements that unite poor people of all backgrounds to fight--not just to survive another day, but for the right to live a full and vibrant life.
My mother crossed a desert to give me a life with dignity and basic human needs--a home, food, and education. I will continue to fight to make sure everybody lives without poverty, systemic racism, ecological devastation, and violent militarism. I hope our elected officials will too.
I came to this country from Mexico as a small child because my mother was escaping poverty and wanted to give my sisters and me a better life. She worked hard to make sure we had food on our table and a roof over our heads, often doing two and three jobs at a time.
Because of poverty and systemic racism, undocumented families like mine must work multiple jobs and get paid under the table, and that often comes with mistreatment and discrimination on the job.
Because of poverty and systemic racism, undocumented families like mine must work multiple jobs and get paid under the table, and that often comes with mistreatment and discrimination on the job. To get by, people in our community have to develop our own survival methods, such as getting together with neighbors to share meals or take care of each other's kids.
This difficult situation is made worse by the threat of detention, deportation, and family separation. Reports of sickening conditions in children's detention facilities, along with renewed threats by the administration to attack migrant families, have cast a dark shadow over the lives of families like mine.
Much of this is made possible by misplaced spending priorities.
I recently traveled to Washington, D.C. from my home in Los Angeles to testify before Congress. This was an opportunity to tell members of the House Budget Committee that they have tremendous power to shift U.S. priorities to help millions of families lead better lives.
They could decide, for example, that it's more important to put children into Head Start than into detention centers. Last year, one of the corporations that operate detention centers got $234 million to buy beds for children. With that money, we could instead fund Head Start for more than 26,000 children.
One policy gives children lifelong benefits. The other destroys lives. In fact, at least five migrant children have died in detention this year. Many thousands more will be traumatized.
Congress could also decide that it's more important to send kids to college than to send more ICE agents to raid workplaces. Many poor people like me would like to go to college, but there's not enough financial support -- even though the benefits of public investment in higher education outweigh the costs by over 4 to 1, according to a California study.
Meanwhile, the government has had no trouble finding money to stop people from pursuing their right to live with dignity and humanity. The United States now spends more than eight times as much annually on immigration, deportation, and border enforcement as it did in 1976.
President Trump claims immigrants are an economic burden--that we steal jobs and public assistance money. The exact opposite is true. The Congressional Budget Office found that if the United States accepted more immigrants and created a path for more undocumented people to get legal status, the benefits would outweigh the costs by nearly $20 billion per year.
Immigrants contribute every day to this society--whether it's the gardener mowing your lawn, the cook (like my mother) preparing your meal, the farm worker picking your fruits and vegetables, or the nanny helping to raise your children. Many of us, like myself, have become leaders in movements that unite poor people of all backgrounds to fight--not just to survive another day, but for the right to live a full and vibrant life.
My mother crossed a desert to give me a life with dignity and basic human needs--a home, food, and education. I will continue to fight to make sure everybody lives without poverty, systemic racism, ecological devastation, and violent militarism. I hope our elected officials will too.