Ellerbee
says, "These kids can't be forced to leave the
US, but their parents can be. Imagine living in fear
of your parents being caught and deported. Or your
parents get deported, but you stay - without parents.
Or your parents get deported and you go with them,
leaving your home, your country and the only life
you've ever known. Kids, American citizens, are dealing
with these issues every day."
In
I'm American! They're Not!, viewers meet a
young girl, an American-born citizen whose parents
are living illegally in the US. She and her brothers
and sister live life in the shadows.
She says, "Sometimes when I'm at school, I start
worrying about my parents. What if they take them
and I get home and won't find my parents? If my parents
were to be deported from this country, I would not
know what to do and how to manage my life."
As
the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) increases
efforts to round up and deport undocumented immigrants,
many homes and work sites are being raided.
In the special, Miriam Calderon, who works for the
National Council of La Raza, which commissioned the
report Paying the Price: The Impact of Immigration
Raids on America's Children, speaks about the
disruptions immigration raids are causing in families.
The special also features Kelly Nantel, press secretary
for ICE, who explains that her job is to enforce the
laws, and that ICE recommends that people who are
breaking the law should go back to their home country.
Next
the show meets Iven and Noe, brothers whose parents
have been caught and deported. Their parents have
taken Iven and Noe back to Viscaino, Mexico, with
them. The brothers miss their home in San Jose, California.
Iven says, "School here is hard for me because
I don't know how to write or read in Spanish. In the
US, I used to get good grades like A's, and now I'm
getting grades like C's and D's."
Lastly,
viewers meet 13-year-old Paola, 14-year-old Vanessa,
and 17-year-old Nahun, three siblings whose parents
were deported to Mexico last year, while they remained
in the US without them. A family friend acts as their
legal guardian; however, the kids are living by themselves.
