Susan J. Terrio: Whose Child Am I?: Unaccompanied, Undocumented Children in US Immigration Custody

Excerpt

In recent years, immigration has become a pressing issue for American politics and society. A lot of ideas and rationales are offered by individuals who have no idea what our system really does to regulate the influx of immigrants. Many times individuals rely on news sources that may not give the most reliable information and may exaggerate facts. The truth is that immigration is a major part of America now and its history. Without immigrants, there would not be a United States of America. American society is comprised of immigrants coming over and creating a new life for themselves and their families. Sadly, the idea of allowing individuals a new life is not depicted in the same way anymore. Many times the reaction is opposite. In Whose Child am I, by Susan Terrio, the topic discussed is not just immigration but also the handling of undocumented, unaccompanied children. In her book, she expresses the importance of reform and exposes the current system for what it truly is. Whose Child am I is structured to show that the current immigration system uses two agendas when it addresses children: a humanitarian and a security agenda. The humanitarian agenda is one of compassion and protection of immigrant children, while the security agenda is the view of immigrant children being burdensome and threatening to American society (Terrio 2015, p. 27). To support this claim, the book offers eight chapters of litigation and debates to show the contradictions in approaches to children. …