Family Separation Has Scarred These Kids For Life

One day after school in late March, 7-year-old Matías twisted colorful pipe cleaners into the shape of handcuffs. “That’s the way I was treated,” said the 23-year-old from Guatemala, who requested HuffPost use pseudonyms and not reveal the family’s location, because of safety concerns related to her asylum claim. “They have to undergo the task of finding out, ‘What happened to my child and what can I do to fix it?’” “It’s the most painful and worst thing that’s happened in my life.” - Victoria, a parent who was separated from her son last May Vicente, who asked that HuffPost use a pseudonym to protect his safety, says his 9-year-old daughter gets angry when he asks her about the separation. “But these parents are in a constant state of tension and anxiety and can’t fully provide that.” Matías’ teacher says that he needs more help with his homework, but Victoria barely has time to sleep. But the mother says it’s still painful to see him keep so much bottled up, and that since the separation, the “great love my child and I had together has gone away.” “He doesn’t talk to me the way he used to talk in a happy way before,” Victoria said, “and so that hurts me again.” Advertisement