Peruvian child becomes symbol of US undocumented

[antda 13]

Peruvian child becomes symbol of US undocumented

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100531/ap_on_re_la_am_ca/lt_peru_girl_immigration

By CARLA SALAZAR, Associated Press Writer Carla Salazar, Associated Press Writer – Mon May 31, 3:09 pm ET

LIMA, Peru – Seven-year-old Daisy Cuevas, thrilled to see herself on television with U.S. First Lady Michelle Obama, didn't quite understand the predicament in which she had innocently placed her undocumented Peruvian parents.

"She laughed, she jumped up and down. She was excited" after the encounter at Daisy's suburban Washington, D.C., elementary school, the girl's maternal grandfather, Genaro Juica, told The Associated Press.

The TV appearance made the pigtailed second grader a voice of the estimated 12 million immigrants living in the United States illegally — and a source of pride for Peru's president, who visits Washington on Tuesday.

"My mom says that Barack Obama is taking away everybody that doesn't have papers," Daisy told the U.S. first lady on May 19 at the New Hampshire Estates Elementary School in Silver Spring, Maryland.

"Well, that's something that we have to work on, right, to make sure that people can be here with the right kind of papers," Michelle Obama replied.

"But my mom doesn't have papers," said Daisy, a U.S. citizen by virtue of her birth.

The color immediately drained from her mother's face. She ran crying to call her parents in Lima, then went into hiding, fearful of being deported.

These are tense times for people like Daisy's mother, a maid who arrived in the United States with her carpenter husband when she was two months pregnant with Daisy.

Daisy's parents are fearful of U.S. anti-immigrant sentiment, which for many Latin Americans is epitomized by an Arizona law taking effect in July that gives police the right to demand ID papers of anyone suspected of being in the country illegally.

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security has said it is not pursuing Daisy's parents. Immigration investigations, it said in a statement, "are based on making sure the law is followed and not on a question-and-answer discussion in a classroom."

Nonetheless, Daisy's mother asked the AP after the May 19 incident not to name her or her husband.

And Juica, heeding an attorney's advice, asked the news agency not to take photographs of him or other relatives in Peru.

Daisy, meanwhile, has become a celebrity in Peru.

"I'm really proud that a young girl of Peruvian origin is highlighting the enormous problem with Latin American immigration in the United States," President Alan Garcia told reporters last week.

He said it would be scandalous if her parents were deported.

"Do you know how much President Obama and Mrs. Michelle Obama would stand to lose?" he said. Garcia called the Arizona law a "completely irrational response" to the illegal-immigration question, and said he would express his thoughts on the matter to President Obama during his visit to Washington.

An estimated 1.5 million Peruvians currently live in the U.S. Of those, three in five are either undocumented or in the process of legalizing their status, said Peru's consul-general in Washington, Cesar Augusto Jordan.

Peruvian Foreign Minister Jose Antonio Belaunde said in a Radioprogramas radio interview that he considers Daisy a "successful ambassador" for compatriots in similar predicaments.

While Daisy has automatic U.S. citizenship and lives full time with her parents, her 9-year-old sister, July, has not been so lucky. July was left behind with her grandparents when her parents moved to the United States to escape poverty.

The two sisters met for the first time last year when Daisy spent a month visiting her grandparents in the working-class San Juan de Lurigancho district of Lima.

But July misses her parents, who are unlikely to visit Peru because of their illegal status in the U.S.

July has only seen them in photographs and in video chats with a webcam.

"She cries," Juica said.

Edited June 1, 2010 by Ant+D+BabyA

[natty bumppo 297]

the rest of the story finally appears ...

promptly deport the mom and dad ...

if they are good parents ... they will take their daughter with them without question ....

[Danno 1,228]

The "child" is not a symbol of the undocumented (illegals) the parents are.

By means of a quirky reading of the law... the Kid is legal.

It's the parents who go on breaking our immigration laws by coming here and staying.

That doesn't mean the parents are bad people.... it just means they have cut in front of everyone else and have no right to be here.

The kid was cute as she could be but seriously... the USA is not a flop-house for the third world.

I would tell these people the same as I would tell anyone, the party is over; You came, you made some money, you had some good times and even got a lot of free stuff, now it's time to go home.

[Scott & Lai 12]

Daisy's parents are fearful of U.S. anti-immigrant illegal alien sentiment, which for many Latin Americans is epitomized by an Arizona law taking effect in July that gives police the right to demand ID papers of anyone suspected of being in the country illegally.He said it would be scandalous if her parents were deported.

fixxored

An estimated 1.5 million Peruvians currently live in the U.S. Of those, three in five are either undocumented or in the process of legalizing their status, said Peru's consul-general in Washington, Cesar Augusto Jordan. once again, lumping illegal aliens with legal immigrants...

Edited June 1, 2010 by Scott & Lai

[Ban Hammer 13,333]

He said it would be scandalous if her parents were deported.

no, what's scandalous is the sense of entitlement displayed here - sneak into the country, have an anchor baby, and then expect amnesty.

[Ontarkie 14,218]

I feel terrible for the girl. Do to the selfishness of her parents she is kept apart from an older sister. Her parents are damaging these 2 kids. Both those girls need their parents, God help her if her grandparents die, I highly doubt they would go back to their oldest daughter.

[natty bumppo 297]

Peruvian child becomes symbol of US undocumented

Source: http://news.yahoo.co...irl_immigration

While Daisy has automatic U.S. citizenship and lives full time with her parents, her 9-year-old sister, July, has not been so lucky. July was left behind with her grandparents when her parents moved to the United States to escape poverty.

The two sisters met for the first time last year when Daisy spent a month visiting her grandparents in the working-class San Juan de Lurigancho district of Lima.

hopefully the two sisters will be reunited permanently in peru ... how dare the parents split the family with their greed ....

[GabiandVi 34]

The really sad thing is that the Peruvian president is correct. It would become a major international scandal if the law of the US were applied in this case.

[Heracles 417]

So the kid is apparently an anchor baby. I will agree though, it's a shame that a young child is placed in such a situation.

Had America closed the loophole much like everyone else has (aka common sense in 2010), this would not be an issue innocent kids would not be pawns and put into such a situation.

Edited June 1, 2010 by Booyah!

[natty bumppo 297]

The really sad thing is that the Peruvian president is correct. It would become a major international scandal if the law of the US were applied in this case.

international scandal ... BS

a sovereign nation applying it's laws to a lawbreaker ... good stuff.

i'm sure peru has laws ... and enforces them too ....

[alienlovechild 75]

"I'm really proud that a young girl of Peruvian origin is highlighting the enormous problem with Latin American immigration in the United States," President Alan Garcia told reporters last week.

He said it would be scandalous if her parents were deported.

"Do you know how much President Obama and Mrs. Michelle Obama would stand to lose?" he said. Garcia called the Arizona law a "completely irrational response" to the illegal-immigration question, and said he would express his thoughts on the matter to President Obama during his visit to Washington.

An estimated 1.5 million Peruvians currently live in the U.S. Of those, three in five are either undocumented or in the process of legalizing their status, said Peru's consul-general in Washington, Cesar Augusto Jordan.

Where's is the pride of people like President Garcia when their nations are so poorly run that millions had to live abroad illegally? It would be interesting if the American government told poor American to leave the country and start a new life elsewhere. If they don't accept those fleeing our shores, then they are solely to blame. Sounds nuts but that's what's is going on as our immigration policy is determine de facto in foreign capitals.

[Usui Takumi 1,562]

This doesn't evoke any emotion for me I'm sorry. The parents need to be deported.

[Sofiyya 1,687]

Another immigration sob story. Boo hoo.

Here's the rub, Peru's President Garcia wants to speak with our president about the "irrational" Arizona law. He'll probably get that chance, too. Yet, despite repeated overtures to the White House, and a upcoming visit to Washington, AZ Governor Jan Brewer has been snubbed by this administration.

They simply refuse to respond to an American governor of one of the 50 states that President Barry has sworn to protect. Instead, he has been prompting Mexican president Calderon to diss AZ, and will spend his time on pressing issues like Sports figures and Paul McCartney while ignoring the governor and the over 50% of Americans who support that "irrational law" she signed.

Your tax dollars at work.

Edited June 1, 2010 by Sofiyya

[Darnell 8,478]

why the #### did Ms. Salazar use the word 'immigrant' instead of 'illegal alien' ?

[peejay 327]

When I saw the video of Michelle Obama's conversation with this little girl my first thought was that the entire thing was choreographed and rehearsed. I can't prove it, but it looked pretty contrived to me since there is this big propoganda campaign going on already for mass illegal alien amnesty.