A chilling connection…

Dear Editor,

When I heard a legal trainer advising immigrant parents to make a childcare plan in case ICE took the child’s parent(s) away suddenly, my stomach clutched, and I got teary. I understood the stomach clutch because I believe these  hard working neighbors are being unfairly targeted after keeping our Southwest WI dairy and cheese economy alive. But the tears? I am not a person who cries easily.

Then, I made the CHILLING CONNECTION …I am a third generation Japanese American and my family was impacted by the unfair incarceration of 120,000 Japanese Americans during WWII. Their loyalty was challenged and later dismissed when the all Japanese American 442nd  Army unit was the most highly decorated during the war. This unit fought in Italy while their parents were incarcerated in relocation camps!  Later the government made formal apology and even small monetary compensation. But that was years after the trauma.

I realize my comparison is not analogous because the interned Japanese were legal immigrants. However, since we have blocked current immigrants from having a timely path to be legal and have put no money or effort to improve the system, invited them into our workforce so WI can be economically viable, have slandered every immigrant by calling them criminals and  rapists, and we are now breaking up families and putting them in an ill equipped Guantanamo facility…I think the UNFAIRNESS and INJUSTICE are comparable!

It is the same dynamic..pick a scapegoat, blame that group for everything, focus all the anger and hate on that group. Send them to “camps” which we are shy to call “concentration camps”. Maybe years later apologize in shame.  But right now the children are crying!

We must do better this time…For more information contact ilc.org (immigrant legal center) regarding legal rights of our neighbors or locally Southwestern Community Action Program (SWCAP) 608 935-2326, info@swcap.org for information on local legal clinics.

Thank you, Christine Tsubokura

Mineral Point, WI