Las Vegas Sun

March 28, 2024

LETTER TO THE EDITOR:

Letter: Where did our empathy go?

Families seeking refuge from extortion, murder and rape move north to find safety. They seek a place where outlaw gangs will not kill their family or entice their children to join the reign of terror. They flee north, as I would to protect my family. They are desperate enough to walk 1,000 miles through hostile lands where they face the possibility of robbery and murder.

This dangerous journey ends at a wall or a desert, where survival is not certain. They stop feet away from a land where opportunity and hope exist. They seek sanctuary and asylum. They believe it’s a land where Lady Liberty welcomes all, where the rule of law offers protection.

What they find is a place where mothers cry and children weep as their family is ripped apart. Parents attempt to comfort their children, saying it will be all right, though the future is unknown. Callous indifference places children in dog kennels to comfort themselves on cold, concrete floors.

Parents cuffed in crowded holding areas are taken away. Children are left isolated and alone. Parents cry for their children. Children cry for their parents. All are detained without the protection of law.

We are better than this. We are a nation drowning in fear and anger. Do you hear the cries?