Editorial / Published Thursday, May 11, 2000, in the Miami Herald
Case Affects Many Immigrant Children
Today the federal appeals judges who ordered Elian Gonzalez to remain in the United States pending legal proceedings are hearing arguments on his plea for asylum. It's important to keep that plea in mind; this is not, contrary to the Clinton administration's spin, a simple custody battle between
a father and a relative.
This is a fundamentally important asylum case whose outcome could have a wide-ranging impact on thousands of other children who arrive alone in the United States and whose best interest may conflict with the wishes of parents.
Already Thai community advocates in Los Angeles have filed suit to stop the Immigration and Naturalization Service from repatriating a 2-year-old boy to Thailand. The boy reportedly was sold by his family to members of a ring that illegally smuggled women into the country. The child was used as
a decoy. As with Elian, the child's family wants him returned to Thailand. But the lawsuit seeks to ensure the boy's well-being so that he will not fall into hands that will sell him again.
The fact that the INS refuses to consider such circumstances underscores a point central to Elian's case: Child welfare is not a primary INS focus. Yet ideally such cases should be heard by judges with that expertise.
The legal question before the appellate court is rather narrow: Can a young child petition for asylum independent of a parent's wishes? U.S. government attorneys will likely argue, as the INS has, that Elian is too young to apply for asylum. Attorney Gregory Craig, representing Elian's father,
will likely argue that only his client -- who wants to return to Cuba with his son -- can speak for his child.
Attorney Kendall Coffey, representing Elian in the claim brought by his great-uncle, will try to persuade the judges that the INS must listen to the case for granting the boy asylum rather than bowing automatically to parental rights. For advocating such a debate, South Florida's Cuban American
community unfairly has been maligned by some national coverage that focuses on extremists and stereotypes.
As this case draws to a conclusion, it's up to those who know that description to be false to find ways to express their public concerns in ways that dispel the odious myths.
The need to do that was well seized by the organizers of yesterday's ``Americans to Keep Elian Free'' rallies in 15 cities. To the tune of Bruce Springsteen's Born in the USA, the crowd in Miami commendably made a pitch for Elian's welfare based on human rights, not political insults.
Copyright 2000 Miami Herald |