JO - A father's pain

From my archive of press clippings:

Jamaica Observer

A father's pain

BY PETRE WILLIAMS-RAYNOR williamsp@jamaicaobserver.com

Sunday, March 07, 2010


AT 40 years old, he is a man in anguish over the loss of the family he had to leave behind in the United States when he was deported to Jamaica in 2008.

Read the whole article here.

Snippet(s):

"He recalled that when the authorities came to get him, he was in the process of taking his youngest son, age 13, to school."

"(H)is story did not begin with his deportation, which came as a consequence of his not being in the country legally. The man, who is married to the mother of his two youngest children, said he was taken to the US at age five or six by his father. But no sooner did he get there, his father began to physically abuse him. As a result, he was taken into state care where he remained, on and off, for the next 10 years.

He later returned to live with his father until he was 21-years-old, when he was deported, having run afoul of the law over a drug charge. While in custody, the authorities discovered that he had no papers. He was offered bail, which his father -- who had failed to ensure he got his green card and citizenship -- refused to post."

"He was deported, but after only about four months he was back in the States using a new name. He assumed the name of a US soldier, and it was several years before local authorities discovered what he had done and brought him up on charges. He was given two years probation for that offence and went back to using his own name."

"Immigration authorities soon discovered that several years earlier he had also assumed the name of a soldier that had deserted the army.

He was subsequently taken into custody, and deported for the second time in 19 years."

"(A)s he adapts to life on the island, his family struggles in the US."

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"His other children from a previous relationship -- a son, 19, a daughter, 21, and another son, 22 -- are in no less need of him."