This Part

When members of the anti-immigrant crowd can't use facts or logic to back up their arguments, they trot out the snotty-sounding quip, "What part of 'illegal' do you not understand?"

Well, this part: How the federal government can tear apart a family of eight.

Maricela Gloria and her husband, Ruben Sr., immigrated here 14 years ago without getting legal paperwork. Four of their six children, Litzy; Daiyanara, 3; Keven, 6; and Larry, 11, are American citizens because they were born in the United States. They’ve never known any other life. Ruben Jr., 15, and Blanca, 17, although born in Mexico, were so young when they immigrated with their parents that they have no memory of that country. ...

Blanca Gloria, a junior at Rio Grande City High School, says they were driving home from a nearby store when they passed a Starr County sheriff’s deputy. Blanca Gloria says the deputy, who had caught several undocumented immigrants, stopped the two teenagers and accused them of being part of the smuggling operation. The youths didn’t have any identification; they were taken to their home just a few yards down the road, and the Border Patrol was called. Agents questioned them for several hours and learned the family was not part of the smuggling operation but were in the country illegally.

So now the feds want to deport Mom, Dad, Junior and Sis. These folks lived in Rio Grande City for years, working hard and paying taxes, not causing any trouble. If anyone thinks kicking two parents and two kids out of the country will make this nation safer or more prosperous, they're sadly mistaken.

Kudos to reporter Travis Whitehead of The Monitor for putting a human face on the immigration issue. (The Associated Press takes a look at the bigger picture today as well.)

ADDENDUM: The Washington Post mentions McAllen and Reynosa in a story on individuals and families whose lives straddle the border.