Detained and Deported:
Stories of Immigrant Families Under Fire
Author: Margaret Regan
Isbn: 978-0-8070-7983-6

This book was published in 2015, but it is certainly not out of date! The political temperament of the day makes this book necessary reading, though I wish that the ones reading would step back and look at it as a humanitarian rather than a political document. What is more, I wish and I sincerely pray that those who profess to be Christians would read it in light of their relationship to Christ and not in light of their political allegiances.

Sadly, that is where the greatest challenge is.

You see, I lay a charge against the church in America today. I charge that the sin of American Christianity is that it sees itself as American first and Christian second. This church embraces Romans 13:1 and forgets all about Acts 5:29!

This charge is one I will write more on in a more appropriate place. For now, it comes to mind because Margaret Regan has written about a real tragedy. This book is about the treatment of immigrant families at the hands of our authorities and the suffering being endured by fellow human beings. It is comprised of story after story of men, women, and children who face terrible conditions, inhumane treatment, and institutional neglect.

It is about children left behind and alone when parents are arrested and imprisoned for the crime of working and trying to provide. It is about husbands and wives torn apart from the over zealous persecution of a crime that does not merit or call for the severe response it seems to elicit.

Look, I know how some (sadly, even Christians!) will argue here. These people are committing crimes! These people should come by legal means! These people are taking jobs from Americans and keeping wages low!

I can appreciate the concerns even if I don’t care for the manner in which they are presented. And this is an issue I will be writing on again.

All I can say is read this book. Look upon the people it speaks of as fellow human beings and have some empathy for the suffering of those around us. ( )

"An intimate look at the people ensnared by the US detention and deportation system, the largest in the world."

Understanding the lives of those outside our everyday experiences is essential to a cooperative, civilized society. Detained and Deported puts a real face to the plight of undocumented immigrants and their families in the United States. Highly recommended.

4 stars ( )

“Justice will not be served until those who are unaffected are as outraged as those who are.” ― Benjamin Franklin
OUCH! Margaret Regan delivers a hard punch in the gut with the stories of immigrant families and their treatment by the U.S. Immigration system in her book "Detained and Deported". This is raw uncut footage of "illegal" immigrants caught in the social "in"-Justices and Machievelian twists if a tortuous immigration system in America. My in-laws talked about the hardships they encountered when they immigrated to the US through Ellis Island as they sought refuge from persecution in Eastern Europe. Theirs pales as compared to the experiences of those who "illegally" cross America's Southern borders today. Extended incarcerations of years, felony convictions for those caught in human trafficking's clutches, the agonies of separations from family are caught in this compelling narrative that screams for U.S. Immigration reform and social justice for those illegally entering Ameica's borders. Readers beware- this book will open your eyes to a hidden world of injustice, greed, and averice in how America "deals" with "illegal" immigrants. Is this really the land of freedon , opportunity and "justice" anymore? Not for those who choose to risk all to enter America's borders without a "Golden Ticket"! Read and weep! ( )

Detained and Deported (Stories of Immigrant Families Under Fire)
ISBN: 978-0807079836
Author: Margaret Regan

Well written and compelling, Ms. Regan has succeeded in writing a book that all of us need to read.

I have to say Detained and Deported shook me to the core. As a Mid-westerner, the press has done a remarkable job of keeping us in the dark, and
I had no idea of the immigrant situation in the Southwestern United States. I am appalled and disheartened by what we “Americans” are capable of doing to those seeking a better life.

Long gone are the days when America opened its arms to the tired, the poor, and those yearning to breathe free. Our attitude now seems to be “We don’t want you here, but we’re more than happy to incarcerate you”. Prison for profit. Abuse. Inadequate housing and food. Random racial profiling by law enforcement and border guards. Brought here as a child by your parents? Fleeing persecution or violence? Too bad! Back you go.

Thank God for the volunteers and activists who are working so hard to help, comfort, inform, feed, clothe, and house undocumented immigrants! The system has not only failed these people, but has been designed to extend their suffering. This has to stop, and the sooner Americans open their eyes to what is going on at present in their country, the sooner lives can be saved, and families can be restored. ( )

This is an important book and should be a must read for everyone in the United States as most of us have absolutely no clue what we as a country are doing to the most vulnerable of our own citizens. I'm not even finished reading this book, but this quote from page 118 was what made me want to review this even before I'd finished reading: "ICE's figures show that from July 2010 to September 2012 - the period during which Elena was expelled from the country - the United States deported some 204,816 parents who left behind children who were US citizens." The story of Elena - who was brought her by her mother when she was 13, and as a single parent of two children was deported to leave those children behind (the option of bringing them with her wasn't even given) to be placed into foster care, is appalling. "If the number of deported parents is high, the number of children left essentially parentless is staggering. Between 2998 and 2013, researches estimate that some 660,000 US citizen children lost a parent to deportation." "In Arizona, anecdotal evidence shows that hundreds of kids of deportees are being held in foster care on any given day, Laurie told me. Ironically, at the same time that Arizona's CPS was taking custody of kids with perfectly capable parents like Elena, the agency was being investigated by the state for its failure to monitor more than six thousand troubled families on its rolls. Many of their children had been abused or neglected; a few ended up dead." This book is so disturbing and people don't take into account the fact that much of the southwest portions of the US belonged to Mexico until the mid-1800s and the Spanish culture there is embedded into the society. People who come from Central America to the US for better opportunities don't feel alienated when they arrive here - they view it just as an extension of home, only away from the cartels and gun-violence which, ironically, has developed as a result of the United States exporting weapons to these countries, and our drug dependent culture encouraging the cartels to make their money here. I'm sorry to have to say this, but we are the ones responsible for the immigration issue and we are the ones who are taking responsible immigrants away from the children who are then left here to become alienated because they lack the family ties that could have been saved had we not deported their parents. Donald Trump - wake up and smell the roses - you are turning them into dung because of your misguided zeal! ( )