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Lens on immigration: ‘Adolescence deported’
Jocelyn is 16 and a U.S. citizen. She helps to care for her siblings since her mother was deported.
June 18th, 2012
03:22 PM ET

Lens on immigration: ‘Adolescence deported’

By Cody McCloy, CNN

(CNN) - After graduating from photography school in New York, Ester Jove Soligue began to collaborate with the American Friends Service Committee, a Quaker organization that includes people of various faiths who are committed to social justice.

As part of its Immigrant Rights Program, the AFSC was collecting testimonies from children with family members who had been deported as illegal immigrants. Their stories were presented to Congress in June 2010.

Through her relationship with the AFSC, Soligue met 16-year-old Jocelyn. The girl’s mother, Maria, was deported three years ago after a fight with a neighbor, leaving Jocelyn and her father, Miguel, to take care of her sister and four brothers.

Jocelyn and her siblings were all born in the United States, making them legal U.S. citizens. Impressed by Jocelyn’s strength, Soligue turned her camera toward the family to capture their plight.

Read the full story on the CNN Photos blog

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Filed under: Family • How we live • Immigration • Latino in America
soundoff (29 Responses)
  1. FDC

    I live in northern Palm Beach County in southeast Florida. Every other week there is a boatload of approximately 35 HAITIANS that come ashore…on Jupiter Island of all places. ENOUGH ALREADY!

    June 20, 2012 at 11:19 pm | Report abuse |
  2. FDC

    ALL SIX KIDS WERE BORN IN THE USA. Wow!

    Dumb question...who paid all the medical bills? AND THIS IS JUST ONE FAMILY! (And of course, taxpayer benefits CONTINUE to be used to support this ONE (of thousands) family).

    Ya think if the mother were still here, there would be MORE children born to this ONE family?!?

    Sorry, the USA cannot support the world. PROTECT OUR BORDERS NOW.

    June 20, 2012 at 7:10 pm | Report abuse |
  3. terry

    I'm inclined to believe the greatest risk you ever took in your "military career" was falling off a bar stool. The old "service to my country" crap hasn't meant anything for at least 20 years. Find a new scam.

    June 20, 2012 at 1:23 pm | Report abuse |
  4. lolita from rhode island

    SO...keep the kids in the US and the illegal parents deport them. is that right?

    June 20, 2012 at 12:06 pm | Report abuse |
    • dianee

      makes sense to me but if you wanna deport the kids too, i dont have a problem.

      June 20, 2012 at 12:59 pm | Report abuse |
  5. Lara

    I do not feel sorry for an illegal immigrant who came here and chose to have six children, then chose to leave them here when she was sent home. This is precisely an example of how illegal immigrants overburden our systems and don't pay their fair share. . . six kids to send through our school system (with attendant ESL and free meals in many cases)? C'mon, that's not right.

    June 20, 2012 at 11:48 am | Report abuse |
  6. K

    Te issue is the parents CHOSE to leave their kids here. It's the parents who split their families apart.

    June 20, 2012 at 11:35 am | Report abuse |
  7. Peregrine

    The media is making heroes out of these illegals. The next step is to give all illegals citizenship. This amnesty is an election year stunt so that all of the Hispanics will vote for him. By the way, I am also a war time vet ,so is my spouse, and believe our resources should go to our own people.

    June 20, 2012 at 10:49 am | Report abuse |
  8. T

    What's horrible is that these aliens spend all these years in the US illegal and they make absolutely no effort to adjust status to become a resident and ultimately a citizen. Thanks to the media they now get handouts from the government. What ever happened to entering a country legally? Do the millions who worked their butt off to become citizens through legal means agree with the latest news? I would assume it should be a slap in the face to them. Instead of working their way to US citizenship they could have just dodged immigration until someone turned a blind. Our founding fathers are turning in thier graves.

    June 20, 2012 at 8:00 am | Report abuse |
  9. kiki

    I realy feel sorry for the border states and California who have to deal with all the real problems illegal aliens pose and the lack of a permanent solution from either political sides. I would never support amnesty by the way I am Hispanic.

    June 20, 2012 at 1:43 am | Report abuse |
    • Total2199

      There won’t a permanent solution to the immigration problem in the foreseeable future because the US at this moment is a failed state. Whatever they proudly call a “Democracy” in fact is a Corporate Plutocracy. Board of directors is engaged in a mortal fight against each other for control over shareholders and their capital. So, do not expect any progress on any significant issue in this decade….

      June 20, 2012 at 8:17 am | Report abuse |
  10. T

    Good job administration. Now that you made it policy to keep 16-30yr old aliens with final orders of removal their criminal alien parents must stay as well. Murder, drugs, fraud, DWI. Thanks.

    June 19, 2012 at 10:10 pm | Report abuse |
  11. Service

    Veteran Huh, I don't think so... I'm Active Duty now 18yrs and I'm reading these post and started thinking how many of you served this country in anyway. To think that I have risk my life for people who don't respect anything or anyone. The immogration system is flawed at best but that being said no one should have to suffer for the sins of their parents. If your born in the US you should be allowed to stay and if you can prove hardship with a family member being deported that should be handled on a case by case bases aswell. The country was founded on this very thing nothing wrong with a little compassion.

    June 19, 2012 at 9:13 pm | Report abuse |
    • Alicia

      These people show no compassion while they suck this country dry, and spit on our flag.

      June 19, 2012 at 10:12 pm | Report abuse |
    • Navy

      My service doesn't matter one bit when it comes to this issue....but since you make your point by throwing it out there, then let me clarify......I am a Navy vet, retired, with a SPECWAR background. Deportation is cruel to these kids.....but that lies in the responsibilities of their PARENTS. Not me. Not my money. Not my sweat and blood. You want to get involved? YOU spend YOUR time and money doing support and outreach to them. DO NOT pull them into MY home and tell me I have to feed and cloth them with my tax dollars because YOU think so. I prefer my taxes to go toward teachers, police, firemen, armed forces, the space program, etc. You want to set up a charity state? You go adopt the kids, then, and pay for them yourself.

      June 20, 2012 at 6:58 am | Report abuse |
  12. Vashoppermom

    Agree with the majority of posts here–this article doesn't illicit sympathy, it's anger that comes to mind. If they miss her, perhaps they should go to her country and join her there. I'm Black AND conservative. Our immigration laws are a joke with illegals most often seeming to have the last laugh-at the US taxpayers expense.

    June 19, 2012 at 8:36 pm | Report abuse |
  13. Judy

    All those born here that have Illegal parents need to return to where ever it is that that their parents came from no questions asked.!!!When an Illegal anchor baby is born in the USA they should NOT get an American birth certificate,period!! Case closed!!!

    June 19, 2012 at 8:31 pm | Report abuse |
  14. Wong King

    Why am I obligated to be politically correct and feel sorry for some illegal when there are american born citizens suffering? I am sorry these illegal kids are ska-rewed by their crappy and selfish, law breaking parents, but I got my own kids to feed and so do my american born and naturalized neighbors. And now, i am a racist because I want my own people taken care of first? millions of college grads languishing in college debt, no jobs, and now we got 800K new illegals able to compete for those jobs. Obama cannot be kicked out soon enough. I voted for him once. Never ever again.

    June 19, 2012 at 4:26 pm | Report abuse |
    • Solo

      Wong – you were part of the millions that believed the "You Tube generation Obama-hype" and now you finally see the scam this has all been. I didn't vote for him and will not vote for him. I knew better. Anyone who hided from providing something as basic as a birth certificate is not going to stand strong on the subject of illegals.

      June 19, 2012 at 4:56 pm | Report abuse |
      • Let's Think

        I have the same kind of birth certificate that Obama has. I also have the newspaper announcements of my birth like Obama has (and that are still in the newspaper's files). Does that make me not an American?
        Can we get past the birth certificate and just deal with ACTUAL issues.

        June 19, 2012 at 7:51 pm | Report abuse |
    • Zia

      So true. And that overly dramatic accompanying photo, please.

      June 19, 2012 at 6:02 pm | Report abuse |
    • johnny

      All the good jobs go to Chinese and Indian legal immigrants. I work in the tech industry in Santa Clara California, take a drive around you would think you were in Dubai. Mexicans take jobs Americans are too lazy or too proud to work. Education in this country is a joke, that is why we are DOOMED. Trust me uneducated illegals are not a threat to any jobs requiring a college education.

      June 19, 2012 at 9:06 pm | Report abuse |
  15. Emma Jo

    I agree, all should have been kicked out of the USA. Mom and Dad knew what they were doing. I do not feel sorry for them.

    June 19, 2012 at 3:09 pm | Report abuse |
  16. Fed Up

    I absolutely detest the religious fanatics who get the illegals here, as part of their "church work" and then after about six months, put them into our society where they have no skills, no money, no desire to work, and tons of children for my tax dollars to feed.

    June 19, 2012 at 3:04 pm | Report abuse |
  17. Citizen

    Help Keep Families Together.

    SUPPORT COMPREHENSIVE DEPORTATIONS!

    June 19, 2012 at 2:40 pm | Report abuse |
  18. Kona

    These intended sob stories have the opposite effect cnn. Americans know you are thieves who have slithered into our homes. I will never feel sorry for you, but I will feel sorry for American kids who have had their educations compromised by illegals demanding spanish in schools, cutting classroom time for those who have paid. Or neighborhoods which were once clean and safe and aren't anymore thanks to illegals....

    June 19, 2012 at 1:42 pm | Report abuse |
  19. snake

    the anchor baby law really needs to be changed. at least one of the parents should have to be an american citizen to give automatic citizenship to a baby. this law the way it stands costs american taxpayers untold billions of dollars every year. this is also the primary reason why health care and insurance is so high. illegals get free medical care and that cost gets passed on to those who have health insurance or have to pay cash for emergency room treatment. illegals never give their real name and have no ssn. it's time to get tough with these parasites.

    June 19, 2012 at 12:53 pm | Report abuse |
  20. snake

    they should all go to mexico and keep the family together instead of trying to find a way to bring her illegal mother back here. is the father illegal? maybe he should be deported too.

    June 19, 2012 at 12:46 pm | Report abuse |
  21. Dick Hertz

    Americans speak out. We're just not listened to. If we were? We wouldn't be supporting these leeches against our will. As a Veteran. It is a slap in my face. I served Americans and not our invaders and their spawn.

    June 18, 2012 at 4:05 pm | Report abuse |