Immigrants: A Target Of CPS. Please DO NOT READ If You're Emotional!
"Have you ever felt like you could do something even when it seems like you can't?
Have you ever been in a position where it feels like you're literally in hell?
Have you ever felt so powerless like you're been strangled when there is actually no hands on your neck?"
Well, maybe you have, maybe you haven't. But I think you haven't felt it this way. Which way you may ask? Let me tell you the experience of a friend of mine.
Persons living in a third world country often travel to a first world country in search for greener pastures. As a result, almost everyone have one or two relatives or friends abroad. However, it is on the basis that I would not reveal much personal details that I was granted the permission to relay this experience.
Therefore, with my discretion, I have decided not to reveal the identity of the subject of this experience nor reveal my relationship with her.
She narrates:
My Journey
I, like every other person living in a third world country seeking to have a better life and help my family from poverty decided to travel abroad. In this part of the world, when you are from a humble family background and you want to travel abroad, you would need to save up some money for a very long time then borrow some from family, friends and acquaintances with the prospects of paying back.
Even after soliciting and collecting the solicited funds, it wouldn't still be enough to cover your trip to a foreign land, like the US. So you would need the help of another party already living in that country. So I received financial assistance from a family friend who was already living in the US. I am not sure of how it is done now but this was how it was done in the past. However, there were conditions. That a certain amount was to be rendered to the man monthly.
But I was only travelling abroad for schooling. How would I get the requested monthly sum? I decided to do some work at my free time and I also created time for other gigs. This was meant to sustain my feeding, tuition fees and other expenses, together with the monthly payments rendered to the man.
However, I was really excited to leave this third world country to a better place where I could make it in life and assist my family down here. Like seriously, who wouldn't be happy to travel to a country with a more stable economy than yours.
It is a very lengthy experience with a few happy moments and lots of unpleasant ones, but I would love to give the summary because I don't like to talk much and I'm not good at listening to lengthy talks and I guess you aren’t either.
Anyway, my new environment was quite different from the one I use to see back home. The buildings were so tall like it was touching the sky. No wonder they call them skyscrapers. We barely have those kind of buildings back home, especially that time when I left(almost two decades ago) for the US.
Life wasn't as easy as I thought it would be in the US. I weren’t welcomed with a bag of dollars at the airport, nor were cash leaves hanging on trees in streets. After living a few days with the family of the man that provided the greater financial assistance, I was told to find a job.
Actually, I ended up of getting three jobs. It was a herculean task to get a job, especially for someone with no expertise or a technical skill – at least not one I could easily get a job with, for I knew how to make beautiful beads, back in my home country I use to help my mother with some.
My Ex
A lot of things happened that I wouldn’t want to talk about. I met a guy though, he was really handsome but not too tall, just an average height kind of guy. He was so sweet and he supported me through rough times. He made my stay in the US a bit less boring, because before him my life revolved round school and work, I barely had time for myself. I use to sleep around 12 a.m. and by 4 a.m. I am up again.
I had to quit a job for him, so we would have some time to spend together, but I stuck up with my other two jobs. I first met him while on a shift as a waitress in an eatery. He was so rude at first but as a waitress I was expected to treat customers politely even when they were disrespectful. Truth be told, I have always lived my life as a polite individual. I normally don’t have an outburst of rage, when I get really pissed I prefer to be alone.
Some days later, a young man came to the restaurant he gave me a whopping tip and I refused to take it. Normally I take tips because they are a customer’s way of saying thank you for being a good waitress, but the tip he gave was just too large a sum and I wasn’t even the waitress that served him. It was a bit spooky.
He later explained that he was really sorry about the way he treated me a few days back, that someone made him mad and he transferred the aggression on me. I had even forgotten his face because I really didn’t take it personal. Arrogant customers come and go every once in a while, so it wasn’t a new thing for me. I accepted his apology but I was on duty and I needed to go back to work so I excused myself.
He continually tried to make it up to me. Things happened, things happened, something lead to something, then we started dating. Then got I pregnant.
My Baby My Ese
I still was very young, for I was barely twenty-one. I still had school to attend, I still had monthly payment to be rendered to that man. To make it worse, my ex didn’t want me to keep the baby, but I have never had an abortion in my life and I never wanted. So I refused to abort the baby.
Fast forward a few months, I gave birth to a beautiful lovely baby girl. I named her Ese. In my native dialect it means gift. I took care of her the best way I could. She was always well treated. I was really glad I didn’t abort the baby, my baby was my priority. I was almost graduating from college. And I was done making my monthly payment to that man.
I thought everything was perfect, at least if felt so but I was wrong. One day my ex came home furious like the first time I met him. I didn’t notice at first, for I was busy watching and listening to President’s Bush speech on TV. I can’t remember what he was talking about but I can remember the loud slap that warmed my face and made me deaf on one ear for a while.
It was my ex, we hadn’t seen each other in a while since I packed out of his place. I still don’t know why he came to my place that day, or why he acted so mad. He made a lot of noise, broke a lot of things, and I screamed a lot too. My neighbours must have heard us because few minutes later, the cops came to my place. The took him away and put my baby on “protective custody.”
I didn’t know what meant until I wasn’t allowed to take my baby girl home. One of the cops told me that I can’t have my baby again. I thought that was a lame joke, that he should cut the crap and give me back my baby girl. I was escorted out and was told to go home. I called a couple of friends on the phone with tears gushing out of my eyes, they came to pick me up. Before we left, they tried to reason with the cops but the cops weren’t open for any conversation.
Few minutes later some unknown persons came to carry my baby away. I didn’t know who they were at first, it felt like a bad dream and I tried so had to wake up but my eyes were already open. I screamed, I shouted, I wiped. I can’t remember how I got home that day.
Later I was told that those unknown persons who carried my child were “Staffs within DSHS” before then I referred to them as “kidnappers.” I was told that I would be needing a lawyer in four days time. I didn’t know why. Why would I need a lawyer to get my baby back? I thought to myself.
I did got a lawyer. I thought getting a lawyer would help, but the lawyer was only a messenger. He talks too much and it seemed like the more he talked the more my circumstance worsened. We assumed every possible scenario but they all seemed like worse case scenarios. I was scared that my ex would take the baby, but my lawyer said that was the least of my worries.
He explained that my ex can not claim parental right to my baby for many reasons. First, his name does not appear on my child’s birth certificate. Secondly, he was caught in an act of violence. He blabbed about other reasons that I can’t remember right now. At that moment, all I could think about was how to get my baby girl back, every other thing was irrelevant to me.
My lawyer told me that they could keep my baby on “protective custody” for three days. After which, I would be charged to court. On what grounds? I asked. He said that in danger of the child be harmed, neglected or seriously abused. Who is abusing who? Neglect who? Danger how? I burst into tears.
"My child have never been abused, neglected or put in any danger. This is the first time my ex is coming to house to cause problems. All I want is a restraining order from my ex. He is an animal and I don’t want him anywhere close to me or my child." I explained in court. I was asked series of questions in court though, but it seemed like my answers to them didn't matter. It was like the decision has been made already even before the court hearings. The whole court proceedings charade were just to follow due process. They didn’t want me to have my baby back.
It was during this period that my F-1 student visa expired. I filed an application for a renewal but I was never granted one.
I can’t talk anymore, it’s been a few years now since this happened but it still feels like moments ago. I feel like it’s happening to me all over again. Please... Please excuse me.
Have you ever felt like you could do something even when it seems like you can't?
Have you ever been in a position where it feels like you're literally in hell?
Have you ever felt so powerless like you're been strangled when there is actually no hands on your neck?
They stole my child and threw me away from the country, I don’t think my baby girl know how much she meant and still means to me. I don’t know where my baby girl, my Ese, my gift is right now.
@familyprotection
Note
This post is not to demean the standard of living in a third world country. There are people living their best lives in countries belonging to this category. Check out the richest lawyers in Nigeria to see how rich some of these people are.
Also, this is not to state that the standard of living in a country is based on the few elites citizens. However, since there are different social classes in each region around the world, it is rather pertinent to employ a holistic approach towards one's view of standards of living.
This post has been Resteemed and Upvoted by @familyprotection
are using "Child Protection Agencies"
to take children away from loving families
and place them in foster care or group homes
or put up for adoption.
THESE FAMILIES NEED PROTECTING.
Thank-you @asaj for supporting @familyprotection
You should talk to your embassy. Your baby has dual citizenship- that means that she has rights from your home country as well. It looks to me like they are keeping someone (your baby) in custody illegally who, although residing in the US, can claim rights extraordinary that may supersede US law... your lawyer should have told you this (it doesn't sound to me like he was very bright). I wish you well, if I can help in any way, please let me know.
I would talk to her about this info you just shared. Thanks for your concern, it means a lot.
Hi! I live in South Africa, and has seen a lot of the same problems here. People from countries like Zimbabwe came to try and make a new beginning for their families.
Dads never sees their families, and moms are taken away from children born here.
It is heart wrenching and needs to be addressed .
Love your post, and effort you've put into it.
Happy 2018!😀
:(
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This post has been upvoted and resteemed by @thethreehugs
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It is unfortunate that the story that you narrate happens frequently, many of us leave our countries of origin looking for a future and we find the opposite. You could give your vote in my first publication