12-year-old tells Congress: Please help protect children like me
Twelve-year-old Mayeli Hernandez couldnt hold back the tears when she told the story of how she and her younger sister escaped their home country of…
Two young girls watch a World Cup soccer match on a television from their holding area where hundreds of mostly Central American children are being processed and held at the U.S. Customs and Border Protection Nogales Placement Center on Wednesday, June 18, 2014, in Nogales, Ariz. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)
Twelve-year-old Mayeli Hernandez couldnt hold back the tears when she told the story of how she and her younger sister escaped their home country of Honduras in July 2013 due to increasing violence.
Speaking before the Congressional Progressive Caucus on Tuesday, she said that on two different occasions she saw two men get killed and still remembers seeing their blood on the ground.
I was scared that I would be killed like those men were killed, she said in Spanish.
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Hernandez is one of the thousands of children who have left their home countries without a parent or guardian to seek refuge in the United States. She and her 9-year-old sister came to the U.S. to reunite with their mother, who left Honduras more than four years ago to seek a better life for her daughters.
When Hernandez and her younger sister made it to the U.S.-Mexico border, they were apprehended by immigration officials and taken to freezing cold facilities, which are often called hieleras or iceboxes. She said they were detained there for four days and were not given enough food to eat or enough blankets to keep them warm.
Since being apprehended, Hernandez and her sister have been given Special Immigrant Juvenile (SIJ) status and are now waiting for their green card to be approved. They have also been reunited with their mother and are living in New York.
Three migrant children testified before members of the Congressional Progressive Caucus on Tuesday. (Twitter/@USProgressives)
On Tuesday, Hernandez had a message for members of Congress as they struggle to come up with legislation to address the influx of unaccompanied minors crossing the southern border: Please help protect children like me and my little sister. We cant go back to our countries, because theyre very dangerous and theyre very poor.
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Hernandez was one of the three children who testified before the Congressional Progressive Caucus on Capitol Hill during a hearing titled Kids First: Examining the Southern Border Humanitarian Crisis. The three of them called on members of Congress do what is best for children who are coming to the U.S. and are in desperate need of help.
Rep. Raul Grijalva (D-Ariz.), co-chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, thanked the children for sharing their stories and told them their stories paint a humane face to the humanitarian crisis occurring at the southern border.
All of us really respect what you said in front of all these people, Grijalva told the three children. Were grateful for telling us your personal stories so that the rest of the country puts a face to the reality that were dealing with here.
Rep. Keith Ellison (D-Minn.), co-chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, echoed Grijalvas statement and told the three children they were very courageous for sharing their stories.
Youre helping us as members of the Congress get facts and information that will allow us to make good decisions about how to handle unaccompanied children who come to the border, Ellison said. We take everything you said very seriously.
More than 57,500 unaccompanied minors have been apprehended while crossing the border illegally since October. Republicans and Democrats are having a tough time agreeing on legislation to deal with the influx of unaccompanied minors.
SEE ALSO: Honduran special forces are struggling to keep children from fleeing to the US
Members of the Congressional Progressive Caucus on Tuesday heard testimonies from three migrant children. (Twitter/@USProgressives)
On Tuesday, Republicans introduced their $659 million package that includes making changes to a 2008 human trafficking law to speed up deportation proceedings of children who dont qualify for immigration relief.
Meanwhile, Senate Democrats are proposing a $2.7 billion package that includes funds for additional detention facilities, overtime pay for Border Patrol agents and more immigration judges.
Both proposals are much cheaper than President Barack Obamas $3.7 billion request for funds to deal with the unaccompanied minors crisis at the southern border.
During Tuesdays hearing, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) called on members of Congress to have a heart when it comes to people coming into our country to escape violence in Central America or wherever they come from.
Similarly, Rep. Judy Chu (D-Calif.) said she hopes the stories that the children told on Tuesday will encourage members of Congress to put politics aside and put these kids first. She said Congress first priority in dealing with the unaccompanied minors crisis should be protecting children who have legitimate claims of persecution.
Today we lift up their stories to remember that we are dealing with real people, young people, who have witnessed unimaginable violence and tragedy, Chu said, referring to the three children who testified on Tuesday. We cannot cover our ears to their cries for help.
