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Children of immigrant families should be cared for, not separated from their parents or guardians.
That was the more compassionate view of Tom Marino, a former member of Congress – who dealt with immigration status legislation – and the U.S. Middle District attorney in Williamsport.
When asked about the current situation regarding immigration, including the comments expressed by members of churches and faith-based communities helping out immigrant families with children as they need food and travel needs, Marino clarified he was not speaking about the issue from a legal perspective or as the Lycoming County District Attorney, but rather from his own perspective.
"If kids whose parents may be illegally here are here in the county, those kids should be taken care of just like any other kid in the county," Marino said. "Just because they may be Hispanic, and are here illegally, kids have no idea what is going on," he said.
"My position is when I was in Congress we passed legislation that was voted on – on both sides of the aisle – where these kids from immigrant families were here in the U.S.," he said. The legislation pertained to asking the question of how children in the US. can be illegal when they (he or she) is just a child, he said. There are proper steps in which to gain citizenship, he said.
"They are kids," Marino reiterated. "They should be taken care of and looked after."
Sadly, he said, there are cases in which children are snatched and brought across the border by criminal cartels and "coyotes," those who profit from shuttling children – many times in horrendous conditions – across the Southern border. They are not with their parents, many times, he said.
Told about the recent outcry from members of the faith-based communities who are supporting and assisting mothers with children, some of whom said they are frightened to walk outside of their door for fear of losing their custody and being deported, Marino said, "Anything comes up or is brought to my attention and if anyone can legally approach me and say 'I know where this Hispanic family is hiding and shouldn't be here,' I'd ask a ton of questions."
He suspected the answers to those questions would be 'I heard it from this person or that person,''' he said. "We have not had any calls to my office raising a point of those issues," he said. "Nothing has come to my attention thus far," he said.
"Children of immigrant families should be cared for, given medical attention, if needed, and go to school," he reiterated.
He added that many Hispanics are among the hardest working individuals, with tremendous work ethic. He cited an example of men laying stone, working on landscaping and adding roofs in the extreme heat of Florida, where he owns a house.
"They work their tails off," he said, proud of those of Hispanic lineage and heritage.
Asked if there were any immigrant workers he had come across in this region, he said he knew of individuals who were immigrants who work at a meat packing plant in another county.
In his conversation with ICE in the county office, though, he said the agency did not express any urgency or say there is a widespread problem in the largest city and populated region in North Central Pennsylvania.