{"id":2764,"date":"2016-06-28T15:05:12","date_gmt":"2016-06-28T23:05:12","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.entremundos.org\/revista\/?p=2764&lang=en"},"modified":"2017-05-24T05:52:50","modified_gmt":"2017-05-24T13:52:50","slug":"those-who-remain-a-testimony-of-youth-resiliency-in-the-face-of-parental-migration","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.entremundos.org\/revista\/youth\/those-who-remain-a-testimony-of-youth-resiliency-in-the-face-of-parental-migration\/?lang=en","title":{"rendered":"Those Who Remain: A testimony of youth resilience in the face of parental migration"},"content":{"rendered":"

By\u00a0Benjamin Ruiz Rosado<\/p>\n

I wasn’t processing anything that was happening. I was a little kid, you know. I went back to that house, I thought, \u00abMy mom just left\u2026 Oh, God. Where did she go? What happened?\u00bb\u2026 And then I started to cry.<\/em><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

For the last twelve years, Marty Garcia, age 22, has been living a life of independence and determination in Zunil \u2013 a small town in the mountainous department of Quetzaltenango, Guatemala.<\/p>\n

Like\u00a0other youth in Central America, Marty has grown up with a parent living and working in the United States who sends\u00a0him and his two younger sisters money twice a month for school supplies, food and other miscellaneous expenses. In Marty\u2019s case, both<\/em> his parents moved to the USA by the age of 10. His father emigrated\u00a0first and his mother soon after. His father left when was too young to remember. Every now and then Marty thinks\u00a0about what it would be like to travel to the US and be with his parents.<\/p>\n

Recently, there has been an alarming surge in the number of unaccompanied minors from Central America traveling to the US. From Guatemala alone, the number of recorded unaccompanied minors encountered at the US-Mexican border in 2011 was 1,565, rising\u00a0to 17,057 in 2014 \u2013 a 1,100% increase. While 2015 saw a decline to 13,589, experts warn<\/a> that significant migration flows will continue until international and local policymakers address the socioeconomic and security conditions pushing Central Americans to leave their homes.<\/p>\n

Reasons for immigration, collective and individual, are complex \u2013 but a common factor is that many youth are being reunited with one or both of their biological parents upon arrival to the United States. While this \u201curgent humanitarian situation\u201d has gained national and international attention for\u00a0the reasons behind youth immigration, what has been overlooked by the media and the press is an issue of great importance: the emotional experience of youth who grow\u00a0up separated from their parents.<\/p>\n

I was able to sit down with Marty to\u00a0hear his story. He said\u00a0this is something he has never talked about before. It has always been a topic avoided by everyone in his\u00a0family since his parents left.<\/p>\n

I had never talked to anyone about this. When people would ask me about my parents, I would just say, \u00abOh, my parents are in the States.\u00bb And I wouldn’t tell them anything else. Not even all my friends know about it.<\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

The immigration experience for the youth who remain behind can be filled with mixed feelings and lingering questions. Marty recalls not fully grasping the situation when his mother decided to leave and reflects upon how that has shaped his adolescent years. He recalls it feeling unexpected and abrupt at the age of 10 when his mother left:<\/p>\n

I remember that day. She told me: \u00abSon, I’m going over there with your father. You all take care. You’re going to stay with your grandparents and I’ll call and write to you there.\u00bb\u00a0<\/em><\/strong>And I was like, \u00abOh. Okay.\u00bb<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

My sisters left with my grandparents and later I went with my aunt and uncle to drop off my mom at the airport. But I still wasn’t processing anything that was happening. I was a little kid, you know. And when I went back to that house, I thought, \u00abMy mom just left\u2026 Oh, God. Where’d she go? <\/em><\/strong>What happened?'\u00bbAnd then I started to cry.<\/em><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Reflecting on his feelings now, Marty expresses mixed feelings about\u00a0his parents’ decision to leave. On one hand, he understands that there’s an financial\u00a0benefit to\u00a0working in the US\u00a0to better provide for the\u00a0family. But one the other, that doesn\u2019t mean he\u00a0can’t still feel resentment. It can be confusing to negotiate between empathizing with your parents, while also allowing yourself to validate your feelings about the situation.<\/p>\n

Honestly, I don’t remember how long it\u2019s been since my parents left. <\/strong>Maybe some 10 years or more. I don’t remember my dad. It\u2019s strange that both parents leave. Normally it\u2019s only one that leaves. My mom didn’t want me [laughter]… She left.<\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Marty recalls that after his mother left, he and his sisters lived with various family members until over time they\u00a0got married and started to move out. Currently he and his sisters\u00a0live alone their parents’ house, on the same street as the rest of their family.<\/p>\n

Regarding his communication with his parents, Marty talks about how it is impersonal and brief. It has been that way since as long as he can remember. He has gotten used to it.<\/p>\n

\u00abI actually don\u2019t talk to them a lot. Or rather, talking would be having a real conversation. Like, ‘How is everything going with you?’ But in my case it\u2019s more like:’How are you?’ says my mom. I say, ‘Fine.’ My mom says, ‘Oh, okay. I am going to send you your allowance so you can buy what you all need and to eat. I\u2019ll send you the password now. Take care of yourselves.’ I say, ‘Oh, okay.'\u00bb<\/p>\n

Adolescence is a period of significant biological, emotional and mental development. Many\u00a0youth separated from their parents due to immigration usually have secondary care-takers, primarily grandparents, but for Marty, the situation was\u00a0different.<\/p>\n

I think growing up without my parents in Guatemala affected me a lot. Because they would have given me advice or something like that. They would have guided us. My grandparents think in different ways, they have their own kids. We didn\u2019t get\u00a0the attention we needed.<\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

He later added,\u00a0\u00abBut they did a lot [for us] because\u00a0we were with them.\u00bb<\/p>\n

Narratives like Marty\u2019s are important not only because\u00a0they give shed light on a\u00a0youth population that is often overlooked or under-appreciated, but for also highlighting the important intersection of migration\u00a0and youth mental health in Guatemala.<\/p>\n

Youth in Guatemala is\u00a0the largest segment of the nation\u2019s population. In 2012, 50% of the population was under the age of 18 years old<\/a>, the highest proportion of young people in any country in Latin America.<\/p>\n

There is no clear data portraying how many youth have and are growing up separated from one or both parents due to migration in Guatemala. However, given the number of unaccompanied young people traveling to the US, it can\u00a0be assumed that there are many stories similar to Marty\u2019s. Only 0.9% of Guatemala’s\u00a0health\u00a0budget\u00a0is dedicated to\u00a0mental health, and it doesn’t help that 90% of that budget is concentrated in Guatemala City, leaving 10% for half the population in the\u00a0rest of the country. Coupled with the lack of mental health services, it’s clear that there is much to be done\u00a0to support youth\u00a0who have not been able to process the impacts of their parents’ migration on their emotional development.<\/p>\n

Marty\u00a0is choosing to move toward success and hope. He is currently in his third year at the university \u2013 working towards a degree in Graphic Design. He motivates his sisters when they become discouraged about school and say, \u00abWhy bother? Our parents are not even here.\u00bb<\/p>\n

I actually don\u2019t talk to them like a brother or a parent \u2013 I just tell them the truth. I tell them that if I made it and no one was supporting me, think about it. I’m here with you now and you have these opportunities that I didn\u2019t because back then I didn’t even have money. Now we’re maybe\u00a0a little more stable. It’s a more like a serious conversation, so that they react.<\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Marty has big plans for his future and is determined to make them happen.<\/p>\n

It’s like a video game: if you have a goal, you know you’re playing to get to that next step. If you don’t have a goal, that’s when\u00a0you get off-track. My personal goals are to be successful and to help my sisters do the same. Because I feel that there will be a point when my parents will no longer\u00a0be able to help us. I don\u2019t want my sisters to get left behind.<\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Marty\u2019s testimony not only serves as a reminder of the silent discomfort many youth have carried and are carrying within them, but also of their resiliency and strength. His\u00a0final words of reflection perhaps best convey how those in Guatemala\u00a0directly and indirectly affected by parental migration should\u00a0understand the situation. He makes it clear that youth in similar situations are not sad stories nor lost causes to be pitied. They have the power within themselves to thrive.<\/p>\n

Honestly, I think everyone should\u00a0understand about\u00a0parents: If you’re\u00a0born alone, you have to go it alone. If you have your parents, that’s great because you’ll have that support. And if not, that’s fine\u00a0too because you’ll make yourself and that will make you a better person. I see that there are a lot of people who worry and say, ‘It’s just that my parents… I’m going to be lost\u00a0without them.’ But you have to focus\u00a0on your goals, no matter what happens.<\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By\u00a0Benjamin Ruiz Rosado I wasn’t processing anything that was happening. I was a little kid, you know. I went back to that house, I thought, \u00abMy mom just left\u2026 Oh, God. Where did she go? What happened?\u00bb\u2026 And then I started to cry. For the last twelve years, Marty Garcia, age 22, has been living […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2760,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[453,457,438],"tags":[695,65,560,691,692,690,694,693],"class_list":["post-2764","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-frontpage-en","category-migration-en","category-youth","tag-border","tag-guatemala","tag-guatemala-en","tag-immigration","tag-mental-health","tag-migration","tag-unaccompanied-minors","tag-youth"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.entremundos.org\/revista\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/13474174_1080051025409750_850357189_n.jpg?fit=960%2C640&ssl=1","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p7ljt7-IA","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":12619,"url":"https:\/\/www.entremundos.org\/revista\/politics\/dreams-come-true-in-another-country\/?lang=en","url_meta":{"origin":2764,"position":0},"title":"Dreams Come True in Another Country","author":"EntreMundos","date":"16 enero, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"TRANSLATED BY THOMAS LANG Organizations join forces to advocate for and call more attention to youth and adolescents, especially returned migrants. 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