Opinion: How deporting ‘Dreamers’ would compare to historical U.S. atrocities

To the editor: Is it possible that another dark chapter will be added in the U.S history books? There are many accounts of atrocious acts committed by those in power against people who could not defend themselves. (“Enough DACA drama. Make a deal and stop letting ‘Dreamers’ twist in the wind,” editorial, Sept. 14)

In the 1830s, about 17,000 Cherokee Indians were removed from their ancestral lands in the southeast U.S. and relocated to what is now Oklahoma. Four thousand of them died.

In 1942, Japanese Americans were removed from the West Coast of the U.S. and placed in internment camps. They left behind businesses, jobs and homes. There were 120,000 of them, of whom 70,000 were American citizens. The purpose was for national security.

President Trump has announced the end of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals Program (DACA). Nearly 800,000 Americans may be relocated to their country of origin, leaving behind the only country they knew growing up. The president’s purpose in ending DACA is to fulfill an election promise.

Shame on us. Now is the time to set aside the worn-out ideas that have paralyzed our country and instead seek to benefit all people.

Frank Himes, Woodland Hills

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To the editor: Those who wonder why the DACA participants have not tried to become legal citizens need to understand immigration law. (“‘Dreamers’ are Americans, and Trump has given them their best shot at staying in the U.S.,” Readers React, Sept. 14)

Most people who are undocumented have very little chance of ever becoming legal while living here. By law they have to return to the country of their birth and then wait years to try and get back to the only country they know.

Would you leave your family for years on the slim chance that you might be able to come back?

Alex Magdaleno, Camarillo

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