ON AN UNSEASONABLY WARM AFTERNOON in mid-September, high school senior Kirat Virk got in his car, picked up a friend, and headed to Carroll High School for the second football game of the season. The team was poised to make it to the state semifinals; the bleachers were full and the crowd raucous. “Everyone was so loud,” Kirat recalled. “And, for the first 20 minutes, I was having so much fun.” Then, reality came rushing back. “I got a terrible feeling. I felt guilty that my mom was home alone. I felt guilty that my dad wasn’t going to be there, either. I didn’t want my dad to think that I didn’t care that he’s in there and I’m out here having fun.”
Headlines on immigration are dominated by heart-wrenching coverage of children being violently separated from their parents on street corners and in front of schools. A less-visible version of immigration enforcement — what The Lancet called “the silent trauma” — is equally devastating and holds the potential for lasting harm. Nova Institute Media Fellow Simran Sethi spent three months speaking with families facing these challenges. Some names have been changed to ensure safety and privacy.
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