HomeMy WebLinkAboutItem 21 Letter from Dr. Herbert - ICE
May 31, 2018
Dear Mayor Lundberg and Springfield City Council Members,
I encourage you to terminate the contract between Springfield City Jail and ICE (Immigration
and Customs Enforcement).
I am a pediatrician working at PeaceHealth Medical Group in Springfield and have had the
pleasure of providing care to children in the area for over two decades. I speak Spanish
fluently, so many of the children in my clinic are sons and daughters of Latino
immigrants. Most of the parents work hard to provide opportunities for their children,
opportunities that the parents never had. When I have asked mothers and fathers of young
adolescents about the most important values they wish to pass onto their children, most list
respect and responsibility. Many of the children exhibit these values, and also have
incorporated the work ethic that their parents model. These families are wonderful members of
our community.
Deporting parents damages these families. I do not ask which parents are documented and
which are not, and do not know who is at risk of deportation. In the few cases where parents
have been deported, extended families have stepped in to support the children. The extended
families do the best they can, but it is not the same for these children as having a functioning
nuclear family.
Deporting parents also damages the community. There are so many organizations with people
who devote their time and energy to help all children: Head Start, Springfield Public Schools,
Springfield Library, Willamalane Parks and Recreation, medical groups and sports
organizations. Most of the children in my clinic were born here. This is their home. This is their
community. They have felt embraced by the many wonderful adults in their lives, and they have
blessed all of us who have had the opportunity to work with them. ICE invokes fear and
anxiety in the children, and we all are affected. Moreover, the City of Springfield contracting
with ICE sends a message that the city is indifferent to this fear and anxiety.
Springfield needs to embrace all of its children. All children need to feel safe. Please stop the
ICE contract.
Sincerely,
Lauren Herbert, MD
Pediatrician