GROWING
GROWING UP WITH STRANGERS.. BACKYARD
STRANGERS.. BACKYARD NOT SPEAKING THEIR LANGUAGE..
NOT KNOWING THEIR CULTURE
KIDS. MAKING SLIME
WHAT HAPPENS TO BYRON.
A BOY FROM GUATEMALA.
WHO CROSSED THE BORDER WITH HIS
DAD DAVID..
THEY CROSSED ILLEGALLY, MAY
18TH, 2018 .
ASKED FOR ASYLUM
DAVID WAS REPEATEDLY THREATENED
AND BEATEN
FOR PREACHING CHRISTIANITY.
"4045, DAVID XOL-CHOLOM, PLEASE
STAND UP"
THE U-S GOVERNMENT ARRESTED
DAVID..
AND TOOK BYRON AWAY.
"SIR, DO YOU HAVE ANYTHING YOU
WANT TO SAY ON YOUR
BEHALF?"
DAVID PLED GUILTY TO ILLEGAL
ENTRY.
"YES, IF I WERE TO BE DEPORTED
IMMEDIATELY,"
HE WAS DEPORTED SOON AFTER. "IF
I AM GOING TO BE DEPORTED, I
WOULD
WOULD LIKE TO BE DEPORTED WITH MY SON." BUT THE U-S GOVERNMENT DIDN'T
GIVE DAVID HIS SON
BACK
7 YEAR OLD BYRON WAS LEFT ALONE
-- IN GOVERNMENT
CUSTODY.
IT IS A POLICY OF THE
U.S. GOVERNMENT AT
THIS TIME TO SEPARATE
MINORS FROM ADULTS ...
WE UNDERSTAND IT
PUTS YOU IN A HARD
SITUATION ...
UNFORTUNATELY FOR
YOU, I'M NOT IN POSITION
TO GIVE YOU OTHER
ANSWERS IN REGARDS TO
YOU BEING SEPARATED
FROM YOUR MINORS.
BYRON'S ATTORNEY HELPED HIM FIND
A HOME
WITH HOLLY AND MATTHEW SEWELL.
"WE STARTED TALKING ABOUT WHAT
WE WANTED TO
HAVE HAPPEN TO OUR CHILDREN."
"THE PRIVATE INTEREST AT ISSUE
HERE IS THIS CHILD'S
FREEDOM. IT IS LEGAL TO ASK FOR
ASYLUM IN THIS COUNTRY.
SO, HE IS HERE LEGALLY"
FOR SEVEN MONTHS - THEY FOUGHT
THE U-S GOVERNMENT
TO BE ABLE TO BRING HIM HOME.
LEG IS BROKEN
"OH MY GOODNESS."
THE FAMILY TREATED BYRON LIKE
THEIR OWN SON.
"WITH HOLLY'S FAMILY, WE FEEL
SAFE THAT HE WILL HAVE GOOD
HEALTH AND THE FEELINGS OF BEING
A CHILD."
THEY REHABBED BYRON'S LEG HE
BROKE IN DETENTION..
AND TOOK HIM TO COUNSELING..
"THANK GOD FOR HELP WITH BYRON'S
ABSENCE. FOR
OUR HEALTH."
IT TOOK 600 DAYS.
TO GET BYRON BACK WITH DAD
"YES, HE'S BIGGER. HE WAS SMALL
LIKE THIS."
BUT WHAT HAPPENS.. TO A LITTLE
BOY WHO SPENT 600 DAYS
AWAY FROM HIS DAD
HOLLY SEWELL, SPONSOR:
THEY'RE GOING TO HAVE TO LEARN
WHO EACH OTHER IS
ALL OVER AGAIN.
IT'S BEEN TWO YEARS. I MEAN,
ALMOST TWO YEARS. THAT'S
OVER A QUARTER OF BYRON'S LIFE.
NOW --9 YEARS OLD.
BYRON HAS TO ADJUST AGAIN
"GOOD. I NEVER SAW MY DAD FOR
TWO YEARS. ALMOST TWO
YEARS AND NOW I GET TO SEE HIM."
HOLLY SEWELL, SPONSOR:
I THINK WHEN PEOPLE HEAR THE
STORIES
STORIES ABOUT THE REUNIONS AND THEY SEE OUR STORY AND AND SEE DAVID BEING
REUNIFIED WITH BYRON AND HOW
WONDERFUL OF A MOMENT THAT
IS, THEY THINK OF IT AS THIS
HEARTWARMING STORY AND THAT
IT'S COMPLETE. IT'S AN ENDING OF
THEIR TRAUMA.
HOLLY SEWELL, SPONSOR:
BUT IT'S NOT. IT'S A TRAGEDY.
IT'S NOT HEARTWARMING
AT ALL. IT'S A HORRIBLE THING.
WHAT HAPPENS TO THE 545 KIDS
STILL IN U-S CUSTODY
BECAUSE WE LOST TRACK OF THEIR
PARENTS
JUSTICE IN MOTION. A NON-PROFIT
WHOSE MISSION
IS TO DEFEND THE RIGHTS OF
MIGRANTS.
WANT TO HELP.
THEY SENT THIS FLYER.. ALL
AROUND CENTRAL
AMERICA.
AND USED RADIO TO TRY TO FIND
PARENTS
"WE HAVE TORTURED THIS FAMILY
AND SO MANY OTHER
FAMILIES BY TEARING APART THE
FAMILY UNIT ITSELF."
SO.. WHAT HAPPENS TO THE CHILD.
SEPARATED
FROM FAMILY.
WE DON'T YET KNOW.
IT'S JUST WE'RE USING CHILDREN
AS FODDER RIGHT NOW. AND
IT'S DISGUSTING.
I'M ERICA PROFFER.