For protection, I’ll change some of the names. Jose and Miranda are from Venezuela. That should suffice for now. Miranda holds a business degree from the university in her hometown, and Jose is a hard-working man for whom God threw a 20 when He cast the die for charisma. They have two lovely children, Miguel and Serena, ages fourteen and twelve, respectively. Serena worries about boys, although not nearly as much as Jose does, and Miguel spends too much time playing video games, which, let’s face it, he would not own if not for Miranda and Jose purchasing them in the first place.
Despite Miranda’s degree in business, she’s worked at a fast-food restaurant for well over a decade simply because she doesn’t speak English. She and Jose are undocumented immigrants—illegal aliens, if you must. Their birth nation is under a great deal of political strain, having little influence, let alone control, over the local crime syndicates which threaten everyone in the country with every known means of horror should they attempt to rise against them.
Before the kids were born, Miranda and Jose had the opportunity to escape to the safety of nearby Guyana—an English-speaking nation in South America. They discussed the seriousness of the decision and took the leap. They knew they had little chance of gaining permanent residency on such short notice, and fearing the syndicates’ connections in matters of emigration, they opted to apply for work visas to fly in under the radar. The plan worked. Years later, they decided to take another leap once they knew they were safe—Parker was born.
It’s been twenty-four years since they risked everything by escaping to Guyana, and now their worst fears have been reignited. The threat of being sent back across the border has arisen once again. Miguel and Serena are bilingual—they’d be able to communicate back in Venezuela, but they have no knowledge of the country. The only home they’ve ever known is Guyana.
Venezuela’s crime syndicates are far worse today than they were twenty-four years ago. Most boys Miguel’s age have little opportunity for prosperity outside of joining one of the warring syndicates, and Serena’s chances of meeting a nice boy will drop significantly back in the towns from which her parents escaped.
Jose and Miranda are terrified by the possibility of being forced back to their homeland, but they know they broke the law when they overstayed their visas; and, the people of Guyana are tired of paying taxes to support more and more people fleeing from downtrodden nations to take advantage of their relative security. Beyond that, the syndicates are sending their own people across the border, spreading their crime waves into Guyana. as well. Groups have formed within the country, pleading for the families who have called Guyana their home for so many years, hoping to come to some solution other than deportation for everyone who crossed the border illegally. Proponents of deportation insist that they are criminals and should have been thinking about the consequences before they infringed on Guyana’s sovereignty. Advocates for people like Miranda and Jose insist: that’s exactly what they were doing.
Surely, by now, you’ve figured out which names I changed.