torn apart

From ColorLines, the national magazine on race and politics, we have a story of the unintended consequences of deportation. The U.S. citizen children of immigrant parents are often left stranded when those parents are deported, often for misdemeanor offenses. A 1996 law made deportation mandatory for those convicted of any number of offenses--after they've already served their terms. "Double punishment" is bad enough, but what about the children who are left without their primary means of support?