Skip to main content
ActionAction AlertsImmigrant RightsMedia MaterialNational

CALL TO ACTION: Children Over Politics: Youth-led Fast

By July 18, 2014July 24th, 2017No Comments

Children Over Politics
As an effort to draw attention to the humanitarian and moral crisis of detaining children and mothers at the border, a 5-day fast will be taking place from July 21 to 25 in Los Angeles, California. This is a youth-led effort, initiated by our community’s brave and committed youth.

Yamilex, a youth faster, just graduated from high school in May and now is an active volunteer at SEIU-USWW, the janitors union. Currently, she is organizing a youth-led 5-day fast for those detained children and reached out to Asian American allies to join the efforts. Yamilex said, “When I hear that children from Central America are being detained, it hits close to home. Those children are making the same journey I made 12 years ago. They are running away from poverty and gangs. They are my brothers and sisters and that’s why I, as a dreamer, will be doing a 5-day Children Over Politics fast.”

Janio is a 15 year old who has also committed to fasting. Janio shared, “My mother is from Honduras. When I saw these children I felt I had to do something because these are my friends.”

Simon Jun, a 19 year old Korean American youth, said, ” I’m fasting in solidarity for all the children who are risking their lives to come to America not only to escape poverty and violence, but also to be reunited with their families.”

The National Korean American Service & Education Consortium (NAKASEC), Chinese for Affirmative Action (CAA), Korean Resource Center (KRC) and Korean American Resource & Cultural Center (KRCC) have joined this fast in solidarity with the detained children and youth. We ask our Asian American and Pacific Islander allies to join us by fasting for one meal OR one full-day on Thursday, July 24.

Over the past few weeks, it has been heartbreaking to see the thousands of children and mothers who have endured thousands of miles to escape from violence and poverty. Their only goal has been to be reunited with their family members living in the United States and to survive. These children and mothers are being detained in inhumane conditions and our elected officials are playing politics to expedite their deportations. Deporting them back to their home countries with the looming threats of violence is unconscionable.

Young children do not understand the politics and debates that they are facing. Their only hope is to be safe and to be reunited with their families in the United States. We must support the children and we must protect them as refugees.

We hope you can support these children by doing the following:

  1. Join the solidarity fast for one meal OR one full-day next Thursday, July 24. Please recruit others to join as well!
  2. Send encouraging messages to Youth Fasters through Yamilex @ yrustrian30@gmail.com and please check the website FastingForChildren.org (available beginning 7/26)
  3. For those of you living in Southern California, please visit the Fasting Tent @ Plazita Olivera at La Plaza United Methodist Church, 115 Paseo De La Plaza Los Angeles, CA 90012. There will be a community meeting everyday at 5pm at the tent (held from 7/21 to 7/24).
  4. Please bring items such as shoes, clothes and toys for the detained children and donation to the tent. The collected items and donations will be sent to detained children and mothers.
  5. If you are able to, you can make a donation online http://immigrantsandiego.org/2014/07/10/update-refugees-current-donation-needs/

For more information, please contact or Vincent Pan @ vpan@caasf.org or DJ Yoon @ djyoon@nakasec.org.

Thank you for your compassion and support.

Sincerely,

Vincent Pan, Executive Director, Chinese for Affirmative Action (CAA)
Hee Joo Yoon, Executive Director, Korean Resource Center (KRC)
Inhe Choi, Executive Director, Korean American Resource and Cultural Center (KRCC)
Dae Joong (DJ) Yoon, Executive Director, National Korean American Service & Education Consortium (NAKASEC)

X