Santa Barbara County Mother Seeks Mental Health Support for Kids After Husband’s ICE Arrest
SANTA BARBARA COUNTY, Calif. — A local mother1 of four spirals into shock as Immigration and Custom Enforcement Officers detained her husband just weeks ago in Santa Barbara County.
“They handcuffed him and they took him to Camarillo," said the mother.
Fearing for her safety, the mother – who chooses to remain anonymous – struggles to understand why ICE arrested and detained her husband.
“He called me around 11 in the morning. He told me 'oh I’m detained by ICE' … and first of all I didn’t believe it because I was like 'you’re lying cause you have like a green card' … he said 'no I’m not lying,'" said the mother.
ICE officials say they prioritize targeting undocumented immigrants with criminal records who pose a threat to public safety.
Except for a DUI conviction from years ago, the mother insists he has been nothing but a devoted husband and father.
“It doesn’t matter if they have a misdemeanor… they’re saying only criminals… but that’s a big lie… because he’s not like that. I mean he has a DUI… but that’s not criminal… like killing or trying to kill somebody you know," said the mother.
Now, the children are left wondering where their father has gone.
“My six year old girl… she’s sometimes knocking on my room… asking 'oh daddy are you here?' But when she opens the door it’s like empty… she starts screaming and crying," said the mother.
Lost in uncertainty, she struggles to hold her family together.
“It’s really sad because we are a good family and suddenly it happens… and you don’t deserve like… it’s really hard," said the mother.
Santa Barbara’s non-profit CALM provides therapy to thousands of families with young children facing trauma each year.
But since the latest ICE directive, even more desperate families are seeking their help.
“We’re trying to understand that people are living with tremendous fear right now. But I need the whole community to understand… that there are some families even here in Santa Barbara… that this is their reality," said CALM President and CEO Alana Walczak.
“We’ve seen families getting affected… I think what we see is a higher level of stress and anxiety that people are experiencing," said CALM Chief Operating Officer Adolfo Garcia.
The CALM team fears the long-term impact of parent-child separations.
“If a parent is separated from the child, the child will no longer have a secure base… this may lead to toxic trauma… it may lead to childhood trauma," said Garcia.
Right now, directors at CALM are seeing alternative ways of services to avoid any risk of being deported.
“We’ve seen also higher requests for services via either tele-health or their home… rather than coming to our office," said Garcia.
The CALM team says deportation fears weigh not only on parents but on children too.
“Or children who may be fearful of deportation of themselves or a caregiver, a parent, a grandparent… it’s causing tremendous stress and anxiety for children," said Walczak.
A sense of safety is crucial for healthy child development, according to the CALM team.
“Right now they’re getting counseling and therapists," said the mother.
While her kids get the help they need, and her husband's future remains uncertain, the local mother refuses to give up hope.
- This article has been edited to further protect the mother's identity. ↩︎
