The WALL

being trapped in dependency

Anna* lives in a country in Central America. When she was 2 years old, her father left the family and when she was 4, her mother immigrated to the US for economic reasons. The mother - on her own - wanted to provide for Anna and her sister and her brother, who are 2 and 3 years older then Anna.

Anna grew up over the years in the care of her grandmother. The relative amounts of money the mother sends from the US allows Anna and her siblings a simple life.

Anna has not seen her mother for 11 years. Three years ago, the grandmother died and so Anna grows up on her own. The mother can not leave the US because of her illegal stay and Anna can not travel to the United States without parental supervision. For 2 years, contact between Anna and her mother has been infrequent and via internet telephony.

It sometimes takes no WALL to separate children from their parents and to keep them trapped in a dependency.

There are walls in this world that are insurmountable for many people.

• Name changed