“Giving a voice to the voiceless” might sound like one of those cliché sayings that has lost its meaning since it’s been used so much by artists and writers over the years, but when the purpose of your project is to do exactly that–and do it without making it sound like it’s a message coming from a company’s marketing department–then powerful things can really happen.
Such is the case with a new book from Project Amplify, a national nonprofit organization that works to establish legal protections for children in government care and shape meaningful legislation for the benefit of child migrants.
The book is called Hear My Voice (Escucha Mi Voz) and it features the testimonies of children who have been detained at the U.S.-Mexico border. The powerful words are only emphasized by the incredible artwork produced by Latinx artists who capture the heartbreaking and frightening things that children see and hear when they are in the custody of the U.S. government.
“This book offers an opportunity to better understand human migration and children’s rights by compassionately introducing this difficult topic while providing an urgent call to action and simple steps to help,” Project Amplify said about the book. “We know that our policymakers will only move forward with important changes to immigration policies if engaged citizens continue to demand action.”
In the foreword for the book, Michael Garcia Bochenek, Senior Counsel to the Children’s Rights Division of Human Rights Watch, says he has seen the traumatization of children on the border firsthand. This includes mutism, loss of appetite and feelings of hopelessness and despair.
“This book, a story for children by children, wasn’t easy to tell and isn’t’ easy to hear,” Bochenek writes. “But it’s not only a story of adults’ cruelty and neglect; at the end of the day, it’s also a story of children’s strength, courage and hope.
All proceeds of Hear My Voice (Escucha Mi Voz) go to help migrant children.
