Luis H. Zayas: The psychological impact of child separation at the US-Mexico border | TED

Translator: Lulu Fitri Rahman Reviewer: Ade Indarta

For over 40 years, I've been a clinical social worker

Selama 40 tahun lebih, saya menjadi pekerja sosial klinis

and a developmental psychologist.

dan psikolog perkembangan.

And it seemed almost natural for me to go into the helping professions.

Sepertinya tidak aneh saya menekuni profesi yang membantu orang lain.

My parents had taught me to do good for others.

Orang tua saya mengajarkan berbuat baik kepada orang lain.

And so I devoted my career

Jadi, saya mengabdikan karier saya

to working with families in some of the toughest circumstances:

untuk bekerja dengan keluarga yang menghadapi kondisi paling berat:

poverty, mental illness,

kemiskinan, penyakit jiwa,

immigration, refugees.

imigrasi, pengungsi.

And for all those years, I've worked with hope and with optimism.

Dan selama bertahun-tahun, saya dipenuhi harapan dan optimisme.

In the past five years, though,

Tapi, selama lima tahun terakhir,

my hope and my optimism have been put to the test.

harapan dan optimisme saya diuji.

I've been so deeply disappointed in the way the United States government

Saya sangat kecewa dengan cara pemerintah Amerika Serikat

is treating families who are coming to our southern border,

menangani keluarga yang datang dari perbatasan selatan kita,

asking for asylum --

mencari suaka,

desperate parents with children, from El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras,

orang tua putus asa dengan anak-anak, dari El Salvador, Guatemala, dan Honduras,

who only want to bring their kids to safety and security.

yang hanya ingin anak-anak mereka aman dan selamat.

They are fleeing some of the worst violence in the world.

Mereka kabur dari sebagian kekerasan terparah di dunia.

They've been attacked by gangs,

Mereka diserang kawanan geng,

assaulted, raped, extorted, threatened.

dianiaya, diperkosa, diperas, diancam.

They have faced death.

Mereka menghadapi maut.

And they can't turn to their police because the police are complicit,

Dan mereka tak bisa mengandalkan polisi karena aparat di sana terlibat,

corrupt, ineffective.

korup, tidak efektif.

Then they get to our border,

Jadi, mereka datang ke perbatasan kita,

and we put them in detention centers,

dan kita memasukkan mereka ke pusat detensi,

prisons, as if they were common criminals.

penjara, seolah mereka penjahat biasa.

Back in 2014, I met some of the first children in detention centers.

Tahun 2014, saya bertemu beberapa anak pertama di pusat detensi.

And I wept.

Dan saya menangis.

I sat in my car afterwards and I cried.

Saya duduk di mobil setelah itu dan menangis.

I was seeing some of the worst suffering I'd ever known,

Saya melihat penderitaan terburuk yang pernah saya ketahui,

and it went against everything I believed in my country,

yang melanggar semua yang saya yakini di negara saya,

the rule of law

aturan hukum

and everything my parents taught me.

dan semua ajaran orang tua saya.

The way the United States has handled the immigrants

Cara Amerika Serikat menangani imigran

seeking asylum in our country

pencari suaka di negara kita

over the past five years --

selama lima tahun terakhir,

it's wrong, just simply wrong.

sudah jelas keliru.

Tonight, I want to tell you that children in immigration detention

Malam ini, saya ingin menyampaikan anak-anak di detensi imigrasi

are being traumatized.

mengalami trauma.

And we are causing the trauma.

Dan kitalah penyebabnya.

We in America --

Kita orang Amerika,

actually, those of us here tonight --

bahkan yang hadir di sini malam ini,

will not necessarily be on the same page with respect to immigration.

belum tentu berpikiran sama soal imigrasi.

We'll disagree on how we're going to handle all those people

Kita mungkin tak sependapat dalam cara menangani orang-orang

who want to come to our country.

yang ingin datang ke negara kita.

Frankly, it doesn't matter to me whether you're a Republican or a Democrat,

Sesungguhnya, bagi saya tidak penting apakah Anda Republik atau Demokrat,

liberal or conservative.

liberal atau konservatif.

I want secure borders.

Saya ingin perbatasan yang aman.

I also want to keep the bad actors out.

Saya juga ingin menjauhkan orang jahat.

I want national security.

Saya ingin keamanan nasional.

And of course, you'll have your ideas about those topics, too.

Dan tentu saja, Anda punya konsep sendiri tentang masalah itu.

But I think we can agree

Tapi saya rasa kita bisa sepakat

that America should not be doing harm.

bahwa Amerika tidak boleh berbuat jahat.

The government, the state, should not be in the business of hurting children.

Pemerintah, negara bagian, tidak boleh menyakiti anak-anak.

It should be protecting them,

Amerika seharusnya melindungi mereka,

no matter whose children they are:

anak siapa pun itu:

your children, my grandchildren

anak Anda, cucu saya

and the children of families just looking for asylum.

dan anak para keluarga yang hanya mencari suaka.

Now, I could tell you story after story

Saya bisa menceritakan kisah demi kisah

of children who have witnessed some of the worst violence in the world

anak-anak yang menyaksikan sebagian kekerasan terparah di dunia

and are now sitting in detention.

dan kini mendekam di detensi.

But two little boys have stayed with me over these past five years.

Tapi ada dua anak lelaki yang tak bisa saya lupakan selama lima tahun terakhir.

One of them was Danny.

Salah satunya Danny.

Danny was seven and a half years old when I met him in a detention center

Danny berumur 7,5 tahun ketika saya temui di pusat detensi

in Karnes City, Texas, back in 2014.

di Karnes City, Texas, tahun 2014.

He was there with his mother and his brother,

Dia di sana bersama ibu dan adiknya.

and they had fled Honduras.

dan mereka kabur dari Honduras.

You know, Danny is one of these kids that you get to love instantly.

Danny jenis anak yang langsung membuat jatuh cinta.

He's funny, he's innocent,

Dia lucu, polos,

he's charming and very expressive.

memesona, dan sangat ekspresif.

And he's drawing pictures for me,

Dia membuat gambar untuk saya,

and one of the pictures he drew for me was of the Revos Locos.

dan salah satu yang digambarnya adalah Revos Locos.

The Revos Locos: this is the name

Revos Locos: inilah nama

that they gave to gangs in the town that he was in.

yang diberikan kepada geng di kota tempat tinggalnya dulu.

I said to Danny,

Saya berkata kepada Danny,

"Danny, what makes them bad guys?"

"Danny, kenapa mereka orang jahat?"

Danny looked at me with puzzlement.

Danny menatap saya dengan bingung.

I mean, the look was more like,

Tatapannya lebih mirip,

"Are you clueless or just stupid?"

"Kamu ini polos atau tolol?"

(Laughter)

(Tertawa)

He leaned in and he whispered,

Dia mendekat dan berbisik,

"Don't you see?

"Memangnya kamu tidak lihat?

They smoke cigarettes."

Mereka merokok."

(Laughter)

(Tertawa)

"And they drink beer."

"Dan mereka minum bir."

Danny had learned, of course, about the evils of drinking and smoking.

Danny, tentu saja, sudah tahu tentang keburukan minum-minum dan merokok.

Then he said, "And they carry guns."

Kemudian, "Dan mereka bersenjata."

In one of the pictures,

Di salah satu gambar,

the stick figures of the Revos Locos are shooting at birds and at people.

anggota Revos Locos menembaki burung dan orang-orang.

Danny told me about the day his uncle was killed by those Revos Locos

Danny bercerita tentang pamannya yang dibunuh Revos Locos

and how he ran from his house to his uncle's farmhouse,

dan bagaimana dia lari dari rumah menuju peternakan pamannya,

only to see his uncle's dead body,

hanya untuk melihat mayat sang paman,

his face disfigured by bullets.

wajahnya rusak diterjang peluru.

And Danny told me he saw his uncle's teeth coming out the back of his head.

Danny juga bilang dia melihat gigi pamannya mencuat dari balik tengkuknya.

He was only six at the time.

Saat itu Danny baru enam tahun.

Sometime after that,

Tak lama setelah itu,

one of those Revos Locos beat little Danny badly, severely,

salah satu anggota Revos Locos memukuli Danny, habis-habisan,

and that's when his parents said,

dan saat itulah orang tuanya berkata,

"We have got to leave or they will kill us."

"Kita harus pergi atau dibunuh mereka."

So they set out.

Jadi mereka kabur.

But Danny's father was a single-leg amputee with a crutch,

Tapi ayah Danny berkaki buntung dan memakai tongkat,

and he couldn't manage the rugged terrain.

dan dia tak sanggup melewati medan yang keras.

So he said to his wife,

Jadi dia berkata kepada istrinya,

"Go without me. Take our boys.

"Pergilah tanpa aku. Bawa anak-anak kita.

Save our boys."

Selamatkan anak-anak kita."

So Mom and the boys set off.

Jadi Ibu dan anak-anak berangkat.

Danny told me he looked back, said goodbye to his father,

Danny bercerita, dia menoleh, berpamitan kepada ayahnya,

looked back a couple of times until he lost sight of his father.

berulang kali menoleh hingga ayahnya lenyap dari pandangan.

In detention, he had not heard from his father.

Di detensi, dia belum mendengar kabar dari ayahnya.

And it's very likely that his father was killed by the Revos Locos,

Kemungkinan besar ayahnya dibunuh Revos Locos,

because he had tried to flee.

karena mencoba kabur.

I can't forget Danny.

Saya tak bisa melupakan Danny.

The other boy was Fernando.

Anak satu lagi bernama Fernando.

Now, Fernando was in the same detention center,

Fernando ada di pusat detensi yang sama,

roughly the same age as Danny.

usianya sepantar Danny.

Fernando was telling me about the 24 hours he spent in isolation with his mother

Fernando bercerita tentang 24 jam berada di ruang isolasi bersama ibunya

in the detention center,

di pusat detensi,

placed there because his mother had led a hunger strike

ditempatkan di sana karena ibunya memimpin mogok makan

among the mothers in the detention center,

di kalangan para ibu di pusat detensi,

and now she was cracking under the pressure of the guards,

dan kini mental ibunya terganggu di bawah tekanan penjaga,

who were threatening and being very abusive towards her and Fernando.

yang mengancam dan sangat kasar kepadanya dan Fernando.

As Fernando and I are talking in the small office,

Saat saya dan Fernando mengobrol di kantor kecil itu,

his mother burst in,

ibunya menerobos masuk,

and she says, "They hear you! They're listening to you."

dan dia berkata, "Mereka menguping! Mereka mendengarmu."

And she dropped to her hands and knees,

Dan dia jatuh berlutut,

and she began to look under the table, groping under all the chairs.

dan mulai memeriksa kolong meja, meraba bagian bawah semua kursi.

She looked at the electric sockets,

Dia memeriksa soket listrik,

at the corner of the room,

di sudut ruangan,

the floor, the corner of the ceiling,

lantai, sudut langit-langit,

at the lamp, at the air vent, looking for hidden microphones and cameras.

lampu, ventilasi udara, mencari mikrofon dan kamera tersembunyi.

I watched Fernando as he watched his mother spiral

Saya mengawasi Fernando mengawasi ibunya yang lambat laun

into this paranoid state.

semakin paranoid.

I looked in his eyes and I saw utter terror.

Saya menatap mata Fernando dan melihat ketakutan total.

After all, who would take care of him if she couldn't?

Lagi pula, siapa yang bisa merawat dirinya jika ibunya tidak bisa?

It was just the two of them. They only had each other.

Mereka hanya berdua. Tak ada orang lain.

I could tell you story after story,

Masih banyak lagi cerita yang bisa saya sampaikan,

but I haven't forgotten Fernando.

tapi saya tak pernah melupakan Fernando.

And I know something about what that kind of trauma,

Dan saya tahu bagaimana dampak trauma,

stress and adversity does to children.

stres, dan cobaan macam itu pada anak-anak.

So I'm going to get clinical with you for a moment,

Jadi, untuk sejenak saya mengajak Anda berpikir klinis,

and I'm going to be the professor that I am.

dan saya akan berbicara sesuai profesi saya.

Under prolonged and intense stress,

Di bawah stres yang berkepanjangan dan intens,

trauma, hardship, adversity, harsh conditions,

trauma, kesulitan, cobaan, kehidupan yang keras,

the developing brain is harmed,

otak yang sedang berkembang akan rusak,

plain and simple.

sesederhana itu.

Its wiring and its architecture

Jaringan dan arsitekturnya,

are damaged.

rusak.

The child's natural stress response system is affected.

Sistem respons stres anak itu terpengaruh.

It's weakened of its protective factors.

Faktor-faktor pelindungnya semakin lemah.

Regions of the brain that are associated with cognition,

Wilayah otak yang berkaitan dengan kognisi,

intellectual abilities,

kemampuan intelektual,

judgment, trust, self-regulation, social interaction,

pertimbangan, kepercayaan, pengelolaan diri, interaksi sosial,

are weakened, sometimes permanently.

semakin lemah, terkadang secara permanen.

That impairs children's future.

Ini merusak masa depan anak-anak.

We also know that under stress, the child's immune system is suppressed,

Kita juga tahu di bawah stres, sistem imun anak juga tertekan,

making them susceptible to infections.

menjadikan mereka rentan terhadap infeksi.

Chronic illnesses, like diabetes, asthma, cardiovascular disease,

Penyakit kronis, seperti diabetes, asma, penyakit kardiovaskular,

will follow those children into adulthood and likely shorten their lives.

akan memburu anak-anak itu saat dewasa, dan mungkin mempersingkat umur mereka.

Mental health problems are linked to the breakdown of the body.

Masalah kesehatan mental juga terkait dengan rusaknya tubuh.

I have seen children in detention

Saya pernah melihat anak-anak di detensi

who have recurrent and disturbing nightmares,

yang berulang kali mengalami mimpi buruk,

night terrors,

ketakutan di malam hari,

depression and anxiety,

depresi dan kegelisahan,

dissociative reactions,

reaksi disosiatif,

hopelessness, suicidal thinking

keputusasaan, pemikiran bunuh diri,

and post-traumatic stress disorders.

serta gangguan stres pascatrauma.

And they regress in their behavior,

Dan perilaku mereka semakin merosot,

like the 11-year-old boy

seperti bocah 11 tahun

who began to wet his bed again after years of continence.

yang mulai mengompol lagi setelah bertahun-tahun bisa tahan.

And the eight-year-old girl who was buckling under the pressure

Dan gadis delapan tahun yang ambruk di bawah tekanan

and was insisting that her mother breastfeed her.

dan berkeras minta menyusu pada ibunya.

That is what detention does to children.

Inilah dampak detensi terhadap anak-anak.

Now, you may ask:

Sekarang, Anda mungkin bertanya:

What do we do?

Apa yang akan kita lakukan?

What should our government do?

Apa sebaiknya langkah pemerintah?

Well, I'm just a mental health professional,

Saya hanya seorang pakar kesehatan mental,

so all I really know is about children's health and development.

jadi saya hanya tahu tentang kesehatan dan perkembangan anak.

But I have some ideas.

Tapi saya punya ide.

First, we need to reframe our practices.

Pertama, kita perlu menata ulang praktik kita.

We need to replace fear and hostility

Kita perlu mengganti ketakutan dan kebencian

with safety and compassion.

dengan keamanan dan kasih sayang.

We need to tear down the prison walls,

Kita perlu merobohkan tembok penjara,

the barbed wire, take away the cages.

kawat duri, menyingkirkan kerangkeng.

Instead of prison, or prisons,

Alih-alih penjara,

we should create orderly asylum processing centers,

sebaiknya kita membuat pusat pengelolaan suaka yang teratur,

campus-like communities

komunitas mirip kampus

where children and families can live together.

tempat anak-anak dan keluarga bisa hidup bersama.

We could take old motels, old army barracks,

Kita bisa memanfaatkan motel lama, barak tentara lama,

refit them so that children and parents can live as family units

merenovasinya agar anak-anak dan orang tua dapat hidup sebagai keluarga

in some safety and normality,

dalam suasana aman dan normal,

where kids can run around.

tempat anak-anak bisa berlarian.

In these processing centers,

Di pusat pengelolaan ini,

pediatricians, family doctors,

dokter anak, dokter keluarga,

dentists and nurses,

dokter gigi, dan perawat,

would be screening, examining,

akan memonitor, memeriksa,

treating and immunizing children,

mengobati, mengimunisasi anak-anak

creating records that will follow them to their next medical provider.

membuat riwayat kesehatan untuk keperluan medis mereka berikutnya.

Social workers would be conducting mental health evaluations

Pekerja sosial akan mengevaluasi kesehatan mental

and providing treatment for those who need it.

dan menyediakan perawatan bagi yang membutuhkannya.

Those social workers would be connecting families

Pekerja sosial akan menghubungkan keluarga

to services that they're going to need, wherever they're headed.

dengan layanan yang mereka butuhkan, ke mana pun tujuan mereka.

And teachers would be teaching and testing children

Guru akan mengajar dan mengetes anak-anak

and documenting their learning

dan mendokumentasikan pelajaran mereka

so that the teachers at the next school

agar para guru di sekolah berikutnya

can continue those children's education.

dapat melanjutkan pendidikan anak-anak itu.

There's a lot more that we could do in these processing centers.

Masih banyak yang bisa kita lakukan di pusat pengelolaan ini.

A lot more.

Masih banyak.

And you probably are thinking,

Dan Anda barangkali berpikir,

this is pie-in-the-sky stuff.

ini seperti mimpi di siang bolong.

Can't blame you.

Saya bisa maklum.

Well, let me tell you that refugee camps all over the world are holding families

Begini, banyak kamp pengungsi di seluruh dunia yang menampung keluarga

like those in our detention centers,

seperti pusat detensi kita,

and some of those refugee camps are getting it right

dan sebagian kamp pengungsi ini bertindak benar

far better than we are.

jauh melebihi kita.

The United Nations has issued reports describing refugee camps

PBB telah mengeluarkan laporan tentang kamp pengungsi

that protect children's health and development.

yang melindungi kesehatan dan perkembangan anak.

Children and parents live in family units

Anak-anak dan orang tua tinggal sebagai satu keluarga

and clusters of families are housed together.

dan beberapa keluarga ditempatkan dalam satu rumah.

Parents are given work permits so they can earn some money,

Orang tua diberikan izin kerja agar mereka bisa mencari uang,

they're given food vouchers so they can go to the local stores and shop.

mereka mendapat kupon makanan untuk digunakan di toko setempat.

Mothers are brought together to cook healthy meals for the children,

Para ibu berkumpul untuk memasak makanan sehat bagi anak-anak,

and children go to school every day and are taught.

dan anak-anak bersekolah dan belajar setiap hari.

Afterwards, after school, they go home and they ride bikes,

Setelah itu, seusai sekolah, mereka pulang dengan bersepeda,

hang out with friends, do homework and explore the world --

berkumpul dengan teman-teman, membuat PR, dan mengeksplorasi dunia.

all the essentials for child development.

Semua yang esensial bagi perkembangan anak.

We can get it right. We have the resources to get it right.

Kita bisa bertindak benar. Kita punya sumber daya untuk itu.

What we need is the will and the insistence of Americans

Yang kita butuhkan hanyalah kemauan dan desakan warga AS

that we treat children humanely.

agar kita merawat anak-anak secara manusiawi.

You know, I can't forget Danny or Fernando.

Anda tahu, saya tak bisa melupakan Danny atau Fernando.

I wonder where they are today,

Saya penasaran di mana mereka sekarang,

and I pray that they are healthy and happy.

dan saya berdoa agar mereka sehat dan bahagia.

They are only two of the many children I met

Mereka dua dari banyak anak yang saya temui

and of the thousands we know about who have been in detention.

dan dari ribuan yang kita tahu berada di detensi.

I may be saddened

Saya mungkin sedih

by what's happened to the children,

atas apa yang terjadi pada anak-anak itu,

but I'm inspired by them.

tapi saya terinspirasi oleh mereka.

I may cry, as I did,

Saya mungkin menangis, dan memang sudah,

but I admire those children's strength.

tapi saya mengagumi kekuatan anak-anak itu.

They keep alive my hope and my optimism in the work I do.

Mereka terus menghidupkan harapan dan optimisme saya dalam bekerja.

So while we may differ on our approach to immigration,

Jadi, walau pendekatan kita terhadap imigrasi berbeda,

we should be treating children with dignity and respect.

kita mesti memperlakukan anak-anak dengan hormat dan martabat.

We should do right by them.

Kita mesti adil kepada mereka.

If we do,

Jika kita melakukannya,

we can prepare those children who remain in the United States,

kita bisa menyiapkan anak-anak yang menetap di Amerika Serikat

prepare them to become productive, engaged members of our society.

menjadi anggota masyarakat yang produktif dan berkomitmen.

And those who will return to their countries whether voluntarily or not

Dan anak-anak yang kembali ke negara mereka, secara sukarela atau tidak,

will be prepared to become the teachers, the merchants, the leaders

akan disiapkan menjadi guru, pedagang, pemimpin

in their country.

di negara mereka.

And I hope together all of those children and parents

Dan saya berharap, bersama-sama semua anak dan orang tua itu

could give testimony to the world about the goodness of our country

bisa memberi kesaksian kepada dunia tentang kebaikan negara kita

and our values.

dan nilai-nilai kita.

But we have to get it right.

Tapi kita harus bertindak benar.

So we can agree to disagree on immigration,

Jadi kita bisa bersepakat untuk tidak sepakat soal imigrasi,

but I hope we can agree on one thing:

tapi saya harap kita bersepakat untuk satu hal:

that none of us wants to look back at this moment in our history,

bahwa kita tak ingin mengingat momen ini dalam sejarah kita,

when we knew we were inflicting lifelong trauma on children,

ketika kita tahu kitalah penyebab trauma seumur hidup pada anak-anak,

and that we sat back and did nothing.

dan kita hanya berpangku tangan.

That would be the greatest tragedy of all.

Itu mungkin tragedi terbesar yang pernah ada.

Thank you.

Terima kasih.

(Applause)

(Tepuk tangan)