Yujany Paz-Rosa and his son Maikol were separated by the Trump administration for nearly six months, after border officials accused him of not being the 3-year-old’s dad. The DNA test he had asked for from the very start confirmed he was telling the truth. The asylum-seeker, CBS Evening News reports, was relieved he was going to be with his son again. “But after 178 days apart, Maikol had a different reaction.”
CBS Evening News was there for their reunion in New York City, where Maikol had been in foster care since their separation. Paz-Rosa had been expecting the boy to be happy to see him, but instead Maikol became hysterical, repeating "No quiero, no quiero,” "I don’t want, I don’t want.” Crying, he reached for a case manager who was standing to the side. Paz-Rosa, smiling but visibly embarrassed, let his son go back into the arms of the stranger.
“It took about five hours for Maikol to calm down,” CBS reported. Several weeks later, “Paz-Rosa said his son is feeling better with him. But to this day, he's nervous around most people. Paz-Rosa said Maikol doesn't want to leave the house because he thinks someone is going to take him away.” CBS News correspondent Manuel Bojorquez showed the clip to Dr. Lanre Falusi, who treats kids who have endured separation. “It’s heartbreaking,” she said.
“So what I see is a child who has been traumatized,” Falusi continued. “Emotionally, we see the whole spectrum, from depression and anxiety, to early signs of post-traumatic stress disorder,” she said. “PTSD in children?” Bojorquez asked. “PTSD in children, right,” Falusi replied. In a House hearing this week, a top Department of Health and Human Services career official said that “the consequences of separation for many of these children will be life-long” and will “involve both behavioral and physical health harm.”
Maikol’s reaction has tragically not been unique. When 3-year-old Sammy was returned to his parents last year following a judge’s court order, he squirmed out of his mother’s arms. “Ever, what’s wrong with my son?” she cried to her husband. Back in New York, “Paz-Rosa and Maikol are still waiting to see if they'll be granted asylum,” Bojorquez continued, “but at least now, they wait together.”