Immigration is a major topic this election year with much of the discussion focusing on the best way to secure our borders. But amidst all the speechmaking there is another piece to the issue that rarely makes the headlines: the human impact of deportation on individuals and families.
A non-profit human rights organization has just released a new video game called ICED (I Can End Deportation). It’s also a play on the Immigration and Customs Enforcement Department, the division of Homeland Security that enforces immigration policy.
The game is free and there are versions for both Windows and Macintosh. There is also a version that runs in the Global Kids Island in Teen Second Life, a virtual world accessible only to teens.
When you play the game you get to chose one of five characters so that you can experience what the game developers call “the day-to-day life of immigrant youth.” You can get a sense of what it’s like to be chased by immigration officers and make decisions that can increase or decrease your chances of being detained and possibly deported.
The game is definitely an advocacy tool. Breakthrough has a strong position about what it considers to be abusive policies and behaviors that the organization feels deny legal rights to immigrants, including many who may be in the country legally. One character, for example, is a U.S. veteran who had applied for naturalization while in the military. The character, according to Breakthrough Executive Director Mallika Dutt, is based on a real person named Warren Joseph, a veteran of the Gulf War of 1991.
Dutt said that nearly two million people, both legal and undocumented immigrants, “have been deported without due process since new immigration laws have been in effect.”
The game attempts to educate players about unfair policies as well as the types of judgments they need to make to avoid detention and deportation. There is also information in the game about immigration policy and how to get involved in supporting immigrant rights.
Based on all of the recent controversy about the immigration issue, I’m certain that there are some who would criticize this game because it takes a position that is unpopular among many people who feel that we need to secure our borders, support immigration enforcement personnel and deport illegal immigrants.
However, policy issues aside, it helps to understand that there are human beings whose lives are being affected, many of whom are children and teens who may have never violated U.S. law.
You can download a free copy for Macs or Windows PCs at www.icedgame.com.