The Walls of This Church Are the Only Thing Standing Between Amanda Morales and Deportation | Democracy Now!
On a brisk evening in early December, Amanda Morales's oldest daughter is perched at the edge of a bunk bed inside a cavernous century-old Gothic Revival church in upper Manhattan. She is just 10 years old, round-faced and shy, and she is writing her life story.
"Once upon a time there was a girl named Dulce. She had a mom who was going to be deported," the fifth-grader types haltingly in Script MT bold font. "Because of Mr. Trump," she adds.
Dulce briefly sets aside the family's laptop—donated only hours earlier—to retrieve a toy ball from her younger sister, Daniela, and return it to their teary-eyed baby brother, David, who had been squirming at Dulce's side. The small room, which is technically the church's library, is strewn with children's clothes and toys.
"Get ready for your shower!" Dulce's mother, Amanda, calls in Spanish. She's sitting in the adjacent room with one of the church's congregation members, Rosalba, chatting about the new bag of coffee their friend brought earlier. Amanda nearly always entertains visitors at this hour, mostly older Dominican women who stop by after work to keep her company during the long evenings.