The Honorable J. Kevin Stitt

Governor, State of Oklahoma

Oklahoma State Capitol

2300 N Lincoln Blvd.

Oklahoma City, Oklahoma 73105

Dear Governor Stitt,

I immigrated to this country twenty-two years ago with my parents at the age of eight. I remember thinking of it as a vacation and being very excited. At the time, I did not understand that most of my family would only see me a few more times before they passed away, while others I would never get to visit in person again. When I arrived I could not really speak English. This was somewhat intimidating, but I was also very excited for my new life. My first year of school was terrifying — I learned everything a normal third grader would, while simultaneously taking extra classes so I could learn to read, write, and speak English fluently. I remember seeing an unfamiliar look in my mother’s eyes every day that I now know was fear. Fear, because she could no longer control the world around her children and the thought of what could happen to us was terrifying to her. As an adult, I learned about how she would cry every day after she dropped us off at school, wondering if moving to this country had been the right decision. My brother cried almost every night after we all went to bed, struggling to adjust to our new reality. I remember my strong sister being there for all of us as we each fought our own battles every single day, not knowing if things would ever feel normal again.

In those early years, family was absolutely everything. Family was the only thing we had that still felt familiar and comforting, while everything else was completely alien. We relied heavily on each other for support. We would have weekly family meetings to check in with one another and make sure everyone was doing okay and felt supported. My dad used this time in our lives to teach me some of the things his dad had taught him growing up, such as woodworking, fishing, and gardening. We did what we could to be there for one another, even when it felt like we were barely keeping things together for ourselves. I was only eight years old when I understood all of these things because life demanded it of me.

Life demands a lot of us all every single day. We cannot truly understand each others’ struggles completely, but we can do our best to try. Being an immigrant requires you to grow up more quickly than the average child. You are expected to understand and navigate situations that most people will never have to think about, and you’re expected to do it as quickly as possible in order to assimilate. It is demanding, but it is absolutely worth it. I owe nearly everything I have in this life to the sacrifice my parents made when they decided to immigrate to the United States.

Today, I write to you as your constituent. I come to you as a patriot and a lover of everything this magnificent country has given me. I ask that you lead because I know you are a leader. I ask you to demonstrate our real American values to the rest of the country and the world. Oklahoma is a state made up of people who understand and respect the vital importance family plays in the life of a child. I am confident you hold this same value and you have read my account highlighting its importance in the life of an immigrant child. Whether a child is in this country legally or illegally is irrelevant and should not determine whether or not they are allowed to be with their family. Seeing, hearing, and watching the stories coming out of the child detention facilities in Texas has been absolutely heartbreaking to me. There would have been nothing more traumatizing for me to have gone through as a child.

Governor Stitt, you know as well as I do that these facilities are counter to every principle this country holds dear. Further, we both know there are far more humane and compassionate ways to address this matter. So, I am writing to humbly ask that you do not allow the detention of child migrants at Fort Sill. I have learned that we are expected to house something like 1,400 children in this facility later this Summer. I trust you will make the righteous and moral decision, and show this administration that Oklahoma will not take part in its program of forced internment of children. You have the absolute authority to determine just how much more life will demand of these children. Tragically, some have already succumbed due to the overwhelming burdens our nation placed on them. Oklahoma does not have to be part of that legacy. I remind you that Oklahomans everywhere are counting on you to do the right thing.

Sincerely,

Willem Ellis

Tulsa, OK