When Jacob Riis turned his camera on the workplace and exposed the conditions of children at work, the images appalled America and led to child labor laws (1890). No such camera can detail the children in immigrant families as they are pressed into adult roles, but the shocking consequences should arouse the same sensibilities and lead to corrective action.

Adultifcation of children is evident in the supermarket, the court, the doctor's office, and the school. "Now just tell your momma what I said," is a common request  from the countless clerks and professionals who want to communicate with a non-English speaker who is accompanied by a bilingual child. "What did the doctor say?" asks a parent, dependent on the child who has readily learned the new language.

Adultification is much more than being a family interpreter. M.E. Puig writes, "The roles of parents and children are usually disrupted and, unwittingly, responsibilities shift as refugee children assume obligations that do not correspond to their chronological, emotional, or psychological age."(1). This child pressured to take adult responsibility is not a condition limited to refugee or immigrant children but it is particularly widespread in this vulnerable population who flee oppression and without sufficient language preparation or skills are thrown into new cultures and societies with the expectation to navigate or interpret the new life not just for themselves but for adult family members.

European countries are investing in pre-departure language training to smooth the integration process but this works best in post-colonial source countries and is not a realistic expectation with the global movement toward developed countries, especially with oppressed peoples seeking refuge and asylum. Language is seen as only one pressure on children in migration.

Social workers are increasingly in places where they can identify family stress from relocation, stress from pre-departure conditions, flight, and resettlement. From the dissolution of families to the conflict forged as parents become more dependent on a child, to the lost childhood expressed in affectless adolescents trying to sustain a household, the crux of the issue is often pressured children trying to fulfill adult roles.

It is incumbent on the professional to become the defender and advocate of these children. Having listened to a family explain that their 9 year-old son was interpreting his mother's serious risks from sustained uterus bleeding, brought engagement in the battle that required a lawsuit to ensure language access. Massachusetts passed an emergency room interpreter law in 2000 to safeguard children and adults who previously had strangers pressed into duty to communicate often critical information in a hospital room, a courthouse or with social services.

Title VI of the 1964 Civil Rights Act stipulates that "No person in the United States shall, on the ground of race, color, and/or national origin, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any program or activity receiving federal financial assistance". In 1974, in Lau v Nichols, the U.S. Supreme Court interpreted Title VI to include discrimination based on language as being equivalent to discrimination based on national origin. However, the existence of law does not guarantee services in most states.

Children pressed into adult roles can suffer multiple consequences. Lack of attachment to peers and school communities, limited developmental opportunities, physical consequences of sustained stress, lack of mobility, and the resultant impact on critical thinking and judgment, and of course interrupted participation in education, are among the concerns.   Given the hundreds of thousands of children deprived of a parent by DHS enforcement, separation anxiety and a real fear of future loss, clinicians face daunting consequences among the children of families separated in migration even before children trying to fill vacant parent roles.

It should be noted, however, that there are multiple benefits to some children with certain roles and responsibilities when support is sufficient. A positive example is that children are often propelled into skills development in communication, especially with technology, to sustain family ties with the homeland or peers. Children may further develop in computational or social skills when they are not required to serve adults' needs but instead are given affirmation and measures of self-determination. Often there is evidence of increased cognition and language skills according to McQuillan and Tse (2). The damage or reward is dependent on family systems, cultural understanding, and the degrees of dependency associated with these advanced roles.

How a family integrates (or remains marginalized) is a major factor in childhood development. Scholars have probed the issues of withdrawal, depression, and attachment disorders and these behaviors are readily associated with delayed acculturation. Studies of distinct populations, such as Somali youth in Maine, show a high incidence of PTSD. The average teen had more than 7 traumatic life experiences. Healthy mental development can be seen as overcoming the deleterious effects in such circumstances and freeing children from adult dependency is one step.

Social work and social policy are tools for intervention in protecting children. Good practice, strong boundaries to guard children from pressured performance with inappropriate roles, and excellent interpreter programs are the primary tools for a proper course of action. Screens in assessments of families and children when doing home visits, enrollments and planning, which note the roles and developmental issues of children, particularly adolescents, are steps that need to be taken when working with immigrant families. Cultural training of direct service staff remains a vital safeguard by developing awareness, by being alert to continued role reversals, and by affording alternative models to both family and agencies. More youth services with integrated mental health services are needed.

Bilingual and bicultural children usually thrive in their new country, but sustaining the environment for their healthy development remains an achievement.

 Westy Egmont, Director

1. Puig, M. E. (2002). The adultification of refugee children: Implications for cross-cultural social work practice. Journal of human behavior in the social environment, 5(3-4), 85-95.

2. McQuillan, J., & Tse, L. (1995). Child language brokering in linguistic minority communities: Effects on cultural interaction, cognition, and literacy. Language and Education, 9(3), 195-215.