Costa Rica News – The social cost of the “American Dream” is something often left unspoken.
While many stories highlight the money and opportunities found by the few who make it to the States and have good luck, we hear few stories of the families and communities left behind.
Husbands and fathers often leave, with the intention of going for just a year or two to make money, and they never return. They send money and call for a while and then move on and make a new family there.
Between 1970 and 2010, 126,418 Costa Ricans emigrated to the U.S. One study found that the social costs of this migration are much higher than the economic benefits. How much money makes up for a broken family?
There are children who know their fathers just by photos. A house and a car do not change the fact that a parent is seen only every few years, if that.
Our society should see stability from not only an economic point of view but a social one too.
