The New Yorker Radio Hour: “The Government Took Her Son. Will It Give Him Back?”

Date: June 22, 2018
Host: David Remnick
Featured Guests: Jonathan Blitzer, Anna Schectman, Cameron Austin Collins

Episode Overview

This episode centers on the trauma and bureaucracy surrounding the Trump administration’s “zero tolerance” immigration policy, specifically the practice of forcibly separating children from their parents at the US-Mexico border. Jonathan Blitzer, reporting from El Paso, Texas, shares the moving and disturbing story of Ana Maritza Rivera, a Honduran woman separated from her five-year-old son, Jairo. The episode then shifts to a lighter segment exploring the art and politics of crossword construction, featuring New Yorker puzzle constructors Anna Schectman and Cameron Austin Collins.

Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. The Human Toll of Family Separation

(00:33–11:49)

Reporting from El Paso

• Jonathan Blitzer describes his experience just outside an ICE facility, speaking with Ana Maritza Rivera, who faces imminent deportation to Honduras and separation from her son Jairo (01:12–01:55).

• Incident of Family Separation:

  • Rivera and her son crossed the border at midnight on May 5 as part of a group from Honduras.
  • Captured quickly by Border Patrol, Rivera was held in a cell with other women and children.
  • On the second day, two Border Patrol agents forcibly took her son away — Rivera vividly recalls her child’s arms clinging to her as he was taken.
  • Quote (Jonathan Blitzer, 05:32):
    “She starts to scream and cry and claw at them... The two border patrol agents managed to wrest him from her. She resisted, she was extremely upset, crying, yelling, asking what was going on.”

• Disconnected Bureaucracy:

  • Rivera was transferred between criminal and immigration custody; it took two weeks before she learned where her son was.
  • A fellow detainee gave her a phone number for a case manager in Chicago, the first official contact about her son’s whereabouts.
  • Blitzer recounts Rivera’s phone calls with her son:
    Quote (Jonathan Blitzer, 06:59):
    “When he talks on the phone, he sounds sad. He begs me to come pick him up. He says, mom, mom, take me home. I want to go home. I don't like this. And all she can say is, be patient. Be patient. We're almost there. We're almost there.”

Context and Systemic Problems

• Trump’s Executive Order:

  • Stopped new separations but did not address the fate of 2,000+ separated children already in custody (01:41–01:55).

• Legal and Bureaucratic Split:

  • The legal proceedings for parents and their separated children run entirely separately.
  • The Office of Refugee Resettlement typically handles unaccompanied minors, but under “zero tolerance” now must process children forcibly separated after crossing with parents (07:25–10:12).
  • Quote (Jonathan Blitzer, 09:38):
    “There is no alignment between the two ... that's how you're getting parents in immigration detention who don't know where their child is.”

• Data and Accountability:

  • Official government numbers on affected families are unreliable; the true scope is unclear, and leaders often deny the existence of a formal separation policy.

Emotional Fallout

• Ana Maritza’s Resolve:
  • Unlike most detained migrants, she wants to be deported as quickly as possible to reunite with her son (10:24–11:49).
  • Quote (Jonathan Blitzer, 11:23):
    “I told this ICE official that if I get to the airport and my son is not there, you’ll be killing me.”

2. The Art, Language, and Subtle Politics of Crossword Puzzles

(12:54–21:49)

Inside the Constructor’s Studio

• Constructors’ Process:
  • Anna Schectman and Cameron Austin Collins discuss their method for crafting puzzles, from selecting “seed” words (13:33) to building clues that are both visually and culturally engaging.
  • Quote (Cameron Austin Collins, 13:33):
    “I start by consulting a list of words called my seeds… I just like grids that are aesthetically pleasing and unique.”

Diversity and Representation

• Challenging Tradition:

  • Cameron wants to see representation beyond the token black celebrities usually included for their helpful letter combinations, and both constructors try to include more contemporary, diverse, and political references.
  • Quote (Cameron Austin Collins, 18:07):
    “I want to see more black people. I want to see black people who aren’t Jay Z or Nas... I just felt there were a lot of missed opportunities for kinds of culture that could be in the puzzle.”

• Proud Inclusivity:

  • Cameron notes putting “Anita Hill” in the New York Times crossword for the first time (18:32–18:41).
  • Anna shares her own milestone—slipping the word “schtup” into a puzzle (18:50–18:55).

The New Yorker Puzzle Identity

• Freshness and Topicality:
  • The New Yorker’s puzzles can reflect more current events and linguistic trends than other publications.
  • Quote (Cameron Austin Collins, 19:19):
    “The distance between when we make the puzzle and when the puzzle runs is very, very short... you can be very up with things that are immediately happening in the culture.”

Collaboration and Solver Experience

• Clue Chemistry:

  • The group riffs on creative clueing (e.g., “Grande dame of pop music” for ARIANA, leveraging the “Grande” pun, 14:22–14:57).
  • They discuss the joys and awkwardness of seeing strangers solving their puzzles in public.
  • Quote (Anna Schectman, 20:30):
    “There’s truly nothing like seeing someone do your puzzle well. They’re getting in your brain with you. It’s really creepy.”

• Ethics of “Cheating”:

  • They agree that looking up answers while solving—“cheating”—is really just learning (21:12–21:16).
  • Quote (Anna Schectman, 21:12):
    “It’s not cheating. It’s learning.”

Memorable Quotes and Moments

• “I told this ICE official that if I get to the airport and my son is not there, you’ll be killing me.”
  — Ana Maritza Rivera (as relayed by Jonathan Blitzer, 11:23)

• “She starts to scream and cry and claw at them ... her kid’s arms kind of clinging to her and pulling at her.”
  — Jonathan Blitzer recounting Rivera’s ordeal, (05:32)

• “I want to see more black people. I want to see black people who aren’t Jay Z or Nas, who are common in puzzles because of the letter.”
  — Cameron Austin Collins (18:07)

• “It’s not cheating. It’s learning.”
  — Anna Schectman (21:12)

Important Segment Timestamps

| Segment | Time | |---------------------------------------------|------------| | Introduction/zero tolerance context | 00:33–01:41| | Ana Maritza Rivera’s story | 01:55–07:15| | Policy, process, numbers, and confusion | 07:15–11:49| | Crossword constructors, puzzle process | 12:54–20:17| | INCLUSIVE/representative cluing | 18:05–19:38| | Cheating vs. learning in crossword solving | 21:09–21:49|

Summary

This episode of The New Yorker Radio Hour offers a sobering look at the personal devastation caused by the US government’s family separation policy, highlighted through Ana Maritza Rivera’s harrowing story. Reporter Jonathan Blitzer details the confusion, grief, and bureaucratic obstacles that compound the pain for thousands of parents and children. In contrast, the latter half provides respite in the world of crossword puzzles, where Anna Schectman and Cameron Austin Collins bring wit, diversity, and intellectual playfulness to a New Yorker tradition.

This episode is essential listening for anyone interested in the human impact of immigration policy as well as those who appreciate the cultural narratives woven—word by word—into the crosswords we solve.