Crisis at the Border

I was challenged with creating an illustration related to the crisis at the Mexico/US border. The subject matter that I chose to focus on was the separation of families. I had read stories of kids who had been separated from their immigrant parents, being put into what were basically jail cells or cages. I chose the composition of a child crying and reaching out through the bars towards the viewer because I felt that it would be a powerful and gut-wrenching image that would make viewers feel empathetic towards the child. I also felt that having the subject look at and reach out to the audience would, in a sense, help push the topic into the viewers' faces, forcing them to consider this social justice issue and what they can do to change it.