Wounds that travel: Intergenerational traumas caused by migration
Photograph by Elena Rabkina via Unsplash
Yarilis Hidalgo-Placeres
How do you explain to a ten-year-old child that he can stop carrying his backpack during Sunday school or while playing with other children at church? How do you help him understand that the church is a safe space for him? The answer is complex when we know the story behind why this child never lets go of his backpack. His mother told him that when they crossed the border, someone took his backpack away, and with it, they lost valuable objects and memories. Since then, carrying it has meant protecting his emotions, his fears, and his memories.
Migration is not just about moving to another country; it involves loss, transformation, and hope. Migrants cross physical, emotional, cultural, and spiritual borders. Many in the Hispanic community have left their countries behind because of poverty, violence, persecution, political corruption, natural disasters, or the desire to reunite with their families. The impact and trauma of migration begins long before departure.
Emotional and psychological wounds are not limited to those who directly experience them; they can be passed down to future generations, which is known as intergenerational trauma. Intergenerational trauma refers to the psychological impact left by a traumatic experience, such as assault, injury, poverty, or other adverse circumstances, on one generation, which is then transmitted to the next.
Migration, before, during, and after the journey, can cause this. Along the way, families experience separation, abuse, and conditions that can be inhumane. Upon arrival, they face discrimination, language barriers, social isolation, and a lack of opportunity. Unvalidated emotions and survival behaviors in an unfamiliar place are transmitted unconsciously, turning migration trauma into intergenerational trauma that affects even those who did not migrate physically. It shapes identity, relationships, and how we see the world.
Migration trauma affects various areas of life. Several people develop anxiety, depression, panic attacks, and, in more severe cases as reported among children separated from their parents at the U.S. border, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). It can also cause marital conflicts, family role imbalances, and family disintegration due to prolonged separations. Children and adolescents may experience constant fear, social withdrawal, difficulty concentrating, and academic problems. Elizabeth Conde-Frazier notes: “They face challenges that children of parents in the U.S. will not have to face, including adopting cultural norms different from their parents and learning a language that may not be spoken at home.”[i]
Parentification, which occurs when a child or adolescent assumes adult roles, often happens in migrant families when children translate for their parents or care for younger siblings. Although sometimes unavoidable, this can affect emotional and social development, making them feel overwhelmed by responsibilities inappropriate for their age. Spiritually, abandonment or suffering can distort their image of God and lead to questions about faith and divine care.
Migration trauma does not end at the border; it travels through time and reaches those born in the new country. It can affect mental health, family relationships, cultural identity, and spiritual life. Naming, understanding, and healing these wounds is an act of faith and justice that allows us to participate in God’s restorative mission.
Economic instability, lack of access to health care and education, and cultural barriers perpetuate these wounds, creating a complex cycle to break that affects migrants and their descendants. The “chilling effect” of current mass deportation policies only exacerbates these issues. According to the 2025 National Latino Family Report, fear of deportation has led 35 percent of immigrants to avoid reporting crimes and 25 percent to avoid seeking medical services.
The Bible also presents examples of intergenerational trauma. God called Abraham to leave his land and family (Genesis 12:1). He experienced emotional, cultural, and social changes that left a mark on his life and that of his descendants. Migration also involves a journey of faith and hope in the face of the unknown. Abraham had to strengthen his faith amid uncertainty, just as many immigrants do today.
The church has a fundamental role. Its integral mission is not just preaching on Sundays but living out the message through solidarity and justice. It must be a safe space where immigrants may be hosted as angels (Hebrews 13:2) and where they find support. Congregations must be prepared to serve, visit homes and detention centers, accompany people through legal processes, coordinate mental health programs, and create spaces for dialogue.[ii]
The church can facilitate family healing processes by creating spaces to name and give meaning to the pain family members experience, with professional support. As Harold Segura says, “Christian spirituality is integral because it calls us to recognize and live under the lordship of God over all of life and creation, while inviting us to commit ourselves to his Kingdom in the transformation of all creation according to the Creator’s dream of redemption.”[iii] We are called to walk alongside those who suffer, transforming painful experiences into testimonies that can inspire others and foster spiritual growth.
Migration trauma does not end at the border; it travels through time and reaches those born in the new country. It can affect mental health, family relationships, cultural identity, and spiritual life. Naming, understanding, and healing these wounds is an act of faith and justice that allows us to participate in God’s restorative mission. The church is called to be a home, a refuge, and a prophetic voice, walking with migrant families to transform pain into faith and hope.
Healing today also means healing future generations, children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren. It must be a communal process as part of God’s mission among God’s people. When the church becomes a healing space, children like the one who carried his backpack can discover that they no longer need to carry it all the time, because they have found refuge and experienced God’s love in their faith community.
Pastora Yarilis Hidalgo-Placeres serves as associate pastor of Logos Baptist Church in Columbus, Indiana. She is president of the National Hispanic Baptist Caucus and administrator for online Baptist education at IBPR. With a deep commitment to theological education and Hispanic ministry, Pastora Hidalgo-Placeres combines pastoral leadership with a passion for equipping others for service in the church and community.
The views expressed are those of the author and not necessarily those of American Baptist Home Mission Societies.
[i] Elizabeth Conde-Frazier, Listen to the Children: Conversations with Immigrant Families (Valley Forge, PA: Judson Press, 2000), 875.
[ii] Alexia Salvatierra, “Theological Themes” (Presentation, Migration, Transnationalism, Identity, and Mission, Fuller Theological Seminary, Pasadena, CA, June 4, 2025).
[iii] Harold Segura, Ser Iglesia para los demás: Hacia una espiritualidad evangélica comprometida (Argentina: Ediciones Kairos, 2010), 32.
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