The Marshallese in Northwest Arkansas have been making headlines like almost never before, and it's for all wrong reasons.
Wrong as in unwanted, as in a set of circumstances they shouldn't have to burden because it's unfair, but we're reminded over and over again that life is not fair.
It's often noted that Northwest Arkansas is home to the largest concentration of Marshallese anywhere outside the Pacific islands from which they originate. Still, in terms of numbers (about 15,000) the Marshallese account for about 3 percent of the region's residents.
That's, in part, why they're making headlines. Deaths from the Marshallese community as a result of covid-19 make up a disproportionate portion of the region's coronavirus deaths. Public health officials say they're working hard to understand why and to break through communication and cultural issues to bolster protections for the islanders.
They've made headlines, too, for another tragic reason. Law enforcement in the last couple of years has exposed at least a portion of an exploitative human trafficking operation in which Marshall Islander mothers-to-be were brought to Northwest Arkansas and other areas and given cash to give up their babies for adoption.
Large numbers of adoptions have drawn suspicion from the judicial system, where adoptions occur, and law enforcement for several years. Marshall Islanders are potential targets because they are more free to easily enter the United States under treaty rules than most other nations.
In late June, adoption attorney Paul Peterson of Mesa, Ariz., pleaded guilty to his role in such an operation, in Arkansas, Arizona and Utah. He'd previously pleaded guilty in the other two states. His firm charged fees of as much as $35,000 for adoptions, according to court records.
Law enforcement officials say it's unlikely to be the last such case, which is good news in terms of cracking down on those who would take advantage of vulnerable people. But it's disheartening that our Marshallese neighbors have had to endure such predatory schemes.
U.S.-Marshall Islands treaties specifically prohibit travel to the United States for the sole purpose of putting up babies for adoption. Investigators say Peterson's scheme involved keeping 10 or 12 women in single-family homes while awaiting births.
It is indeed a difficult time for the Marshallese population in our neck of the woods. Even as law enforcement is helping to stop one set of predators, members of this community are having to face a predator in the shape of a spiky little virus that's proven to be quite a threat.
It's good to see they have not been forgotten by U.S. legal and medical establishments working to keep Marshall Islanders out of harm's way.