Tenía 6 meses cuando mis padres trajeron a mí y a mis hermanos a los Estados Unidos. Querían una vida mejor para nosotros. Esperaban que tuviéramos más de lo que ya teníamos en México. Eso es lo que esperaban.
I'm sorry, this is America. In America, we speak English.
I was brought to the United States as a 6 month old baby with my siblings. My parents, hoping for a better future and more opportunities, uprooted our family here. That's what they hoped.
I've been here for about 26 years of my life. 1 and a half of those years were spent in Mexico. One year was spent back in Mexico when I was 4 years old. I still had a visa then so we were able to go back. I was about 5 when I came back with a visa. Still a child and still naive to what our situation would later become.
At 27 years old, I am an undocumented immigrant, or illegal alien as some would say. 22 of those years were lived with the uncertainty of what the next day would bring living here undocumented. I could easily be taken out and thrown back into a country that I do not remember and do not know. It's like throwing a tiger that's been kept in captivity since a cub back out into the wilderness. Undocumented immigrants, especially childhood arrivals, are at the mercy of the government. 4 months have passed since the rescinding of DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals). 2 months until it's official termination. And 10 months are left of my deferred action and employment authorization.
I understand that America faces many problems outside of the immigration system. But tackling immigration and border security is at the root of the problem. You want border security? Go ahead. As an undocumented immigrant, I agree. We need to fix this problem (hopefully as humanely as possible). But you can't expect those of us who have made a living here, despite the circumstances of how we got here, to continue living here without any relief. I'm speaking on behalf of those childhood arrivals, like myself. Those of us who had no choice in the decision our parents made. We were brought here as children. We have no recollection of our home country. I can't even call it my home. It's my birthplace. But that's it. My home is America.
The problem? Many people are under the assumption that we are taking jobs. How are we taking jobs away when we only apply for jobs that are available? We are not forcing our way into them. We are qualified employees. Often, the jobs we are hired for are from employers who are looking for bilingual speakers. That is often our advantage, but not our only qualification. We've had to work hard, most of the time twice as hard to get to where we are. We don't qualify for any form of government aid, contrary to popular belief. We have to make our way and pay our dues (as well as taxes).
The reason we are still illegal in this country is because there has been no form of relief granted to those of us who have been here for several years (20+ years in many cases). The reason we won't go back to our countries is because this is our country. Going back would mean facing language barriers for those who don't know their home language, fearing being killed in countries that are plagued with war and violence, and worst of all, adjusting to a new "home" that never really was ours to begin with. Even if we know the language, we are strangers; foreigners in our own land. One birth certificate should not automatically change our situation. One paper should not limit us from being in a country that we have built a life in. One document should not be used against us. We are just as American as anyone else who's been here from birth or who arrived just a month ago, possibly as a refugee and is adjusting their status.
I often see comments of people telling us to "get in line." There is no line for us to get in. We've waited this long just to be given the opportunity to be placed in line. For all of us childhood arrivals, we were raised American. We were taught to speak the (unofficial) language. We went to school where we were taught American history. We were placed in English classes where we were taught how to read and write. We were raised in American culture.
Immigration needs a proper solution. We need to rally together to finally find one. The time is not in a year. It's not in 2 months; the time is now. We are all tired of being kept in an unending loop of uncertainty. We may not be American on paper. But we are American at heart. We will continue to fight to stay in the country that all of us and every other immigrant strives to make what it is today.
I'm sorry, this is America. In America, we speak English.
I was brought to the United States as a 6 month old baby with my siblings. My parents, hoping for a better future and more opportunities, uprooted our family here. That's what they hoped.
I've been here for about 26 years of my life. 1 and a half of those years were spent in Mexico. One year was spent back in Mexico when I was 4 years old. I still had a visa then so we were able to go back. I was about 5 when I came back with a visa. Still a child and still naive to what our situation would later become.
At 27 years old, I am an undocumented immigrant, or illegal alien as some would say. 22 of those years were lived with the uncertainty of what the next day would bring living here undocumented. I could easily be taken out and thrown back into a country that I do not remember and do not know. It's like throwing a tiger that's been kept in captivity since a cub back out into the wilderness. Undocumented immigrants, especially childhood arrivals, are at the mercy of the government. 4 months have passed since the rescinding of DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals). 2 months until it's official termination. And 10 months are left of my deferred action and employment authorization.
I understand that America faces many problems outside of the immigration system. But tackling immigration and border security is at the root of the problem. You want border security? Go ahead. As an undocumented immigrant, I agree. We need to fix this problem (hopefully as humanely as possible). But you can't expect those of us who have made a living here, despite the circumstances of how we got here, to continue living here without any relief. I'm speaking on behalf of those childhood arrivals, like myself. Those of us who had no choice in the decision our parents made. We were brought here as children. We have no recollection of our home country. I can't even call it my home. It's my birthplace. But that's it. My home is America.
The problem? Many people are under the assumption that we are taking jobs. How are we taking jobs away when we only apply for jobs that are available? We are not forcing our way into them. We are qualified employees. Often, the jobs we are hired for are from employers who are looking for bilingual speakers. That is often our advantage, but not our only qualification. We've had to work hard, most of the time twice as hard to get to where we are. We don't qualify for any form of government aid, contrary to popular belief. We have to make our way and pay our dues (as well as taxes).
The reason we are still illegal in this country is because there has been no form of relief granted to those of us who have been here for several years (20+ years in many cases). The reason we won't go back to our countries is because this is our country. Going back would mean facing language barriers for those who don't know their home language, fearing being killed in countries that are plagued with war and violence, and worst of all, adjusting to a new "home" that never really was ours to begin with. Even if we know the language, we are strangers; foreigners in our own land. One birth certificate should not automatically change our situation. One paper should not limit us from being in a country that we have built a life in. One document should not be used against us. We are just as American as anyone else who's been here from birth or who arrived just a month ago, possibly as a refugee and is adjusting their status.
I often see comments of people telling us to "get in line." There is no line for us to get in. We've waited this long just to be given the opportunity to be placed in line. For all of us childhood arrivals, we were raised American. We were taught to speak the (unofficial) language. We went to school where we were taught American history. We were placed in English classes where we were taught how to read and write. We were raised in American culture.
Immigration needs a proper solution. We need to rally together to finally find one. The time is not in a year. It's not in 2 months; the time is now. We are all tired of being kept in an unending loop of uncertainty. We may not be American on paper. But we are American at heart. We will continue to fight to stay in the country that all of us and every other immigrant strives to make what it is today.
As always, well thought out and compelling.
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