Scripture tells us that we shall not oppress a stranger, for we know the heart of a stranger. We were strangers once, too. My fellow Americans we are and always will be a nation of immigrants. We were strangers once too. And whether our fore bearers were strangers that crossed the Atlantic, or the Pacific, or the Rio Grande, we are here only because our country welcomed them in and taught them that to be an American is about something more than than what we look like, or what our last names are, or how we worship. What makes Americans is our shared commitment to the ideal that all of us are created equal and all of us have the chance to make of our lives what we will. Thats the country our parents, our grandparents, and generations before them built for us. Thats the tradition we must uphold. Thats the legacy we must leave for those to come. Thank you, god bless you, and god bless this beautiful country we love. Thank you President Barack Obama for understanding and for having a deep sense of compassion toward a group of human beings just trying to belong. I am not politically incorrect when I state that NO ONE should govern or constitute what a life worth loving and living should be and what it should feel like. This immigration reform executive order will help out and will finally bring peace of mind to many of my hard working family members and friends that have waited most of their lives for this type of opportunity so they can finally obtain the freedom to make something of themselves other than the insurmountable struggles theyre so desperately trapped in. They can finally emerge from the shadows and be acknowledged as the hard working/ persevering individuals that they are and that they will continue to be. Even though I am no longer an illegal undocumented immigrant I know far too well what its like to live life in the shadows. Im 22 years old and I lived in those dark shadows for 20 years of my life. I once lived in fear. I lived in insurmountable struggles far beyond my own control. I lived a life that pushed me away rather than permitting me to belong to it. I remember watching my friends in high school get jobs I could not apply for, I remember watching my friends in high school drive cars I could not drive, I remember watching my friends in high school apply to colleges/ universities I could not attend, I remember what it was like to feel completely alienated from the country I wanted to so direly be a part of. I remember working jobs with long hours and very poor pay. I remember being exploited by the people I worked for. I remember being severely misunderstood with constant unethical/ inhumane reasoning. But above all I remember the day I finally left those dark times behind in the shadows and when the United States government finally gave me the opportunity to let the light within me shine through in the Summer of 2012 thanks to the Deferred Action passed by President Barack Obama. My very first and all of my memories have taken place in the United States of America. Since emerging from the shadows of my previous undocumented life I am now legal through the help of a working permit that allows me to legally work and reside in the United states for 2 years with the the chance of applying to renew every 2 years. However that legal status is contingent, if one day the government revokes it for whatever reason I will be forced to return to my native Country of Mexico without the likelihood of ever being allowed to come back to the United States of America. The thought of the possible ordeal crosses my mind very often. I am no longer afraid however. Because if one day I am forced to leave the only country that Ive come to know and to recognize as my home I will willingly leave. I will leave because of privileged people that do not know what its likes to live and grow up in a third world country. I will leave because the sense of entitlement that the people living in a first world country have directed toward immigrants that are trying to desperately grasp onto a piece of opportunity and a hope of a more peaceful life. I will leave because I will suffer in a third world country but I will be welcomed with open arms because I derived from it. But while I am temporarily legal and while I am able to stay in this beautiful country that I love so much, I will do everything I can to make anyone aware of this struggle thats so often misunderstood and overlooked. I will strive for my permanent and eventual stay in the country that I know to be/ identify as my home and my safe haven. I have a future thats waiting to be lived. Its one of millions across the country mutually shared with other foreign birthed individuals that are in similar or worse predicaments. We cannot fully chase after our ambitions without permanent legal status, we can only approach them and get a taste of what it would be like to have a life savored and enjoyed for years to come. You do not have to like us, you do not have to get to know us, you do not have to give us any special treatment, but you should respect that we are your fellow human beings that are just trying to belong and to find our own place in life in the country try weve come to know and identify as our beloved home
Posted on: Fri, 21 Nov 2014 09:36:00 +0000
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