My Duke Engage experience was very enriching. I learned a lot from the delegation provided by Borderlinks and also from interning at Humane Borders.
I learned so much in the first two weeks about immigration - walking in the Migrant Trail, sitting in Operation Streamline, talking to Public Defender Laura Conover, Isabel Garcia, and Mike Wilson, going to the Tohono O'odham presentation, attending racism workshop, picking and stacking onions at a local farm, and interviewing people in different parts of Tucson about SB1070.
I also leanrned a great deal from working in Humane Borders. I've helped the Humane Border to transition from the old building to the new building by organizing the office. I've organized the educational library in Humane Borders. I've worked with data entries and especially compiled a vandalism record of the water stations that was be filed to the police. I've helped out promoting a benefit show, flyering in streets of Tucson and also making the educational display of the show. I've also worked with updating the newsletter database and sent out the newsletter to the community. I've been out on water runs in Ironwood and Arivaca North to put out water in the desert. I've helped out with making brochures for Humane Borders. Lastly I've also helped make a packet that would help student organizations to become a Humane Borders chapter. Besides from helping out, I also had the opportunity to learn by watching the documentaries about the border issues from the educational library.
This have been an amazing experience, filled with education about the border. I am sure this experience will help me to understand the immigration issue much better when it comes up any time in the future.
Showing posts with label Ann Kang. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Ann Kang. Show all posts
Saturday, July 24, 2010
Friday, July 16, 2010
Respecting Dignity
I came to Tucson with only a bit of knowledge of the legal aspects of immigration. Addition to that, the two days our group had a pre-Tucson training helped me to realize that there were many sides to this issue, including guest farm worker rights and DREAM Act.
However, my time in Tucson taught me the realities of the immigration issue, face to face.
Though I have already experienced some discrimination and prejudices earlier in my life, I’ve never seen the connection between white supremacy and privilege and immigration restrictions so clearly during our workshop in our delegation. I did not know anything about Operation Streamline, the fact that people are in shackles when they are being mass tried at 70 people in roughly an hour and thirty minutes. I didn’t know that the detention centers only fed immigrants peanut butter crackers for meals, gave water in buckets while their hands are still in shackles. I’ve heard that they don’t give women on their menstruation to have any sanitary means. And I’ve heard stories of families breaking apart during process of deportation. And of letting someone die on a hospital bed in shackles. These are the realities I came face to face.
I wrote an article once for The Chronicle featuring Archbishop Makhulu. What really struck me was how much he valued a person’s dignity. “Everyone inherently has dignity,” he said. Throughout my time in Tucson, I came to think a lot about dignity. Putting water out in the desert, a simple act such as that, shows that I respect of human life and dignity. Although much of the water, especially nowadays, have been drained by vandalism. However, I do think all the effort, time, and resources are worth giving if it can save even one person’s life.
Yes, many migrants have come here without documents. Yes, it may not be right for citizens to pay for certain fees to the government or healthcare while migrants may not be. However, we should never forget that they are human too, instead of labeling them as “illegals” or “undocumented immigrants.” Many of these migrants have come here because they have no other option but to come here and work to feed their family. To treat them with guns, shackles, and extreme unsanitary conditions are not only offensive to the dignity of these people, but is degrading the value of people who are doing these to them. What I got most out of this experience is that the important issue of immigration is not political, religious, or educational. It’s simply humanitarian. It is a humanitarian issue, as basic but important as giving someone water when they are dying of thirst.
However, my time in Tucson taught me the realities of the immigration issue, face to face.
Though I have already experienced some discrimination and prejudices earlier in my life, I’ve never seen the connection between white supremacy and privilege and immigration restrictions so clearly during our workshop in our delegation. I did not know anything about Operation Streamline, the fact that people are in shackles when they are being mass tried at 70 people in roughly an hour and thirty minutes. I didn’t know that the detention centers only fed immigrants peanut butter crackers for meals, gave water in buckets while their hands are still in shackles. I’ve heard that they don’t give women on their menstruation to have any sanitary means. And I’ve heard stories of families breaking apart during process of deportation. And of letting someone die on a hospital bed in shackles. These are the realities I came face to face.
I wrote an article once for The Chronicle featuring Archbishop Makhulu. What really struck me was how much he valued a person’s dignity. “Everyone inherently has dignity,” he said. Throughout my time in Tucson, I came to think a lot about dignity. Putting water out in the desert, a simple act such as that, shows that I respect of human life and dignity. Although much of the water, especially nowadays, have been drained by vandalism. However, I do think all the effort, time, and resources are worth giving if it can save even one person’s life.
Yes, many migrants have come here without documents. Yes, it may not be right for citizens to pay for certain fees to the government or healthcare while migrants may not be. However, we should never forget that they are human too, instead of labeling them as “illegals” or “undocumented immigrants.” Many of these migrants have come here because they have no other option but to come here and work to feed their family. To treat them with guns, shackles, and extreme unsanitary conditions are not only offensive to the dignity of these people, but is degrading the value of people who are doing these to them. What I got most out of this experience is that the important issue of immigration is not political, religious, or educational. It’s simply humanitarian. It is a humanitarian issue, as basic but important as giving someone water when they are dying of thirst.
Sunday, July 4, 2010
2.4 BILLION DOLLAR BANDAGE
From an interview few weeks ago, I heard that the U.S.-Mexico border is just a "bandage for something that needs massive surgery."
That bandage turns out to be quite expensive. It has costed the U.S. government and the tax payers, more than $2.4 billion up to this date.
2.4 billion dollars, when broken down into realities, can afford 37,500 students full 4-year tuition for colleges that average about $30,000 a year. For the past years, when the headlines of news underscored high schools cutting hours, programs, and even school days (such as 4-day schools) to cut the energy and resources that goes into public schools, the government has been increasing contracts with private companies to set up double fences in the border.
However, this bandage is not an effective one. It might even make the "wounds" worse, possibly an infection.
The border has not slowed people coming from the Mexico side. The migrants who are willing to come to U.S. are willing to risk their lives. They often sell their land and scrape all the money they've got in order to come here. They have nothing to lose. The border isn't going to stop them. The only reason for some decline of the number for Mexican migrants was the problems of the market U.S. is facing. The only reason was the U. S. economy, not the border.
Instead, the border made it harder for these people to get across for about 5 minutes. People use ladders to climb up the wall. Sometimes, the construction has spots where people can just climb up easily. However, by rushing, many fall or get injured. And with these injuries, they often suffer incredible amount of pain walking through the desert. If they are with a group, it's easy for them to fall behind and get lost. Many lead to death. After the border has been stacked with walls, the migrant death dramatically increased.
It is estimated that more people died passing through the Border area and the desert than the soldiers who died in Iraq War. In U.S. soil.
Humans are not the only thing this 2.4 billion bandage is affecting.
The border is hurting the wildlife and the environment much more than any migrant trash might. The border itself disrupts many animal's instinctual migratory flow and movement. It divides populations of the animals, and it's harming their ecosystem. This unnatural border also stresses out the animals due to a block that stops animals like jaguars or feline-related animals to freely move around the area. This stress, ends up killing these animals. Since the border wall, many diverse species of animals have lost the connectivity to vast areas of space they need in order to survive.
One additional detail that the public does not know so much is the injustices of the laws. The environmental acts, painstakingly created by people who have dedicated their lives to protection of the environment, has been totally and entirely waived.
Section 102 of the Real ID Act of 2005 says: "notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Secretary of Homeland Security shall have the authority to waive, and shall waive, all laws such Secretary, in such Secretary's sole discretion, determines necessary to ensure expeditious construction of the barriers and roads."
So far, Department of Homeland Security has waived 36 federal laws, including:
Outside of the U.S. soil, the border has put Mexican towns near border area in a great danger. To block people from coming to U.S. from drainage pipes, the DHS has also blocked the pipes. Also , towns like Nogales were immediately affected: "Nogales flood caused by CBP illegally walling off a drainage tunnel on the Mexican side of the border. The flood was made worse by the dam-like construction of the border wall, sinking downtown homes and businesses under five to seven feet of water! Two people lost their lives, and 578 homes and businesses and 45 cars were damaged or destroyed." (Sierra Club Borderlands presentation)
Personally, I don't exactly know what the best solution for the border is. However, after sessions with the Sierra Club , I came to realize that at least one fact is true. The border walls are definitely not a solution, only an expensive bandage that might make the wounds worse.
That bandage turns out to be quite expensive. It has costed the U.S. government and the tax payers, more than $2.4 billion up to this date.
2.4 billion dollars, when broken down into realities, can afford 37,500 students full 4-year tuition for colleges that average about $30,000 a year. For the past years, when the headlines of news underscored high schools cutting hours, programs, and even school days (such as 4-day schools) to cut the energy and resources that goes into public schools, the government has been increasing contracts with private companies to set up double fences in the border.
However, this bandage is not an effective one. It might even make the "wounds" worse, possibly an infection.
The border has not slowed people coming from the Mexico side. The migrants who are willing to come to U.S. are willing to risk their lives. They often sell their land and scrape all the money they've got in order to come here. They have nothing to lose. The border isn't going to stop them. The only reason for some decline of the number for Mexican migrants was the problems of the market U.S. is facing. The only reason was the U. S. economy, not the border.
Instead, the border made it harder for these people to get across for about 5 minutes. People use ladders to climb up the wall. Sometimes, the construction has spots where people can just climb up easily. However, by rushing, many fall or get injured. And with these injuries, they often suffer incredible amount of pain walking through the desert. If they are with a group, it's easy for them to fall behind and get lost. Many lead to death. After the border has been stacked with walls, the migrant death dramatically increased.
It is estimated that more people died passing through the Border area and the desert than the soldiers who died in Iraq War. In U.S. soil.
Humans are not the only thing this 2.4 billion bandage is affecting.
The border is hurting the wildlife and the environment much more than any migrant trash might. The border itself disrupts many animal's instinctual migratory flow and movement. It divides populations of the animals, and it's harming their ecosystem. This unnatural border also stresses out the animals due to a block that stops animals like jaguars or feline-related animals to freely move around the area. This stress, ends up killing these animals. Since the border wall, many diverse species of animals have lost the connectivity to vast areas of space they need in order to survive.
One additional detail that the public does not know so much is the injustices of the laws. The environmental acts, painstakingly created by people who have dedicated their lives to protection of the environment, has been totally and entirely waived.
Section 102 of the Real ID Act of 2005 says: "notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Secretary of Homeland Security shall have the authority to waive, and shall waive, all laws such Secretary, in such Secretary's sole discretion, determines necessary to ensure expeditious construction of the barriers and roads."
So far, Department of Homeland Security has waived 36 federal laws, including:
National Environmental Policy Act
Endangered Species Act
Clean Water Act
National Historic Preservation Act
Migratory Bird Treaty Act
Clean Air Act
Outside of the U.S. soil, the border has put Mexican towns near border area in a great danger. To block people from coming to U.S. from drainage pipes, the DHS has also blocked the pipes. Also , towns like Nogales were immediately affected: "Nogales flood caused by CBP illegally walling off a drainage tunnel on the Mexican side of the border. The flood was made worse by the dam-like construction of the border wall, sinking downtown homes and businesses under five to seven feet of water! Two people lost their lives, and 578 homes and businesses and 45 cars were damaged or destroyed." (Sierra Club Borderlands presentation)
Personally, I don't exactly know what the best solution for the border is. However, after sessions with the Sierra Club , I came to realize that at least one fact is true. The border walls are definitely not a solution, only an expensive bandage that might make the wounds worse.
Wednesday, June 23, 2010
What Really Scares Me
When I wake up in the morning, I don’t remember that few people probably died in the desert yesterday. When I shower, I don’t think about how there are people out there in the desert who would be grateful to drink the water I’m showering with. When I wait for the bus just because I don’t want to walk 1.4 miles to work, I don’t think about how migrants walk days and nights without knowing that their destination might be Operation Streamline, shackled in shame. When I eat, I don’t think about how migrants only get orange peanut butter crackers to eat at the detention centers. When I do my devotional Quiet Times, I don’t think about migrants dropping Bibles because they are simply too heavy to carry. And before I sleep in my comfortable bed, I don’t think about how migrants are probably on the move about now, carefully stepping on the way to hide from the Border Patrols.
It only gets to me, three or four times a day, when I look at the death map at Humane Borders or when I hear certain stories of people. Stories where a man is begging for water and food, and Minute Men giving him food fingertip long.
And that’s what scares me.
I’m in Tucson, the ground zero of this immigration issue. I intern at Humane Borders, the place that puts out water stations for the migrants for the very purpose of preventing death. I’ve had two weeks of delegation with Border Links. I read books on immigration. I’ve talked to people in the streets in Tucson about SB1070. I’ve been to the Border, felt the wall, and walked the migrant trail.
And yet, I don’t think about them enough, because I’m busy getting up everyday, eating, reading, dressing up, getting on the bus, and thinking about ways to get back.
How can I expect other people to listen to me and be interested in this issue, when I, a person surrounded by stories and experiences, am too busy living my own life?
Of course, I intern at Humane Borders and I have very tangible results of helping the migrants to survive on the desert. Yet sometimes, the work seems so detached that I just forget.
I still have few more weeks, but I would still really like to find out how I can be a bigger help to this issue. I wonder what my role is in this issue. Or more so, how much of a role I’m willing to take. I just hope I’m never too busy living my own life to care more about the world around me. And to always be grateful for the blessings I have, and to never take them for granted.
Monday, June 14, 2010
LET THEM IN: A BOOK DEALING WITH COMMON ASSUMPTIONS ABOUT ILLEGAL AND LEGAL IMMIGRANTS
I stared at the copyright date. First printing, April 2008. Copyright © 2008 by Jason L. Riley. The title, Let Them In, obviously shows that the book is pro-immigration. The subtitles, “The Case for Open Borders” and “Six Common Arguments against Immigration and Why They Are Wrong” made me immediately ask, what kind of argument is the author dealing with when SB 1070 hasn’t even been around? I began to wonder if there ever even was a strong hate against immigration like today two years ago.
As I started to search for my answers, I notice that there always was. Ironically, Americans—who in their roots all came from some other country unless they are Native Indians—never really welcomed immigrants. The argument against immigration is still the same. It’s just that the country is in recession and the easiest targets to blame at the hardest times are immigrants, or simply, someone different. It’s just that simple.
The book has six chapters, each dealing with some of the most common negative assumptions of immigrants of United States. General population is convinced by politics and media that the immigration population will bring disaster United States, that they are hurting the economy, taking away welfare programs, cannot assimilate with the rest of the population, and that they may all have criminal records or be terrorists.
The book mentions several things that gave me a deeper understanding of the way immigrant impact American population in a positive manner. It especially gave me a deeper understanding of the economic influence, the most common argument used for those opposing immigration.
Economically speaking, people should know that immigrants aren’t job stealers. Americans should realize that the job market in United States is not confined to a zero-sum game. One person coming in does not necessarily mean that he or she is taking a job of another. It means another person doing the same job, creating a bigger work force. Ultimately, immigrants help out economy as they become additional labor force and contribute for a flexible market. Also, the author points out the important fact that “by expanding the population—and thus demand for housing, cars, clothes, refrigerators, washing machines, televisions, and countless other consumer goods and services—these newcomers expand markets and help business revenues grow.” (pg. 107) Imagine that 12 million illegal immigrants suddenly disappear from United States. Would every single unemployed population of United States be able to fill in those 12 million jobs, most of them poorly paid with unsanitary conditions? And even so, American business will lose money as to what these additional 12 million people would buy as consumers. We might be in recession right now, but if we start kicking everyone out arguing that they are hurting the economy assumably, we will see tangible results economically. Let’s see how much the economy would improve when SB1070 goes into action in Arizona, besides from the fact that government spent $13 billion for border security in 2008 and has increased the funds in years after.
Another common argument is that immigration lowers American standard of living. However, with decreasing number of Americans who are looking to fill low skill jobs (due to a positive fact that more Americans are graduating from high schools and moving on to college), the labor shortage would likely become a big problem. “In much of Europe,” the author Jason L. Riley notes, “dry-cleaning is a luxury, and inflexible labor markets are the reason.” If most Americans have the skill to work on higher level of jobs, not many are going to go for the low skill jobs immigrants take without any complaints. Not many Americans have seen their kids cry of hunger and have nothing to give to eat. These desperate immigrants are earning less than what their labors deserve yet contribute to making the market much more flexible for American business.
There are other arguments that are used against immigrants that are necessary to address. I will get to them in other entries, but as I write this entry, I cannot help but notice how much people talk against immigration without their own research. Opinions of one become facts after multiple redundancy. May be becoming a knowledgeable citizen might be the best way to practice true democracy, another value this country stands for. A true American, in reflection of American values, would find truth on one's own. A true American would make decisions on one's own ethical and knowledgeable background, would look into policies and see what part one plays in, and look for the best solution for the country. In the end, doesn't America ultimately stand for the government of the people, by the people, and for the people?
As I started to search for my answers, I notice that there always was. Ironically, Americans—who in their roots all came from some other country unless they are Native Indians—never really welcomed immigrants. The argument against immigration is still the same. It’s just that the country is in recession and the easiest targets to blame at the hardest times are immigrants, or simply, someone different. It’s just that simple.
The book has six chapters, each dealing with some of the most common negative assumptions of immigrants of United States. General population is convinced by politics and media that the immigration population will bring disaster United States, that they are hurting the economy, taking away welfare programs, cannot assimilate with the rest of the population, and that they may all have criminal records or be terrorists.
The book mentions several things that gave me a deeper understanding of the way immigrant impact American population in a positive manner. It especially gave me a deeper understanding of the economic influence, the most common argument used for those opposing immigration.
Economically speaking, people should know that immigrants aren’t job stealers. Americans should realize that the job market in United States is not confined to a zero-sum game. One person coming in does not necessarily mean that he or she is taking a job of another. It means another person doing the same job, creating a bigger work force. Ultimately, immigrants help out economy as they become additional labor force and contribute for a flexible market. Also, the author points out the important fact that “by expanding the population—and thus demand for housing, cars, clothes, refrigerators, washing machines, televisions, and countless other consumer goods and services—these newcomers expand markets and help business revenues grow.” (pg. 107) Imagine that 12 million illegal immigrants suddenly disappear from United States. Would every single unemployed population of United States be able to fill in those 12 million jobs, most of them poorly paid with unsanitary conditions? And even so, American business will lose money as to what these additional 12 million people would buy as consumers. We might be in recession right now, but if we start kicking everyone out arguing that they are hurting the economy assumably, we will see tangible results economically. Let’s see how much the economy would improve when SB1070 goes into action in Arizona, besides from the fact that government spent $13 billion for border security in 2008 and has increased the funds in years after.
Another common argument is that immigration lowers American standard of living. However, with decreasing number of Americans who are looking to fill low skill jobs (due to a positive fact that more Americans are graduating from high schools and moving on to college), the labor shortage would likely become a big problem. “In much of Europe,” the author Jason L. Riley notes, “dry-cleaning is a luxury, and inflexible labor markets are the reason.” If most Americans have the skill to work on higher level of jobs, not many are going to go for the low skill jobs immigrants take without any complaints. Not many Americans have seen their kids cry of hunger and have nothing to give to eat. These desperate immigrants are earning less than what their labors deserve yet contribute to making the market much more flexible for American business.
There are other arguments that are used against immigrants that are necessary to address. I will get to them in other entries, but as I write this entry, I cannot help but notice how much people talk against immigration without their own research. Opinions of one become facts after multiple redundancy. May be becoming a knowledgeable citizen might be the best way to practice true democracy, another value this country stands for. A true American, in reflection of American values, would find truth on one's own. A true American would make decisions on one's own ethical and knowledgeable background, would look into policies and see what part one plays in, and look for the best solution for the country. In the end, doesn't America ultimately stand for the government of the people, by the people, and for the people?
Sunday, June 6, 2010
The Invisible Wall
“I want to give opportunity—Opportunity to express their experiences, grievances, and tell the world, especially the ignorant population, about the pain in other parts of the world or nation. I also want to help them get noticed, and be with them, understand them, and look for ways to inform others about difficult situations in the world and ways we can change gradually.
...
Global warming, human rights, standard of living, and all the problems are related to the way we sleep, eat, drink, and make the smallest choices. If we all start becoming aware of the situations and what we can do to fix it, there will be great results. I hope I can receive God's calling through this experience, and turn the annoying truths and frustrating reality into something that will touch their hearts and change subtle decisions in their lives.”
This was my first paragraph and the last of a journal entry to the questions the Duke Engage in Tucson program had asked the students to write about before coming to Tucson. From what I can remember and by tracing the questions from my answers, the questions asked why we wanted to do this and what do we expect out of ourselves. It asked for my initial feelings before starting the program.
My thoughts haven't changed.
I think I’m ultimately here to find out what immigration means for me and also to let others show more concern for immigration. America is a land of diversity and it traces its roots back to immigration. It confuses me that people who have declared their country to be open to other cultures and exercise tolerance, to put on walls at the border and that the majority of people living in U.S. do not know the process of immigration and what happens to people who come in. I know this is because every person is busy living their own life, but isn’t one of the most fundamental values of America found in the idea of “land of the free”? And this is in part due to the government, for even me, who have received Permanent Resident status, do not know the process of immigration quite well. It is complex, EXTREMELY costly, and very few can get it because there are certain “qualifications” to become a citizen. “Qualifications” mostly looks at how this immigrant can contribute to the American society, such as skills in medicine or popular sport (in terms of David Beckham), but an average American him/herself might not meet the qualification. I know the process is too complicated for anyone to attempt, especially if it is costly. If American population actually research a bit into the immigration process, I think people might be very surprised.
I have yet to find out about what immigration means to me. I am an immigrant. I have permanent residency due to my dad’s heavy preparation towards coming into the country. I’ve been there when my dad was practicing English time to time in his pharmacy back in Korea when there would be no customers. I’ve been there when he was absent in the house for about a year because he went to U.S. to pass the U.S. pharmacy test, several other required exams and complete the internship. I’ve been there in immigration interviews. I’ve signed many immigration documents. I’ve also heard my mom and dad silently whisper in their room the amount of money that they need to give the lawyer to process these immigration documents. I’ve been there when our family couldn’t go to Korea when our grandmother was sick, because it might threaten our potential to receive the permanent residency status. I’ve been there when I was afraid I might not be acknowledged in National Merit Finalist, even though I have the necessary scores to be one on the PSAT. And I’ve been there when my mom cried when our green card came out just before going to college, and how much we thanked God for this miracle. If only U.S. citizens know how difficult it is to receive green card, people would say this was definitely a miracle and blessing from God to give it to us right at the time we most needed.
When our group played a Legal Immigration Simulation, I noticed how hard it was to become a legal immigrant. One could have a father in the country but still do not have the chance to apply because he/she has children. If one was single, he would still have to wait from nine to fourteen years just to get a green card. Also, people of different jobs are processed differently. There was just so much qualification to be met. And then I thought of my dad and I became so proud. He did it. We made it through. When we got the green card about a year ago, I didn’t cry or anything. I saw my mom cry and just thought “Well, it’s good that the green card came out before I went to college.” I never understood how much it was unlikely for anyone to receive the green card. The many qualifications one must pass, and even after passing, the fact that the door to U.S. is so narrow has made my parents worry in their sleep. And knowing my dad as he is--a man of integrity, value, and professionalism, an upright person and a loving father who, in my eyes, can ultimately be the most contributing citizen--I just find it a bit odd that a country of immigrants is outright saying that anyone other than their own citizen are simply unwelcomed. The process one goes through just reflects how unwilling America is to accept anyone new to their land. I’ve always been proud of my father and even though we were successful at gaining permanent residency, I noticed that it’s simply odd to be happy about making through barriers and barriers of legal papers, the invisible wall. The so many barriers of documents, the invisible wall, should not be made so high and so thick.
Yet, even when I’ve went through all these experiences, I still haven’t understood the exact process. I don’t know what kind of papers the U.S. government exactly requires and I don’t know how to interpret them. I don’t know how far it is for safety of the nation and how far it is to block out unwelcomed strangers. So, I’m here to find out what it personally means to me, as much as it impacted my life. And more so, I’m here to find out what more I can do about it in terms of society and the world.
...
Global warming, human rights, standard of living, and all the problems are related to the way we sleep, eat, drink, and make the smallest choices. If we all start becoming aware of the situations and what we can do to fix it, there will be great results. I hope I can receive God's calling through this experience, and turn the annoying truths and frustrating reality into something that will touch their hearts and change subtle decisions in their lives.”
This was my first paragraph and the last of a journal entry to the questions the Duke Engage in Tucson program had asked the students to write about before coming to Tucson. From what I can remember and by tracing the questions from my answers, the questions asked why we wanted to do this and what do we expect out of ourselves. It asked for my initial feelings before starting the program.
My thoughts haven't changed.
I think I’m ultimately here to find out what immigration means for me and also to let others show more concern for immigration. America is a land of diversity and it traces its roots back to immigration. It confuses me that people who have declared their country to be open to other cultures and exercise tolerance, to put on walls at the border and that the majority of people living in U.S. do not know the process of immigration and what happens to people who come in. I know this is because every person is busy living their own life, but isn’t one of the most fundamental values of America found in the idea of “land of the free”? And this is in part due to the government, for even me, who have received Permanent Resident status, do not know the process of immigration quite well. It is complex, EXTREMELY costly, and very few can get it because there are certain “qualifications” to become a citizen. “Qualifications” mostly looks at how this immigrant can contribute to the American society, such as skills in medicine or popular sport (in terms of David Beckham), but an average American him/herself might not meet the qualification. I know the process is too complicated for anyone to attempt, especially if it is costly. If American population actually research a bit into the immigration process, I think people might be very surprised.
I have yet to find out about what immigration means to me. I am an immigrant. I have permanent residency due to my dad’s heavy preparation towards coming into the country. I’ve been there when my dad was practicing English time to time in his pharmacy back in Korea when there would be no customers. I’ve been there when he was absent in the house for about a year because he went to U.S. to pass the U.S. pharmacy test, several other required exams and complete the internship. I’ve been there in immigration interviews. I’ve signed many immigration documents. I’ve also heard my mom and dad silently whisper in their room the amount of money that they need to give the lawyer to process these immigration documents. I’ve been there when our family couldn’t go to Korea when our grandmother was sick, because it might threaten our potential to receive the permanent residency status. I’ve been there when I was afraid I might not be acknowledged in National Merit Finalist, even though I have the necessary scores to be one on the PSAT. And I’ve been there when my mom cried when our green card came out just before going to college, and how much we thanked God for this miracle. If only U.S. citizens know how difficult it is to receive green card, people would say this was definitely a miracle and blessing from God to give it to us right at the time we most needed.
When our group played a Legal Immigration Simulation, I noticed how hard it was to become a legal immigrant. One could have a father in the country but still do not have the chance to apply because he/she has children. If one was single, he would still have to wait from nine to fourteen years just to get a green card. Also, people of different jobs are processed differently. There was just so much qualification to be met. And then I thought of my dad and I became so proud. He did it. We made it through. When we got the green card about a year ago, I didn’t cry or anything. I saw my mom cry and just thought “Well, it’s good that the green card came out before I went to college.” I never understood how much it was unlikely for anyone to receive the green card. The many qualifications one must pass, and even after passing, the fact that the door to U.S. is so narrow has made my parents worry in their sleep. And knowing my dad as he is--a man of integrity, value, and professionalism, an upright person and a loving father who, in my eyes, can ultimately be the most contributing citizen--I just find it a bit odd that a country of immigrants is outright saying that anyone other than their own citizen are simply unwelcomed. The process one goes through just reflects how unwilling America is to accept anyone new to their land. I’ve always been proud of my father and even though we were successful at gaining permanent residency, I noticed that it’s simply odd to be happy about making through barriers and barriers of legal papers, the invisible wall. The so many barriers of documents, the invisible wall, should not be made so high and so thick.
Yet, even when I’ve went through all these experiences, I still haven’t understood the exact process. I don’t know what kind of papers the U.S. government exactly requires and I don’t know how to interpret them. I don’t know how far it is for safety of the nation and how far it is to block out unwelcomed strangers. So, I’m here to find out what it personally means to me, as much as it impacted my life. And more so, I’m here to find out what more I can do about it in terms of society and the world.
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