Thread: Shadow of undocumented entry looms

Shadow of undocumented entry looms

As an undocumented student, architecture freshman José Sierra said he does not feel safe.

"You never know what's going to happen the next day. You feel like an outcast, like you're living but not really living," he said. "You don't feel equal; you feel like something's missing."

On Nov. 7, 2004, the day before his 13th birthday, Sierra crossed the U.S.-Mexico border with his uncle Pepe Huerta and younger sister Lupita Sierra.

José Sierra comes from Jacona, a small city of 53,860 people in the state of Michoacán, Mexico.

His parents, Ana and Mario Sierra, separated after Lupita's birth when Ana decided Mario was acting irresponsibly and the family would be better off without him.

To start building a new life for herself and her children, she came to the United States with her boyfriend, Joaquin, who was becoming a citizen at the time.

Ana was 24 years old when she left Jacona and her three children in the care of their grandmother.

When she arrived in San Antonio, she earned a living cleaning houses and continues to do so. Every week or two, Ana sent a check for about 1,200 pesos, then equivalent to about $100, to her family in Jacona and spoke to her children by phone every weekend.

José said he would cry sometimes, but his grandmother would tell him not to. "She would say, ‘She did it for you guys,'" he said.

Her elder son, Victor Sierra, left for the United States when José was 9, and in 2004, Ana asked her brother Pepe to take José and Lupita to Piedras Negras, a border town across the Rio Grande from Eagle Pass.

José said they packed multiple changes of clothes and took a bus to Piedras Negras.

Already, José felt out of place in the more urban area.

"The streets were better, the buildings were better. It was a totally strange place. I didn't know what was going to happen."

A man picked them up from the bus station and brought them to a house with an apartment in the back where they spent the night.

The next morning before dawn, they were picked up in a van by a coyote, a person who smuggles illegal immigrants over the border. He told them to keep just the clothes they wore and an extra pair of shoes. The van was full of other people who planned to cross the border with them.

They were driven to a store where they bought chips, bread, cheese and water and then were dropped off in an area covered in trees.

The travelers waited until dawn, then set out through the trees and dry grass.

In the afternoon, they ate and slept. When they awoke at 8 p.m., they pressed on. When they came to the Rio Grande, José mounted Pepe's shoulders and stood as his uncle waded across. Lupita sat on the shoulders of another man in the caravan.

After they crossed the river, the group marched through mud and weeds. Around midnight, they reached a bamboo thicket and found the ground was covered in dead bamboo leaves that crunched underfoot.

This forced the group to crawl slowly through the bamboo, making as little noise as possible.

They came to a barbwire fence where a man stood on guard and waited for about an hour and a half until the man went off duty. After another three or four hours, they crossed the border fence.

By this time, José shivered from the early November cold and his soaked shoes.

To shield José and Lupita from the cold while they slept, Pepe cut holes in bags he had with him and gave them to the children.

They slept for a few hours and resumed their journey at 8 the next morning.

As they walked, the group noticed fresh tire marks in the dirt belonging to border patrol trucks. To prevent leaving tracks of their own, the group moved from bush to bush on grass and rocks.

At around 4 p.m., they came to a large bush where they changed out of their wet shoes from the night before. The group walked for another three or four hours, rested in the dirt and finished the rest of their food.

Finally, they came to a road and the coyote pulled out a cell phone. He made a call and told someone on the other end to pick the group up. They waited until sundown for a man in another van.

Pepe sat in the passenger seat while José sat underneath the dashboard, clutching his uncle's legs, listening to the sound of the road and watching lights pass through the cabin.

After a couple of hours, the van came to a halt in front of a Wal-Mart in San Antonio. There stood Ana Sierra, her eyes wet with tears of joy. Everyone hugged and cried. "It was sad in a way, but happy at the same time," José Sierra said.

The next day was José's birthday, which gave the occasion even greater significance. "It's the greatest gift I've ever gotten," he said.

Ana Sierra paid the coyote and took her family into the store to buy them new clothes.

Then she took them to the house where she lived with her boyfriend and his son. The next day she registered them for school.

José Sierra said his first day at East Central Heritage Middle School in San Antonio was radically different from his experience in Mexico. "It was like a dream. It was like going to university," he said.

He noticed a variety of cultures represented in the school's population. "There were people from China, African-Americans. It wasn't like Mexico," he said.

Since he did not know English when he first started school, José Sierra said he found it difficult to communicate.

However, he made friends with other Spanish-speaking students in his English-as-a-second-language class. He also learned by listening to music and watching television in English.

José Sierra did not start actually speaking English until a few months after he started school, which proved to be an odd experience. "Sometimes, I couldn't understand myself," he said.


During his freshman year, his family moved to Bakersfield for a year where he worked picking and cutting grapes.

Back in San Antonio, he continued his high school career at Clark but still struggled with English so much it affected his performance. "I had a hard time understanding questions in English. English was always part of why I didn't do good in school," he said.

Around his junior year, life began to normalize for José: He started running track, hanging out with friends and working as a bus boy. "It was as if I had never moved from Mexico," he said.

That year, he discovered a love of mathematics; his struggles with English prevented him from fully understanding it in the past, but as he worked, he began to comprehend it. "If you put in the work, you're going to get it," he said.

In an art class his senior year, he also rediscovered his love of drawing.

Only two people knew of his undocumented status: a teacher his brother Victor had informed and José's cross-country coach.

José Sierra was not sure if he was going to go to college because he did not know how to pay for it. He made up his mind when representatives from Northwest Vista College visited Clark.

A college representative gave him a state number, a number for international students who do not have a Social Security number so they may register for classes.

After graduation from Clark in spring 2010, he enrolled at this college part-time. He does not receive any financial aid or scholarships and pays for his education out-of-pocket with earnings from his job at a car wash.

However, José does benefit from Texas HB 1403, which allows students who are not permanent residents of the U.S., documented or otherwise, but have lived in Texas for at least three years before graduating from a Texas high school or receiving the equivalent of a high school diploma in Texas to qualify for in-state tuition.

Still, José and his mother live paycheck-to-paycheck.

In September, José attended Students United for the DREAM Act's seminar about the legislation to find out how he can get help paying for school.

The Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors, or DREAM, Act is legislation that would grant certain undocumented students six years of conditional citizenship.

For more information on the bill, log on to http://dreamact.info.

The DREAM Act was attached as an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act for fiscal year 2011. However, on Sept. 22, it failed 56-43.

U.S. Sen. Richard Durbin, D-Ill., reintroduced the legislation as a stand-alone bill but he told the Washington Independent he does not expect it to pass until a lame-duck congressional session after the Nov. 2 election. "All my hope is in the passage of the DREAM Act," he said.

President Alina Cortes of Students United for the DREAM Act said the organization aims to help undocumented students through other means. "We want to educate them, direct them and try to keep them in school," she said.

José wants to become an architect because it uses his skills in mathematics and drawing. "It just makes sense for me to become an architect," he said.

José said there are people in the United States who take what they have for granted.

"There are people I run into here that are committing crimes, doing drugs, partying too much and not really appreciating what this country has given to them," he said.

Ultimately, José is grateful to his mother and wants to take full advantage of the opportunity she gave him by bringing him to this country.

Still the fear of discovery stays with him. He was reminded in September when his brother Victor was deported after an arrest.

"I don't want that to happen to me," José said. He has not had any trouble with the authorities and wants to keep it that way.

http://www.theranger.org/shadow-of-undo ... ?pagereq=1



International student desires equal treatment
By Alexandra Nelipa

Published: Thursday, October 28, 2010

Updated: Thursday, October 28, 2010 13:10

Alexandra Nelipa

Graphic by Alexandra Nelipa

Re: "Shadow of un-documented entry looms" by Joshua Fetcher in The Ranger Oct. 18: I almost cried reading this sentimental story about one illegal immigrant who crossed the Mexican-American border. I understand that he escaped from a terrible life in Mexico, but he illegally entered the United States. There are ways to come to this country legally. He did not do that but got everything he wants at once.

It seems to me this story tells us that illegal immigrants have more rights than international students in this country. According to the article, "A college representative gave him a state number, a number for international students who do not have a Social Security number so they may register for classes." How easy! For people who want to get that status by legal means, it is more complicated.

First of all, they have to be accepted by the college, obtain an I-20 student visa from an American university, then collect documents that prove financial ability to pay tuition. After that, they have to pay SEVIS $200 and $130 for a visa. In Ukraine, that is more than the average monthly salary. Then, they go to the U.S. consulate for an interview, and an officer will decide if they qualify for an F-1 visa.

Next quotation: "He does not receive any financial aid or scholarships and pays for his education out-of-pocket with earnings from his job at a car wash." That means he got a job without a Social Security number and permit. The job was hard, but it let him pay college tuition. I wish I could have job like that! But international students have very strict rules for getting a Social Security number and job permit.

The brochure "International Students Guide For Maintaining Status" states: An F-1 student may request off-campus employment work authorization based on economic hardship."

It goes on: "Prove to USCIS (United States Citizenship and Immigration Services) that employment is necessary to avoid severe economic hardship due to unforeseen circumstances beyond your control."

With reference to the article, the student benefited from Texas HB 1403, which allowed him to pay in-state tuition. This is just wrong to use Texas taxpayer money to pay for an illegal immigrant's tuition. Oh sorry, he is undocumented, not illegal, but is that not the same thing? This political correctness is called double talk.

"The Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors, or DREAM, Act is legislation that would grant certain undocumented students six years of conditional citizenship." So, how about the same options for international students who do well to study and do not commit crimes. "Ultimately, José (Sierra) is grateful to his mother and wants to take full advantage of the opportunity she gave him by bringing him to this country." Sure! How about family immigration law? Here is my situation: My mother is a citizen of America and has applied for me for family immigration. However, I have to wait at least seven years to get an immigration visa in this manner.

He was reminded in September when his brother Victor was deported after an arrest. "I don't want that to happen to me," José said. He has not had any trouble with the authorities and wants to keep it that way." Such a good example for other people abroad to just cross the border illegally — it looks like: "Hey guys, come to the U.S. Do not do any crime, and the U.S. will support you on your illegal way!"

This situation isn't just unfair to international students. Here is an opinion I found from an American citizen in an Internet forum: "Now, the guy in the story you told is the reason why Americans are angry. Most hard-working legal families don't qualify for these handouts, and we live here legally and pay plenty of taxes. When our schools and hospitals and everyone's wallets are hurting, should anyone expect us to want to help people who are causing the hurt economy. Yes, his was a sad story, but now many other Americans are paying for that guy. No one asked us if we wanted to. We have rights in this country that our government is ignoring. For instance, border security. Had our government not been playing politics with our lives, federal immigration laws would have been enforced, and our borders would be secure.

"The fault of the young man is that he came illegally, but the people who helped him to obtain illegal papers so that he pays in-state tuition and also found him a job are more at fault because he is working without paying any taxes, income tax and Social Security tax. So those persons ... should be in jail for furnishing illegal papers to illegal aliens."

Equal rights for everyone.

http://www.theranger.org/news/internati ... -1.2385901

DREAM Act president split on immigration
Viewpoint
By Alina Cortes


Published: Thursday, November 18, 2010

Updated: Thursday, November 18, 2010 15:11



Alina Cortes

Tyler K. Cleveland

Luis Figueroa, attorney for the Mexican -American Legal Defense and Education Fund, speaks Sept. 22 during a Dream Act rally in Loftin.
In a way, I agree with Alexandra Nelipa's viewpoint "International student desires equal treatment," in The Ranger, Oct. 29: I don't want people voluntarily coming illegally into what I've grown to call my home country — and on top of it committing crimes. We have enough criminals in America; there is no need to let more in. But that article lacks some very important information.

Most DREAM Act beneficiaries I've met across America actually have stories similar to mine, meaning that they entered the U.S. legally, but their documents expired before they were of age to even know of it, and before any legal action could be approved to fix it.

Nelipa mentioned in her article that the DREAM Act would allow "illegal immigrants" to benefit from other Americans' tax money. She fails to recognize that, if passed, this bipartisan bill would require very important things of students for them to even apply for it: a high school diploma or GED, proof of residency in the U.S. for at least five years before its enactment (and before the age of 16), a good moral character, and college attendance or military service. "Tens of thousands of well-qualified potential recruits would become eligible for military service ... They are eager to serve in the armed forces during a time of war," Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., said to the Army Times.

It's definitely not fair to waste taxpayers' money. There are two things I'd like to add to this: One is that "illegal immigrants" pay taxes. This is proven not only through the obvious sales taxes, but also because, according to an article on reason.org, "Two-thirds of illegal immigrants pay Medicare, Social Security and personal income taxes." Absolutely anybody in America can obtain an individual taxpayer identification number — no matter what documents he may lack. Remember also that illegal immigrants are not eligible for federal financial aid; thus, not taking tuition money away from others. Both Americans' and immigrants' money is wasted as we pay taxes to send immigrant youth to school (K-12) and then don't let them serve the U.S. by joining the workforce or the armed forces. (Undocumented people are no longer allowed to join the military, which puts us in a predicament in terms of this country's needs.)

Another ill-researched point made in the article is the notion that living in the U.S. without proper documentation is a crime. According to the nonpartisan, nonprofit Migration Policy Institute (and to anyone else who knows anything about immigration policy), being in the U.S. illegally is not a crime. It is merely a civil violation.

Next time, people should do better research before publishing something so wrong and discriminating because such statements, not to mention the drawings, offend many.

Cortes is president of Students United for the DREAM Act and liberal arts sophomore.

http://www.theranger.org/opinion/dream- ... -1.2411198

I see that people never read careful what I was writing about, they are just looking for a reason so that would attach itself to anything and start to argue about their own themes. Words such as “illegal alienâ€