I may not look like an undocumented alien, but until the age of 18 that's just what I was.
Comment: test
Comment: What a horrible disservice you have done to your country. You have essentially stolen your country???s future and hope. The future of the children and economic prosperity you have stymied by turning your back on a weak country (economically). You are proving to the others of your country that the only better way is to leave your problems behind and move away to the land of good hospitals and awesome infrastructure. You must endeavor hash times and horrific action taken by those who would have injustice in their hearts and corruption for a social plan. You will have you fight for generations to rectify and correct the negative attitudes and chaotic ideals of your people. You must take the political dogma and change it. You must make you country the sucking chest wound for jobs, and economic prosperity. Make your own darn cars and sell them to us, make the MMW instead of BMW. You have been given a free education, health care and high quality movies. Take what we have given you, figure out how to make it better, go back with your heard and change your whole country. Take the millions of teachers, nurses, doctors, engineers, moms and other highly skilled individuals and rebuild your country???NOW. Beat down political and police corruption, and sacrifice yourself for the great good. Look, hurricane Katrina took the vibrancy out of the New Orleans area. It was reported that more than 1,800 people lost their lives, and more than $81 billion dollars in damages occurred. That???s what everyone does that leaves your country Illegally. You destroy the landscape. You need to go back and teach the country what is right. Rebuild, rebuild, rebuild. They are doing it now in that deviated area...it will take years. We know!. You should bulldoze every structure within 10 miles from the US border. Keep a clean buffer zone. Take you knowledge of the American dream, reflect what you like about it and build a new. Si se puede So now get the %^$# out, and come back legal.
Comment: YOU DIN'T SAY MUCH! SO WHAT ARE YOU?
Comment: I really enjoy reading this essay. It's so sad how a child can be divided into two different world. It is also interesting to learn how other people experiencing culture shock, this happens all the time when you go into another country that is different from yours. Really nice personal experience essay, I hope that you don't feel ashame of parts, inside or outside, of yourself.
Comment: I really enjoy reading this essay. It's so sad how a child can be divided into two different world. It is also interesting to learn how other people experiencing culture shock, this happens all the time when you go into another country that is different from yours. Really nice personal experience essay, I hope that you don't feel ashame of parts, inside or outside, of yourself.
Comment: It is obvious to me that many people commenting here does not know the real think about immigration. I am illegal too, I pay taxes with my legal tax number, I have a car and car insurance. I pay for my health insurance, I do not use the goverment money (like many legal american that not deserve a penny do). And last but not least , a question for all of you that like to crucified people. How many illegal aliens do you know?
Comment: By the way - if you have an individual tax id number, that is not permission to work in the United States. It's simply a number to put down on tax forms. If you're going to flaunt your status, then at least get the facts straight.
Comment: How did you get any kind of "legal tax number" as an illegal? You normally have to supply legal documents to get them. Either way - if you're illegal, you're committing a crime - bottom line.
Comment: nmbrldy, you are so stupid! do you think the government gives a crap if you illegal or not? The only thing Government cares for is that they get their fair share off of you, off of anybody that can pay taxes. Did you know that the IRS gives anybody a Tax ID Number, if any body applies and wants to pay taxes? do some research b-4 you talk. Also, di you know that if an illegal is using a fake SS#, he/she also pays taxes? the difference here is that he/she doesn't get a refund because it is not a real SS#. and do you know what the government does with that money? I tell you you have to do some serious research about yourself, and maybe you can become a better person! Thanks!
Comment: I have done my research. I work for the government, idiot. I know the way it works. I also see the poor schmucks who get bills because someone bought/conjured up a legitimate number belonging to someone else, and the legitimate person gets a bill because of unclaimed income. Bottom line - if you want credibility, get legal, and quickly. You can tout the Mexican flag all you want, but, bottom line - if you are here illegally, you are breaking the law, and opening yourself up to all kinds of actions. There are many people who would do anything to an illegal, and justify their actions to themselves and a society facing tough economic times for its citizens. Why on earth should the U.S. take care of illegals when the U.S. citizens, both natural born & legalized, are scraping to get by. Any sense of personal responsibility means you encourage everyone to do the right thing, all the time. If you don't, your just as guilty as the criminal. As far as me, I would never slither into another country on my belly - if I'm going, I'll be walking proudly upright with head held high, knowing that I've followed the rules and am legal, in all ways. Get a grip, get your head out of your nether regions, and get legal.
Comment: No comments, Lovo? Or are you just surprised that people have done their homeowrk, and are making intelligent arguments? Explain to me, please, how you can justify your "latinos unite" rant? You're in our country, yet you try to stir up some pseudo-uprising? You really are mentally challenged, aren't you?
Comment: Okay Juan, here is the deal: If the phrase that describes you best includes the word "illegal," you are probably doing something wrong. There is a process an immigrant goes through to become a LEGAL citizen. Those are the people that win the admiration of those of us who were lucky enough to be born here. I wouldn't brag about being an illegal anything. Concentrate on citizenship, or go home.... wherever that is.
Comment: Thank you for sharing your story. I hope that those who think coming to America as an illegal provides an open door to all the Countries benefits. As you correctly point out, it does not. Someday, I hope Americans will learn from Europe on how to manage the movement of individuals from one country to another in a more humane way. Our current policies on our South American neighbors is an affront to human dignity and the result of ignorance of significant proportion.
Comment: Maria: Most Americans understand that kids have virtually no say in their parent???s choices, but that is 'kids' in general. As one poster said, all kids suffer when their parents make bad choices, but it's part of the world society as a whole. Don't think that we don't understand that many people over the world would like the 'American Dream' and the opportunities that are available here. Those opportunities may be scarce at this point due to the economy, but they will come again. However???we, the average American citizen, are very concerned with the fact that our borders are just wide open and have been for decades now. We???ve had terrorists enter this country on visas (and were actually registered to vote no less thanks to that Voter on Wheels act!). We???ve seen our jobs leave the country, some going to South America because of cheaper labor. We???ve seen wages DECREASE in certain job sectors because of the availability of cheap labor IN our country, some imported and some undocumented. We???ve seen an increase in drug smuggling and drug cartel activity on our southern borders. Identity theft has been on the rise the last decade, and while some of that is due to electronic safety failures and hacking, some of that is also due to illegals using fake documents to blend in (which they get from the hackers). Our health system, which is already in crisis, also has to deal with the additional burden of undocumented workers who can???t afford to pay. The numbers don???t lie. You said ???Undocumented immigrants get scapegoated for many things, and the issue is complex, involving unfair entry quotas and other issues we don't have time to debate in a "Comments" section.??? I disagree. I don???t think that undocumented immigrants get ???scapegoated???. True, some people like to just focus the blame on them when in fact it is a combination of different factors, but for the most part, being undocumented does not help this country. Since in fact, most come here with the intention of going BACK to their country of origin, much like your parents wanted to do. They are part-timers who don???t REALLY have an investment in this country. And as far as our entry quotas: We have the HIGHEST immigration levels in the world. We let in more immigrants than ANY other country. From all over the world. Legally. You???re right about this comment section not being big enough to debate this issue, but I???ve given it a shot. The end story is this: Americans, while anyone of us usually wants to help, are tired of our borders being open to anyone to cross. We are tired of our economic situation, and we are tired of our health care system. We are also tired of people trying to explain away why they broke the law or shouldn???t have to be held to the rule of law, which is what our country is supposed to run on. And while illegal immigrants may not be wholly responsible for the mess this country is in, they don???t help the situation ei
Comment: These stories are a slap in the face to all of us LEGAL immigrants who followed the law and provided all the personal information necessary to come to this country. If I were an American, I would be outraged at granting amnesty to law breakers.
Comment: Any illegal alien has to know up front that they have broken the law the very second their feet touch the ground, so what's to stop us thinking their law breaking ways will end there? They push their way into a country ahead of others because their needs are greater than those who wait in line for years? Get real, get to the back of the line and stop trying to justify your illegal status, as it's no better than that of a common criminal. Regardless of what country you have gate crashed into, you have broken the law.
Comment: Thanks, Maria, for sharing your story here. This is a side we do not often hear about. And in bringing it up, I have a more sympathetic heart to all going through this. Because I can't assume I know their (your) situation. I don't know what has led up to the point of where they (you) are at. Of what is controllable, and what isn't. Thank you for opening my eyes, mind, and heart to something I mainly have just tried to avoid. You make it real...
Comment: I've seen a lot of articles about illegal immigrants "paying their taxes", etc. Unless an illegal immigrant has a valid social security number, or individual taxpayer identification number, that person isn't paying "their" taxes; they're paying the taxes of a person whose identity has been stolen. I've seen identities of both the living and the dead taken, including children. It's usually caught when the government sees all the income in the name of one person, but it comes from 2 different parts of the country (and you're lucky if it's just 2). The honest person starts getting notices and bills; the dishonest person simply continues on (they 're not affected by all the fuss), or they buy/borrow/scrounge up another identity to raid. I have been in very desparate circumstances at different points in my life, and would have taken any job that would have allowed me to eat and live inside, at the same time. For every illegal immigrant that occupies an American job, there is at least a handful of citizens (natural and legalized) that would happily take it, to avoid filing for unemployment or bankruptcy, or having their property foreclosed on because they lost their job. Are children of illegal immigrants stuck because of their parents' bad decisions? Yes - the same as the children of a smoker may have health issues subsequent to the smoke exposure, or the children of alcoholics who deal with abuse, neglect & uncertainty. There is no difference.
Comment: you just continue being stupid comment after comment!
Comment: If you want to live here, you follow the rules. If you don't like the rules or think they don't apply to you - then go back to whatever third-world country spit you out originally. I'm sure they'll be happy to have you back - they can always use more idiots for the asylums, right?
Comment: There is more to dislike about illegal immigrants than just the money they cost us. When you have to wait for 3 hours at the ER to be seen because there are a hundred in front who cannot even afford to pay their bill, there is a problem.
Comment: It's time to finish building the wall, then kick the illegals over it, and patrol it to keep them out. Then go find a new lawn guy. It's that simple.
Right again,
Floridave
Comment: Floridave - I agree 100%. Let me know, and I'll bring all my tools to help with the construction. Maybe, between the two of us, we can get all the lovo del nortes and "illegal foreign radicals" that are (by later comments in the article) trying to band together and overthrow legal U.S. citizens and residents. Maybe they're simply trying to turn the U.S. into the same lawless, third-world country that they "fled" from. Lovo - stop trying to spread the poison that is your viewpoint. The stronger the words, the weaker the argument. if all you can do is hurl names and insults, then you've shown your stupidity.
Comment: yeah, like if it's that simple, remember, if an illegal person has a job in this country, it is because even the blacks won't do it, because it is a too low of a job for them to do! i would like to see you picking strawberries, or working on any field... yeah, would like to see your sorry ass!
Comment: I appreciate your comments and concern. As the writer of this piece, I believe the point I was trying to make is not that it's okay to be undocumented, but the effect that status has on children who have no participation in the choice.
Undocumented immigrants get scapegoated for many things, and the issue is complex, involving unfair entry quotas and other issues we don't have time to debate in a "Comments" section.
But to address the seemingly most pressing concern of the commenters, it is an erroneous assumption that undocumented workers don't pay taxes: most do and those that don't would if the process was made easier. This idea that somehow undocumented status translates to "deadbeat" is an unfortunate side effect of misinformation. To speak just for us, we never took any public money whatsoever, including no public schooling.
We do have many economic issues in this country, but when you rank those to blame in order of significance, undocumented immigrants, in terms of sheer dollars, rank well below greedy multinationals, Wall Street speculators and politicians mismanaging public funds. The next time you see a $700 billion bill become an $800+ billion bill through pork add-ons like funding for wooden arrows for children and rum producers in Puerto Rico, understand that you've just seen more dollars wasted than undocumented immigrants could ever "fail to contribute."
I am grateful that my piece stirred enough passion in you to inspire your posts.
Maria E. Andreu
Comment: You go girl. And to everybody else of latino descend i tell you: We have to get united or the other races will step all over us! Remember, it won't be long before we are the majority in this country, they know it, government knows it, and that is why you see these raids all over the nation trying to scare us by targetting the latino community. Latinos Unidos Jamas Seran Vencidos! our time will come! remember it doesn't matter if you are legal or illegal if you are of latino descend to everybody else you are the same! We have to get united! thanks and good for you Maria!
Comment: lovo - and when you do, the whole place will look like Tijuana. I am all for immigration but not for folks who want to make here the new there. You want the culture of your homeland and the traditions of your homelands but the freedoms and opportunities of America? Then stay home and improve the place where you live. I am especially angered by all the various Orthodoxies that try to rewrite the American social contract to meet their cultural and religious needs. There are plenty of countries that already live under those yokes - go there.
Comment: I completely agree. It's a real shame that you had to go through what you did because your parents made the choice to illegally bring you into the country. It must have been terrifying. I am sure your parents worked very hard and weren't "deadbeats", but it doesn't change the fact that there are thousands of chidren who are born and have to live with the choices their parents made, and those choices are illegal. You were very lucky in that you were granted amnesty, but there are many others who are really stuck because of their parent's choice. I feel for them.
Comment: Thank you for sharing your story. I still do not understand how people can do what your father did- by not making sure he could get you back into the states and then paying strangers to funnel you in. Your parents broke the law - twice. While it might not have seemed fair at the time that you couldn't go to school or trips or college, it doesn't seem fair to me that your family didn't pay taxes to pay for those things. There was a way to apply for citizenship, why wasn't it taken advantage of??? I simply don't understand how I am supposed to feel bad for you because your parents broke our laws and robbed the american public by not conributing their share. I'm glad you got amnesty, I just hope you pay your taxes, because you should really be paying for three!!!!
Comment: FALLENWISH, I DON'T SEE WHERE SHE MENTIONS THAT THEY DIDN'T PAY TAXES! WHY DO YOU ASSUME THAT? WHO TOLD YOU ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS DON'T PAY TAXES? DO SOME RESEARCH BEFORE YOU TALK! FOR YOUR INFORMATION: "WE ILLEGALS DO PAY TAXES" BUT WE -DO NOT- GET REFUNDS! DO YOU KNOW WHY? OR ARE YOU GOING TO ASSUME THINGS AND TALK WITHOUT DOING ANYRESEARCH? THANK YOU!
Comment: I too entered this country as an emmigrant at age 5 with my family--but we were LEGAL. We paid income tax and followed the rules--paid for car insurance, competed in school and the workplace. We have never received a penny of govenment handouts and I paid out of state college fees to attend nursing school which was a financial burden on my folks and me. But we lived within our means and contributed to the economy and worked hard. My parents passed away never having used a credit card. I own my own home paid for and have been employed as a nurse for 38 years and plan at least 10 more years of work. I have contributed to my childrens college education and they have some student loans. Hard work , postponing gratification, living within your means. What is so hard about doing it the right and legal way? It makes a better country. Never use credit to purchase (you know it may cost 3 times as much because of interest payments) These are rules that have helped me. Too bad people go into debt or live illegally. The lure of "looking right" leads to losses for us all.
Comment: BRAVO, AS IT SHOULD BE, THE WAY TO THE AMERICAN DREAM IS NEVER MADE VIA FREE GOVERNMENT HANDOUTS................I BET MARIA CANNOT SAY THE SAME!
Comment: AND WHAT IS YOUR POINT?
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