Many immigrants have no choice but to uproot their entire lives on the small piece of hope that in America, the land of opportunity, life will be better. Ana’s story echoes this, her mother decided to make the difficult trip to America with her baby for their family to be whole again. The reason being that in Mexico they were facing such extreme poverty Ana’s parents couldn’t even afford to marry much less support a family, so off to America her father went. Once there, like many immigrants, he would send money to Ana’s mother and would make the dangerous trip every few months to see his daughter and soon to be wife, this went on until Ana was about 5 months old. It was then Ana’s parents decided that they didn’t want her to have a father that
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After this came into existence Ana felt hopeful for her future, for the first time in perhaps her entire life. The only catch to this miracle was that she would have to fork over not only all of her personal information, but that of her parents as well. Ana and her parents decided it was worth it to take this risk, for her wellbeing and future, and apply for DACA. Once accepted she wouldn’t have to worry about being ripped from her family for a guaranteed two years, and now she could learn how to drive! Obtaining her license meant something deeper for Ana, it signified that she had a place in America someway somehow. It also meant protection for her, from being stopped and thus detained at Immigration checkpoints. Things were finally looking up for her, it seemed that all was good in the world and perhaps she could be as carefree as her peers. Sadly, this peace of mind would not last very long and the ugly slap to the face came in the form of a new …show more content…
Although in the early to mid 20th century, Mexicans were considered white, but it was only by law and through foreign relations, not science (Fox and Bloemraad 184). Immigrants that don’t come from countries that are deemed white by the government, have always been looked down upon; as if these immigrants aren’t seeking the same opportunities their white counterparts are. These immigrants had no problem becoming citizens, and that is a direct result of the whiteness that is associated with citizenship. People of lighter skin have always been treated better across cultures, for example, the way Ana was looked down upon was most likely tied to her darker skin along with her legal status. According to the journals, “Beyond “White by Law”: Explaining the Gulf in citizenship Acquisition between Mexican and European Immigrants, 1930”, Census data proved the colorism that ran rampant at the time:
Mexicans categorized as white were also more likely to speak English, to be literate, to have higher socioeconomic status, and to own a home. It is possible that their higher socioeconomic status followed from a lighter phenotype, since darker Mexicans suffered more discrimination
After this came into existence Ana felt hopeful for her future, for the first time in perhaps her entire life. The only catch to this miracle was that she would have to fork over not only all of her personal information, but that of her parents as well. Ana and her parents decided it was worth it to take this risk, for her wellbeing and future, and apply for DACA. Once accepted she wouldn’t have to worry about being ripped from her family for a guaranteed two years, and now she could learn how to drive! Obtaining her license meant something deeper for Ana, it signified that she had a place in America someway somehow. It also meant protection for her, from being stopped and thus detained at Immigration checkpoints. Things were finally looking up for her, it seemed that all was good in the world and perhaps she could be as carefree as her peers. Sadly, this peace of mind would not last very long and the ugly slap to the face came in the form of a new …show more content…
Although in the early to mid 20th century, Mexicans were considered white, but it was only by law and through foreign relations, not science (Fox and Bloemraad 184). Immigrants that don’t come from countries that are deemed white by the government, have always been looked down upon; as if these immigrants aren’t seeking the same opportunities their white counterparts are. These immigrants had no problem becoming citizens, and that is a direct result of the whiteness that is associated with citizenship. People of lighter skin have always been treated better across cultures, for example, the way Ana was looked down upon was most likely tied to her darker skin along with her legal status. According to the journals, “Beyond “White by Law”: Explaining the Gulf in citizenship Acquisition between Mexican and European Immigrants, 1930”, Census data proved the colorism that ran rampant at the time:
Mexicans categorized as white were also more likely to speak English, to be literate, to have higher socioeconomic status, and to own a home. It is possible that their higher socioeconomic status followed from a lighter phenotype, since darker Mexicans suffered more discrimination