She made herself invisible; she had no other choice. To live as a teenage girl in Mexico was a life full of fear, a life dependent on conforming and keeping herself hidden. Then she crossed the border two years ago to live with her parents in the U.S. as an undocumented immigrant.
“I feel safer here and I have more confidence within myself, because I couldn’t stand out in Mexico because of all the murder and crime. I automatically have a better future here,” she said.
Although She is currently living in the U.S., she fears that because she is undocumented, she won’t be able to continue her education at the collegiate level.
However, on Nov. 20, President Barack Obama announced a series of executive orders to crack down on illegal immigration at the border, to prioritize deporting felons not families, and to require certain undocumented immigrants to pass a criminal background check and pay taxes in order to temporarily stay in the U.S. without fear of deportation.
According to The Washington Post, this executive order will expand the 2012 Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, allowing young immigrants, like her, who arrived as children to apply for a deportation deferral and who are now here legally.
For She*, this means that she will be able to continue her education and gives her the opportunity to receive a visa if she pursues a career in science, technology, engineering, or mathematics.
“It’s a good thing Obama did this. It’s important because we need jobs and we need food. We came over here for a better life. We’re all human and we’re a part of your society now,” she said.
Similar to She*, Oscar Lemos* moved to the U.S. after his parents had lived here undocumented for 15 years. Lemos is from El Salvador and has lived here for ten months, but doesn’t fear deportation. Although he has heard frightening stories about deportation officers taking people away, Lemos himself feels safe in the country, because there are an estimated one million others like him.
“I’m only concerned for my mom. She is undocumented and if she applies for a job there’s a chance that she could be deported,” said Lemos.
The executive order will, however, offer a legal reprieve to the undocumented parents of U.S. citizens and permanent residents who have resided in the country for at least five years. For Lemos’ mother, this would remove the fear of deportation and she could receive a work permit.
Yoshira Hernandez’s parents came to the U.S. in 2001, bringing her with them, to find work and a better life like Lemos’ mother. Hernandez also fears for her parents, because they’re also undocumented and don’t have the same rights that U.S. citizens do.
“[Obama’s Executive Order] is better than nothing,” said Hernandez. “There’s Mexicans, Salvadorians, and other people from different countries that are all happy that they get to work and don’t have to be afraid.”
However, senior Nick Hancock believes that the executive order was done unlawfully and should be reconstructed, because the House of Representatives, the Senate, and the majority of American citizens oppose the new Immigration policy.
“I believe that we need to give the illegal immigrants that are law abiding and that work a way to become citizens,” said Hancock.
According to the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, the USCIS and other agencies will be responsible for implementing the new initiatives.