Week 5: Immigration

This weeks topic hit me really hard. I have never really put much thought into immigration or the impact of it, but all of that changed this week. Through the films and videos I saw just how much immigrants are willing to go through in order to get to America. So what is an immigrant? An immigrant is anyone who is moving from one country to another to establish a new permanent home. As I watched the YouTube video "The Price of Immigration", I was able to hear the story of Jose. He attempted to cross the border five times and was finally able to get over the border by swimming through freezing waters at five in the morning. This seemed crazy to me, so why did he do it? In my blog I want to think about the motives people have for coming to America. 

One of the biggest reason Hispanics choose to come into America is in order to provide for their family and to give them money in order to support them and allow them to get by in their native country. This was the case for Jose who was forced into becoming the head of his family at the young age of 17. That is why he came to America, so he could make money and send it back to his family. At the same time when people move to another country it creates a separation between the family. That is why Jose said the thing he misses the most was his family. In the documentary, "Which Way Home" we saw several examples of children who were attempting to make it into America. Kevin was 14 and he wanted to go to America so he could support his mother and to escape his unloving step-dad. Fito wanted to get to America to make a way for himself and to escape his parents who spent their time at parties. Others cross hoping to be reconnected with family members who have already made it over such as Jose who was only 10 and was trying to cross. To me it is just really sad to see how young these kids are often left without their parents. I would not be able to make it without my parents. It just leads them to grow up so fast. They all leave their countries for different reasons, but they all have to go about it the same way. They are forced to grow up and to begin to make a living for themselves and for others. I can't help but to think if there is a better way to help this situation? How can we change the living conditions in other countries so they aren't as bad as they are? I wish everyone could live as comfortably as I do because after watching this I am reminded of just how blessed I am! At the same time this documentary gave me a burden for these kids and for these people. I want to help if possible, and I really want to be able to go on a mission trip to one of these countries so I can see first hand what they are going through. Overall, this week was just eye opening for me to be able to see the living conditions in other countries, and it was crazy to see how young they are when they start to provide for their families. This really affected me and I hope it affected you as well. Thanks for reading!