Immigration Stories
story by Lizeth Valdes and Chris Velasco Palacios, photos by Maria Mann, and design by Lizeth Valdez (with contributions by Megan Foster and Lilly Montgomery)
Rhetoric surrounding immigration is a constant hot topic in news and media. Terms like ‘border crisis’ and ‘open borders’ have been thrown out quite loosely, creating a toxic discourse in which groups of people are demonized and overly complex issues are reduced to an ‘it’s us or them’ mentality. As we approach the 2024 election, there’s no doubt the topic of immigration will be one of the prominent issues that will be debated within the country.
According to a Pew Research Center survey of 5,140 adults, 78% of Americans believe the large amounts of migrants entering the country currently is an issue. Of those who believe it’s an issue, 45% of respondents consider it a crisis and 32% of them consider it a major problem. In addition, the Office of Financial Management found the immigrant population in Washington had increased by 29% between 2010 and 2021, with as many as 230,000 being undocumented.
But as the government seeks to find a way to address the large number of people coming into the country, it’s important to understand the perspectives of those who took the journey from their home country into this one. From economic opportunity to fleeing abuse, the reasons for migrating to a country may be different for every individual. PULSE interviewed several students who identify as immigrants on campus, as well as students with immigrants in their families, to hear their perspectives and thoughts. We hope this can add some depth to a topic so often trivialized in media spaces.
Dayana Huayana Montoya is a senior graphic design student who immigrated from Lima, Peru to the United States back in 2012. Having been living in the U.S. for a little over a decade, she recounts emotions, triumphs and conflicts she has overcome.
What is your experience with immigration?
“I moved here in 2012. My mom wanted a better future for me. She got to a really messy divorce, and she just wanted to get out of that toxic environment. So, we moved here and then later on she met my step dad and they got married. It was a really hard time for me to get used to, because it was like divorce and a new marriage, and it was a lot to handle especially at the age of nine…. I didn't know any English even though I was taught English in Peru. When I went to school [in Florida] it was really hard to understand what people were saying.”
How long did it take your family to decide they wanted to go through with moving?
“I think it was years. ‘Cause she was with my dad since they were about 13 probably. She was just… tired of the abuse, so she just decided one day to actually get divorced. And then she told me, ‘You have a year to decide if you want to move with your dad or do you want to move with me.’”
How do you feel now about living in the U.S.?
“Feels, I guess, weird because since I was little, I was like, ‘I don't want to learn English. I don't need it. All I need is Spanish because I'm in Peru. That's all we speak. Why am I going to need it?’ And then here I'm like, ‘Well, I regret saying that.’ But I'm glad I learned it. Part of me is like, I'm glad I got out of that environment. I moved states, like a brand-new family, it just feels better. But part of me also misses my own country. I miss the food. I miss my family; I don't get to see them as often.”
Have you personally had any conflicts arise from being an immigrant?
“I guess I can't really remember, but it's just like little things…When I was probably in middle school, we had to read this book. But it said the B word, so the racist word, and I didn't know what it meant, and the professor was like, ‘Read it out loud.’ I was like, ’Huh?’ So, I just said it and then I Googled it, ‘cause when I was in middle school, I understood English, but I still don't know the whole vocabulary and whatnot. So, I was like, let me look that up real quick and I was just flabbergasted. Like, my professor really told me to say that. I don't know. It's just, I guess stuff like that.”
What change would you change in terms of the current views on immigration?
“That's a lot. Part of me is just like first of all, why be racist? Second of all, this country is based on immigrants. Literally everybody migrated from Europe and then from all different countries. So why do we have to pick on people? Let's just all get along. It's not that hard.”
Do you have any advice for other immigrants facing hardships?
“I would say try to at least make one friend. I was really grateful when I was little because there was this one girl [and] she didn't speak any Spanish and somehow, we communicated. But I think those little things just made me more excited to learn English. Even if you don't understand the other person, at least try, even with a smile at least. I think that's the only way to communicate if you don't even know the language…for me it's just the little things… I like being friendly. It just feels really nice, and it's a little change you can do for someone.”
What would you say is something you miss about Peru?
“Okay, so there's this kind of seasoning, I just don't remember the name of it, but we can't bring it from there, or if we do, it has to be like a certain package and it's expensive. So I miss that, but also if I do go back, there's violence. It's just a lot of chaos going on… I miss my country so much but there's also the negatives.”
Have you been back to Peru since you moved?
“The one that I actually remember was before I turned 15, if I'm not wrong. Because my dad wanted to celebrate my quinceañera and whatnot… It was nice seeing him after a while.”
Srijita Gurung is a junior information technology management student at CWU. Gurung immigrated from Pokhara City in Nepal to Lynnwood, Washington back in 2021. Nearly three years after making the move in order to reunite with family, Gurung details her thoughts, emotions, experiences and memories made since arriving in the U.S..
What is your experience with immigration?
“It was great because my family was already here. My family came here seven years ago, so it was easy for me to be here. It was easy, but it took time because they were planning for me to be here before COVID, but then COVID hits and it took like two years later, but I completed my high school back home.”
What was your family’s reason for moving here?
“‘Cause my sister was here. She got here 13 years ago, and she applied for the visa for my parents. As I was under 21, I got the opportunity to come here too. ”
What was it like when you first got to the U.S.?
“I was like ‘Wow, I feel I'm in some new place.’ A new world because it was totally different. Because Nepal is a developing country and when I was here, for a week, I couldn't believe myself that I was here. I used to dream about going, getting the flight, reaching here, and meeting my family. I used to think, ‘Oh, is it a dream or am I here?’ I made it, we made it, our family made it. Looking at all the resources when I came to the airport, I was just looking at the planes. Back home there used to be the smaller ones, the plane was so big here. And even how they manage everything, the facilities they provide. And I was like, ‘Yay. That's my dream. I really got one of my dreams.’”
How long did it take for you to settle once you moved to the U.S.?
“I would say I'm still learning, ‘cause I completed my associate degree mostly online. I wasn't communicating with people and engaging. I will say I’ve learned a lot after I completed my associate and transferred here, ‘cause here I'm living on my own. As I'm taking in person classes, I'm engaging in a lot of things. I'm learning from that.”
Do you feel that you've ever been discriminated against or persecuted for being an immigrant?
“It was my first month here and the phone numbers were long. I didn't have my own sim, and I was in a testing center in Edmonds College… I was taking a math exam. The computer suddenly switched off [and] I wasn't done. I was good at math in high school, and I was confident I could do it. I told him that I had a problem with the computer and I hadn't finished, and he gave me the result saying, ‘You did bad [and] you have to take a lot of math classes.’ I told him, ‘Can you give me another chance? I know I can do it, and I don't know how this happened.’ He was like, ‘Then you have to come tomorrow.’ He was rude to me. I told my sister that I will be there for three hours, cause they were like a three or two hour exam and she wasn't there. So I was waiting there for her. He asked, ‘Do you want to call her?’ He gave me his phone, but I don't know her number. I had just a month here. He said to me, ‘You are 18 years old and you don't know your sister's number?’ I told him that I'm new here and it's been three weeks. At that time I felt like, ‘Why did he talk to me like that?’ I felt bad but I didn't tell my family because I kept it to myself. The next day I went there, he was there. He was saying, ‘Okay, so ready with everything?’ Then I took the test, and I got a good grade…. He didn't say anything to me after that. He sent somebody else to talk. I was like, ‘Okay, that's good.’ That's the only thing I have felt so far.”
Do you have any advice for other immigrants that are currently facing hardships?
“Just speak out…. I always kept silent and kept it in. Sometimes I feel like, ‘Why didn't I talk?’
What is something that you miss about your home?
“Food, culture and friends… Everybody is like a family, and wherever we go everyone is so friendly [and] so kind. But here I was like, I don't even know who's next to me. That kind of bond, I miss that too.
Is there anything that we didn't cover today that you'd like to add?
“Whatever happens, never stop. I used to motivate myself because, yes I am from Nepal, I don't know the culture here. I was growing up watching Nepali and Hindi movies and cartoons. I didn't know that there is a big world of different music, cartoons and movies. When friends talk about those things, they ask, ‘Have you watched this? This is the best movie I've ever watched.’ I'm like, ‘Should I say yes or no? Sorry, I haven't.’ That might make them feel bad. Sometimes I kind of feel like I'm out of the conversation because I didn't know anything. But I'm trying…We should never stop learning and to say what we feel.”
Correction from print issue: Nepal was incorrectly attributed as being a part of India. This has been corrected in the online article.
Alexa Silva, president of the LatinX club and a sophomore economics student, gives insight into the point of view of being the child of two immigrant parents. Even though she herself was born in the U.S. the impact of immigration on her own life and identity is still felt tremendously.
What is your experience with immigration?
“Most of my family immigrated to this country. They have some immigration status, some people like my uncles and definitely my parents as well.”
Where are you and your family originally from?
“My parents are from Cuernavaca, Mexico. I was born in Denver, Colorado. My parents have been in the U.S. for almost 25 years. They actually came here after Sept. 11, 2001. So September 12, and my mom was 23 and my dad was 22.”
What was your family’s main driving force for moving here?
“My dad back in Mexico had some bad habits. And my mom, she loved him so much. So they decided, ‘Hey let's move to the United States to have a better life for us and to get a job,’ ‘cause back then Mexico had some issues, economically. So that's why they decided to go here. Not only that, but they had some family members here as well.”
What were their preparations like? What was their method of coming to this country?
“My mom has told me that she was pregnant, that was her hope to stay in Mexico. But sadly she had a miscarriage. That gave her a sign, [she thought] ‘Maybe take the risk since I don't have any kids.’ Yeah, for my dad it was money for his family.”
How did your family feel about the U.S. once they made it?
“They were pretty excited. I remember my dad said, ‘That was the first time I tried the American burger.’ They took him to Burger King. He ate two because he was really hungry. They were pretty excited to live the American dream.”
How do you feel about having been born here instead of being born in Mexico?
“Growing up, I always stood out cause Spanish was my first language and growing up I had to learn English. There was just a lot of racism, especially in Colorado since it's primarily white people who live there. Not only that, you also have this guilt… of knowing we can't go back to our country 'cause they're here basically for you now.”
What types of changes would you like to see regarding current opinions on immigration?
“I feel the view of calling them illegal aliens… it's a very harmful term because most of the time, as an econ major I've searched this up, it's families who come here for a better life… The system is set up to make it difficult for them to file for any type of residency. The stereotype again that they don't pay taxes, that they're not here working their asses off.”
Do you have any advice for immigrants or people who are part of a family of immigrants facing hardships?
“Remember the sacrifice your parents are making for you. Don't let it go to waste, and make them proud and just keep trying.”
Is there anything that we didn't cover today that you'd like to add?
“I would like to mention, I feel like for every immigrant, from every person who comes from an immigrant family, the biggest fear is to lose their family through deportation.”
Stepping Out From The Shadows
Immigrants are not only an important piece of this country, they are an important piece of humanity. They help us grow and learn from one another. At the end of the day, whether their method of coming into this country was legal, or illegal, they all believed in that one common theme of a better opportunity. This country was built by immigrants, from our roads to our homes to the fruits we enjoy at the supermarket. Not having immigrants can have disastrous effects on the economy and the soul of the nation.
A solution to illegal immigration should make the often arduous legal process one that is simple, easy and humane. More importantly, throughout these polarizing and divisive debates, it is vital to recognize the sad truth that many immigrants contribute greatly to a country that may never fully repay them for it. Whether it be access to scholarships, the social safety net or peace of mind, immigrants are often strangers in the shadows who only wish to be recognized as fellow human beings.
Interviews have been edited for length and clarity.
