I Am An Immigrant – Voices

My parents immigrated from Guatemala. My father came to U.S. first for a few years to get settled in. They waited for my mom to get her green card and my older sister to get her citizenship. After the process was over, they came to the U.S. Since my father had already settled in by the time my mom and sister came to the U.S. he had already been working with a family. Both my father and mother took care of the house while the owners were away. My father was in charge of the landscaping and my mom was in charge of cleaning the house. The owners of the house had a side house, so my parents stayed there. The reason they came to the U.S was so my sister and their future kids (which is me) had a better future. Also because there’s a lot more opportunities here. Settling in was very difficult for my mom. It was a totally different place from what she was used to. Not knowing English didn’t make it any easier. Most of her close family was in Guatemala. She had to adapt to a new lifestyle. My life would be very different if my parents hadn’t immigrated to the U.S. First of all, I wouldn’t have been born here. I wouldn’t have gotten a good education. My parents immigrating to the U.S gave me many opportunities. They gave me the opportunity to have a good career. If I was living in Guatemala,I would’ve most likely had to start working at a young age. It’s very upsetting how Trump isn’t helping with immigration. He’s closing the doors for immigrants. Some people have no choice other than to immigrate. Most people immigrate hoping that they can give their family a better life by working hard. Some countries aren’t safe to raise a family anymore.