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Chelsea Orozco
Connie Douglas
UWRT 1101
10 October 2014
Native America
Many people have many different personal beliefs. You are raised by your parents a
certain way and carry over their beliefs, which they have taught you, over the course of time you
are with them, once you get out into the real world and experience your own difficulties you see
the world differently. There are many things I may see a certain way and believe, but that does
not have to be your same beliefs or how you see the world. One topic that is very close to me is
immigration, although I do not believe in criminal activity associated with immigrants.
One of the major topics that comes up a lot in the world we live in today is the
immigration. Immigration is a very controversial subject in the United States because a very
large amount of the population is made up of immigrants. An immigrant is defined as a person
who enters a country to take up permanent residence. When the topic of immigration is brought
up, the first thought in everyones mind is about Hispanics and how they jumped the border that
separates the United States and Mexico or how they came over here in self-made rafts. This topic
is very close to my heart is because I am Hispanic and many assumptions are made of my
heritage. It is automatically thought that I am Mexican, immigrants come world wide, not all
Spanish speaking immigrants in The United States come from Mexico, I am Ecuadorian and
Colombian.
I do feel that most Americans are fighting to get immigrants to leave the United States
because immigrants are taking their jobs from them but stand in their shoes, if you were living

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where immigrants lived and more importantly the way they lived you would want the best for
your family. An example is of recent rioting in Venezuela, May 2014, protests erupted as the
result of Venezuelas level of violence, corruption, and shortages of basic food necessities and
many believed it was caused by economic policies and strict prices (Sanchez "Cop Killed in
Clashes after Raids in Venezuela."). During these protests two hundred and forty-three students
were arrested pre-dawn raids and this is when the police intervened and a total of forty-two
people were killed and murder has become a way of life (Nues "Cop Killed in Clashes after
Raids in Venezuela.").
Even in the movie The Book of Eli, family survival is important. The movie shows that
Claudia, the mother, would do anything to protect her daughter, Solara, and wants the best for
her when she is living with Carnegie, she knows she cannot provide for them because of her
blindness(The Book of Eli). Many immigrants come to America for the better life America is
more than sure to provide, which is why America is called The Land of Opportunity. They
dream about coming to America to have the opportunity to live a better life, Randy Pausch says,
Its important to have specific dreams. Dream Big. Dream without fear (Pausch). When my
mother first moved to the United States at the age of fifteen, she said it was not like anything she
saw in her country. It was so beautiful, my mother said, it smelled incredible, all the sounds,
everything mixed together.
Most immigrants would do anything to get away from the way of life from their country,
there is nothing but corrupt governments, brutal way of life, and many say it is intolerable. The
first time I went to Colombia I was very frightened, I heard various issues and stories people had
told me who have visited over the years and I thought it was not going to be a good experience.
When we landed in the airport in Colombia, there were policemen everywhere walking around

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accompanied by guard dogs, carrying huge guns that looked like they were going to war. I was
fourteen at the time and I was terrified. We went to our hotel at the front door were policemen
carrying guns, a guard dog and a person who would pass a metal detector over us every time we
entered the hotel. Later we went to the house of a distant cousin, on the way there I had to close
my eyes because the driving was terrible. The roads had no lanes, the street was full of taxis and
cars and we were almost involved in an accident. When we arrived, at the apartment in Bogota,
Colombia the windows were barred shut; the floors were plain concrete and there were many
safety hazards that would not pass in America and the whole time I was thought is this really
the way of life in this country. That was when I realized that if I were living like this I would do
the exact same thing if I were in their position; the worst part was that was a luxurious lifestyle.
Immigrants would rather leave their country and just step on American soil for a moment
and feel that sense of freedom when they arrive even if it means going back to their country.
They endure countless things during their journey to the United States, and an article named An
Immigrants Journey talks about how immigrants pass the border. Getty Images Photographer,
John Moore, took the journey himself and traveled with other immigrants on freight trains called
la bestia which means the beast (An Immigrants Journey, Moore). During his journey all the
immigrants who started with him didnt finish with him, he captures pictures of some of the
obstacles they had to face, like rafting across the Suchiate River, climbing Guatemalan
mountains, riding on top of la bestia, passing through tunnels (An Immigrants Journey,
Moore. The journey is not simple and many have lost their lives trying to get to the United
States.
I am not saying that I disagree with Americans when it is said immigrants should be
deported to their native country. If an immigrant is involved in criminal activity and overall

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disrupting our country, by all means deport them. They were given a chance to start anew in this
country and they chose to start problems, they did not appreciate the opportunity given to them,
then send them back. We should take in the people who are willing to work, who provide a better
future for their families and themselves. People who will make the most of the opportunities
America provides.
I chose this topic because I wanted to explain the experiences I have had and the things
that the media does not tell you. Immigration is close to my family and my parents have
influenced this belief in me because my mother did come from a different country and she
always tells me If I wouldnt have came to America we would be living like them, so appreciate
what you have. I also wanted to talk about this topic because many people comment and say
disrespectful things about immigrants they think all the tough things they go through are only
found in the movies. I had an experience in high school, when the topic of immigration came up
in the classroom and this one girl commented saying they should just send all immigrants back,
they were taking our jobs and they do not even speak English, when I hear people who do not
understand the real situation of immigration, I feel disrespected and shocked on how close
minded they are. I do not believe my belief or mind will change over time because I already have
the facts and information and I am just spreading it around.

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Works Cited
"Randy Pausch Quotes." Randy Pausch Quotes (Author of The Last Lecture). Web.
1 Sept. 2014. <http://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/287960.Randy_Pausch>.
Sanchez, Fabiola, and Ricardo Nunes. "Cop Killed in Clashes after Raids in Venezuela." The Big
Story. 8 May 2014. Web. 5 Sept. 2014. <http://bigstory.ap.org/article/venezuelan
officials-break-protesters-camps>
Silver, Joel, Denzel Washington, Broderick Johnson, Andrew A. Kosove, David Valdes, Gary
Whitta, Atticus Ross, Gary Oldman, Jennifer Beals, Michael Gambon, Mila Kunis, Ray
Stevenson, and la T. F. De. The Book of Eli. Burbank, CA: Warner Home Video, 2010
Taylor, Alan, and John Moore. "An Immigrant's Journey." The Atlantic. Atlantic Media
Company, 13 Aug. 2013. Web. 4 Sept. 2014.<http://www.theatlantic.com/infocus/2013
/08/an-immigrants-journey/100573/>