Farmingville: My Participation In Government

Over the past few months, I have started to pay more attention to the immigration issues that have been going on. In my Participation in Government class, we saw a documentary called Farmingville, In the documentary the people talked about how they didn't want these people in their town, they didn't want to walk in fear that these people might target them. Those people! What does that mean I asked myself. As a Salvadorean immigrant who happens to be female and Jewish, I knew that they were not only talking about me but the Hispanic community in general. Being treated differently made me who I am today. I could sit here and write about things I've never done and make myself look like someone who is amazing and very intelligent, but I'm not
going to do that. I'm your average teenage girl who does normal things in my everyday life. I'm not some straight A student and I'm not promising to be Valedictorian, but I am promising to work hard in life to achieve great things.
Instead, I will talk about more important matters. I have seen the many issues that the country is facing because of immigration. But, I have also began to see the effect that all these issues have on the immigrant people. It's difficult for immigrants to be able to express themselves when they come to this country, it also makes it harder for them when people judge them for their legal status. I’m not saying this because it's what I think, I’m saying it because it's what I have been through. When you come to America from a different country it's difficult to understand others and for others to understand you, and it's scary. In the news sometimes it is made to believe that the Hispanic community is bad, but is it really? People don't give the Hispanic community a chance to show the good in them. Instead, they automatically assume the worst and blame them. I strongly believe that if people were to give the Hispanics and every other foreigner a chance than they would be surprised to see that they are not so bad, that once you get to know them, they can show you the good in them. I remember that in 8th grade my English teacher asked the class “If you could change the world in any way, what would you
change?” At the time, I didn't know my answer, but now I finally know my answer. If I could change anything, I would change the way people judged each other. I would make them understand that in reality no one is really legal here. This country isn't where we came from. Just because now in the 20th century everything is so advance that we feel like this is where we came from, that's not true. Not one single person can say “My ancestors were born here” because then they would not only be lying to someone else, but they would be lying to themselves. In reality, we are all immigrants because even scientist and our history textbook say that this country didn't even exist until 1492 when Columbus sailed the blue. As a teenager, I believe that I have matured and became a better person from my past mistakes and the hardships that I have gone through. I have matured in many different aspects, both socially and academically. I guess being treated differently as a child was what encouraged me more to be who I am today, and I wouldn't change that.