What an extraordinary life story, Ben! I had terrible experiences before and after I became a US citizen but, honestly, my stories pale compared to yours. Even obtaining visas from US Embassies was a challenge the first time I applied to come to the US as a university student, complete with university papers and fees already paid to cover a full year and an additional term — $20,000!

Later, during summer holidays that I planned to spend attending university and, again, with fees paid for the purpose, I was refused a visa to return to the US after a brief holiday I took to meet my father in England, who was there on an official visit from East Africa. I was stranded in Britain for weeks while a US Embassy official in London said, “I don’t see a proper reason to grant you a visa!” Sometimes officials embraced stupidity because, perhaps, it served them well. After all, bonuses were rumoured to influence their decisions because they were reported to be paid more for keeping people out of the US!

Two years later, while still attending the same university, I was sent a cruel and careless deportation order. During a routine passport check by the Immigration department, an official there looked through my passport and saw every expired visa but failed to find the current one perhaps because he was in great haste! The order had indicated that the Immigration department could not find a current visa in my passport. I was saved by the international student officer at the university who rang the Immigration department and said, “If I have any students here who would never break an Immigration rule, it’s this one.”

Thank you immensely for your story!