A Reflection on Sonia Nazario’s Visit
September 19th, 2017
On the evening of September 18th, we had the opportunity to speak with and listen to Sonia Nazario, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Enrique’s Journey. We began the evening with a sit-down dinner, where we were able to ask Ms. Nazario questions about both Enrique’s Journey and her perspective on immigration issues. Later, Ms. Nazario gave a formal presentation in front of most of the student body and various adults. Her answers and stories were fascinating.
Although I’d originally expected her to take a classically liberal position on US immigration (e.g. opening our borders, implementing more guest worker programs), Ms. Nazario presented an immigration policy that focused on foreign aid to needy countries so that immigration would become unneccessary. She pointed out that, contrary to popular belief here in America, many immigrants would rather live in their homeland than in the US, where they often don’t speak the language and suffer harassment or mistreatment. Ms. Nazario also described issues facing certain Central American cultures, especially Honduras. Gang violence, police corruption, and drugs plague Honduras and force many victimized citizens to chose between emigration and almost certain death. However, various nonprofit groups like the Association for a More Just Society (AJS) are trying to fix this problem through educational reform and exposing corruption. There is, according to Ms. Nazario, still hope for Honduras.
The statistics and case studies presented by Ms. Nazario were absolutely captivating, but at no point was I more moved than when she discussed her own experience riding the trains through Mexico. In heart-wrenching detail, Ms. Nazario described the terrible hardship she faced on the trains, even while recognizing the privilege she had as a well-off American citizen and a journalist. She presented stories of extreme weather conditions, injuries sustained by the rocking of the train, and most affectingly, she described one incident where a gang member tried to rape her, and she ran across the tops of three train cars to get away. It took six months of therapy for her to stop dreaming of this.
The passion and raw emotion Ms. Nazario displayed combined with inarguable statistics made her presentation undoubtedly one of the best GIP events I’ve ever attended. The way she integrated her own experiences into the immigration narrative made her speech affecting, engaging, and deeply personal.
Near the end of her presentation, Ms. Nazario mentioned a series of non-profit groups dedicated to helping immigrants and those affected by turmoil in Central American countries. As she described the wonderful work these organizations are doing, I watched the entire auditorium erupted in whispers as listeners turned each other, excited to help. In the end, it’s events like last night’s that not only show us suffering but also demonstrate the power that human generosity has to change the world.
