Is She An Animal? President Trump Seems To Think So.
Everyone has a story, and everyone has different ways of handling situations. Marie Dumas, a Haitian elder who now lives in Palm Beach County, Fla., decided that she was not happy with how poverty was taking over her family. She chose to take the risk of fleeing to the United States in search of the “American Dream.”
Marie Dumas is the second-oldest of 11 children who were raised in a dirt and mud-brick house in Cap-Haïtien, Haiti. Although her parents were hard- working individuals, with her father working construction and her mother being a housewife, it was not enough financially to help support the family.
“I remember our house had one room, the living room and there were two beds, they were first come, first serve and you could only have about four people to a bed so the rest of us would sleep on the floor if you didn’t make it in time for bed. My parents never slept on the bed, they always made sure we were the most comfortable. And for the reason I told myself I will make sure that they are the comfortable ones in the future.
Then in February of 1973, at the age of 18, Dumas made her decision to leave the familiarity of Haiti and start a new beginning in the “Land of Opportunity.” She left with her cousins who had already established themselves in America and agreed to help Dumas get on her feet and teach her how to speak English.
When Dumas got to America, it didn’t take her long to find work, she was hired as a housekeeper for the Marriott Hotel in Boca Raton, where she continued to work for the next 20 years. In those 20 years, Dumas was able to retrieve each of her siblings but unfortunately her parents couldn’t make it. She now works as a housekeeper for small family of four in West Palm Beach.
Now having her family here in the States and being able to have them in a more comfortable position, Dumas has her eyes set on finishing her paperwork to becoming a citizen. If she doesn’t, she could potentially be sent back to Haiti, despite having lived in America for 45 years.
“Now that my family is here and I have no pressure of helping and retrieving them, I can focus on myself and do things right. I don’t want to be considered an ‘alien’ or an ‘outsider,’” she says. “I don’t even like the word ‘immigrant’ to be honest with you. I am a human being just like the next man or woman that walks on this earth. That is why I am working to receive my citizenship. Right now I am under TPS, but I understand that it may be coming to an end next year so I have to find a way to keep on finding a way. ”
TPS stands for Temporary Protected Status. Dumas is one of about 58,000 Haitian nations who came here legally under TPS, a category Trump has been trying to eliminate. Although a federal judge gave TPS-holders a reprieve in October, the Trump administration announced that the program would be ending for Haitians in July 2019. Many in the community live in fear, not knowing if their days in the U.S. are numbered, despite years of making a life for themselves here.
“These aren’t people. These are animals.”
Those were Pres. Trump’s words in March to describe illegal immigrants, in particular from Mexico. With these words ringing in my head, I leave you with a question: Do you think that Marie Dumas is an animal? Or is she a human being just like the president of the free world?
