Critical Reflection of Illegal: Reflections of an Undocumented Immigrant

What?

I cannot think of a better word to start with than the title of the narrative itself: illegal. The word so often used in American political discourse labels immigrants such as the author and sets a powerful idea of the type of person he or she is without any other form of judgement. In our minds we have prototypes, or the first image that pops up into our minds when we think of something. Words like “illegal” and “alien” and even phrases like “back into their country” are essentially meaningless taken out of the context of American political discourse. There are so many questions missing from the discussion: How can someone be illegal by simply existing in a space? How do we compare a person of another culture to a being we cannot understand or don’t know where it came from? Why are we assuming this person has any relationship with the country their genetics are linked to? Jose Angel makes a clear point that laws meant to rid the country of threats also affect him, when he is talking about the Real ID law, saying it was “aimed at cracking down on terrorists, [but] its claws scratched me too” (12). Laws like these lump immigrants into the same category as the fear-infighting terrorists, which sends a message to the American people, intended or not. While it is not signed legislature, Jose Angel’s encounter with the police officer in chapter four shows a different kind of law almost as harsh as legislature: social law. The humiliation he experiences from the officer’s demeaning “Do you even speak English?” is evidence of the enforcement of these words that make up how we think about one another in all shapes and forms. Lastly, his critical views of Obama stem from an immigration overhaul and his lack of action on improving immigration policy. I think this is mainly coming from a feeling of betrayal, because Obama had failed to complete the immigration bill in his first year of presidency, and so Jose Angel felt he was acting, not doing his part.

So What?

For the entirety of the book, Jose Angel is very self concious of his immigration status, afraid to tell his coworkers and is constantly trying to cover his tracks. One of the most heartbreaking points in the narrative for me is when he continuously makes excuses as to why he cannot join his coworkers for drinks, further pushing him into the loneliness he feels away from his family. In the beginning, it starts this way, but then it begins to expand into an ongoing frustration of inability to excell in school, share the same culture as friends, and even affect his views about his own job status, guilting himself into questioning why he should have a job over another person, saying “shouldn’t this middle-age man sitting right across from me, with all his experience and legal documents, be offered the job that I have sequestered?” (78) I think there is a real turning point for him when he decides to participate in the census and his mood towards being an immigrant in the United States seems to shift. He says, “it solves nothing, but it does give me the illusion of dignity while allowing the United States to pat itself on the back.” (90) I think this section of his autobiography is so interesting, because in a way he is taking pride in who he is, even titling the chapter “The Day I Got Counted,” yet there is so much resentment and sarcasm in his tones. I think there is a large amount of complexity to how Jose Angel feels about his immigration status, but overall he learns to grow and essentially forgive himself in order to adapt to living in the United States.

Now What?

Listening to the political discourse that assumes immigrants are dangerous or not involved with American culture can be so dangerous, especially when taken exactly as it is stated in the media. I have always been fortunate enough to have close friends who have talked to me about their’s or their parent’s immigration experience, and have shown me sides to immigration not popular to view-thirsty news stations. In Jose Angel’s case, one of the first things he writes about once he was in the United States was going to a baseball game, or as he says, “I sat back, drank my beer slowly, and enjoyed this most American of experiences.” (17) There are also many instances where he praises learning English; he always speaks so highly of English, because it provides him social mobility, and he admired the thought of being accepted into American culture. Above all, Jose Angel’s story proved to myself and hopefully anyone else who reads it just how hard immigrants are willing to work and how much they are willing to give up to pursue their dream.