Structural Barriers

"Of course, not all of the Latino students I meet are so full of drive, determination or clarity about their goals. Some are angry and sullen, less optimistic about the future, less focused about the purpose of their education and less inclined to believe in the elusive American Dream” (pg. 262) This quote suggests that when it comes to the second and third generations, they have lost the hope and will to ‘work hard’ because they have seen the sacrifices of their parents (first generation) and that they have fell short, regardless of all the blood, sweat, and tears they have put forth in their life here in America. This is an excellent example of why the ‘Dream’ is not real and should not be an aspiration for immigrants because they come here hoping that they will be given the opportunity for a better life, when in reality they are struggling to put food on the table, let alone survive on a daily basis; constantly working over-time at these low paying jobs just to make ends meet. This is not the ‘Dream’ that these hard working people deserve and the second and third generations recognize this and grow to think that the hard work that they are capable of putting forth will amount to nothing. Lack of motivation and personal agency is what plagues these generations, but who can really blame them?

PROP 187 was a 1994 ballot initiative to establish a state-run citizenship screening system and prohibit illegal aliens from using non-emergency health care, public education, and other services in the state of California. With this said, ‘The end to race-based affirmative-action policies in higher education, the end to bilingual education under the so-called English-only initiative, the get tough three strikes law, and the juvenile crime initiative, which lowered the age at which adolescents could be prosecuted as adults, all had harmful effects on the status and well being of Latinos in California’ (pg. 266) Every aspect of the way that Latino’s were living in California was disrupted by the passing of this proposition. The ‘freedom’ that the Latinos had was stripped from them indefinitely and people were failing to see the impact it had. According to Neoguera, Latinos are the ‘backbone of the U.S. economy and were despised because of it’ (pg.264). ‘Instead of gratitude and appreciation for all we do, we are subjected to resentment and scorn, and increasingly overt hostility and violence. We are accused of taking American jobs, of making neighborhoods unsafe, of deteriorating the qulaity of life in affluent areas, and of spreading communicable diseases’ (pg.264). As a result of this thinking, the proposition was proposed and approved and affected all Latinos. America was supposed to be where they could live freely; live a better life and this is what Latinos get for bringing their diversity and culture to the United States: poverty and suffering. An example of the oppression that Latinos have experienced comes from the “Burrito King”, where issues of assimilation and integration are illustrated. This story was set a year after Brown vs. Board of Education and as a third generation immigrant, forced integration was taking place. However, due to the language as well as cultural barriers, the school was separated between the ‘gringos’ (whites) and the ‘Mexicans’. The ‘Mexicans’ brought their own food, tacos, while the ‘gringos’ bought their lunch in the cafeteria. The ‘Mexicans’ also couldn’t speak English very well and this was part of their assimilation into this new culture, where they didn’t quite understand what was going on sometimes. “We sat in the same cafeteria, gringos and Mexicans, having lunch on opposite sides of the room, staring each other down, not noticeably hostile toward one another, and all wondering how school integration might work.” (pg.215) With the difference in cultures, integration seemed more difficult than beneficial, and that is what is being depicted in this story. Assimilation of cultures, especially if the ‘dominant’ one is not accepting of differences in physical appearance and culture, integration is harder to achieve and is overwhelming to the ‘other’.

It is sad to say that hard work alone is not enough for children like Miguel Fernandez. The reality of it is, because Miguel is undocumented and is also not proficient in English, he will not be successful in America. Regardless of the 30 plus hours he puts in every week, on top of getting high marks in his classes, it simply isn’t enough. ‘After his second attempt, Miguel was still not able to pass the English portion of the New York State Reagents exam. Though he’s lived in this country eight years and attended schools in NYC, his command of English remains weak and without a Reagent’s diploma, Miguel will not be able to attend a public college. To complicate things further, Miguel is an undocumented immigrant…his manager has praised him for his reliability and work ethic, and promised that he would recommend him for an assistant manager’s position in six months… he would be entitled to health benegits and a salary close to $30,000 a year. For Miguel, the possibility of a stable job and a position of authority is a reward so alluring that he decides it makes far more sense to hang in there rather than working to pass the Reagent’s exam at night school.’ (pgs.260–261). As it is shown here, Miguel has yet to pass the English portion of this state exam, and without a passing score he will not be eligible to go to college, further he is undocumented meaning that he cannot receive financial aid and it would be difficult for him to pay for college. The job he holds at the fast food restaurant is probably the best option for him, where he wouldn’t have to worry about any legal matters. This clearly shows that even though Miguel is a bright student, his hard work in school and to receive a college education is hindered by his circumstances and he is forced to settle at this job, which guarantees him health benefits and opportunity to make more money at the cost of his education. Hard work is not enough and falls short even for Miguel, who seemingly has done everything ‘right’. This disillusionment among second and even third generations is linked to the promise of the American Dream, because again, they see this hard work that their parents have been forth and even their siblings, and they still have fell short, proving that this ‘American Dream’ is just an illusion and nothing more, because they see the sacrifices they need to make in order to achieve very little which is not what the ‘Dream’ is about. The ‘Dream’ promises equal opportunity and how hard work and will can improve your circumstances, but this does not hold true and it is clearly seen here in Miguel’s situation.

‘They are usually the second and third generation Latino students…unlike their immigrant counterparts, these are children of the present. Children who are so consumed with surviving, with getting by, with learning how to make it from day to day, that they make no plans for the future, and often have troubled contemplating life past eighteen.” (pg.262) Not all Latino immigrants are like Miguel, who are full of hope and are driven to succeed, which creates tension sometimes between these generations because these second and third generations do not have the same will and are forced to think that it is their fault that they didn’t do ‘enough’ to get somewhere in their lives. They have acknowledged that their circumstances hinder them from getting far so they don’t try and only know that they must do anything and everything in their power to survive on a daily basis. They also acknowledge the fact that even with an education, the system that they have been forced to be assimilated in is designed for them to fail, essentially, so hard work won’t do anything. Education in this case seems like more of a negative than a positive to immigrants and this is unacceptable and proves that there is a structural issue that must be reformed in order to secure a better future for these people who have left everything they’ve known, to come here and still feel oppressed as they did before.

Trump and Cruz are the GOP candidates and their stance on immigration is to move forward with the ideas behind prop 187 and even more extreme measures. Clinton, as discussed in class, her stance depends on who she is talking to, suggesting that her views flip-flop and are not solid on the issue of immigration. Sanders on the other hand, feels very strongly about comprehensive immigration reform that will provide the road to citizenship for all immigrants.

Regardless of one anyone says, this is the election that will impact not only my generation but everyone, in all aspects. Of course we hope that Bernie Sanders policies would be passed, but the reality that we face right now is that we might be living in an America that condemns immigrants on a great scale and as a child of an immigrant, this is unacceptable. Immigrants are the backbone of this country and I have to agree with Noguera on that. One of the things I like about this country is how diverse it is and that’s why this so called ‘Dream’ came about. If America wasn’t advertising this false idea of the ‘Dream’ than maybe America immigrants wouldn’t have been enticed, but the fact of it is, America houses a lot immigrants and the fact that Trump and Cruz say that immigrants are what’s ruining this country, they need to take a good hard look at themselves and understand that immigrants is what makes America great. If any of these two candidates held office, immigrants like myself and the students that I work with at Canal Alliance would be greatly affected; we would probably see people getting deported left and right and as someone who’s dad was undocumented, the horror of having my dad being deported back then when he didn’t have papers, was a terrifying thing. Families will be broken and America’s cultural diversity that most have been proud of would be destroyed.

I am absolutely voting in the next election and the younger generation can really sway this June primary if everyone stood up and understood that WE will be directly affected. Our future will be affected and our children’s future will be affected. We cannot sit here and do nothing, we have to understand the reality at hand and make sure that we have a say in what is going to happen to our families and our lives here in this country.