My Name is Maria El and I am Undocumented

My name is Maria. I was born in Uruapan, Michoacán, Mexico. This is the life of an undocumented student.

As you all know Mexico is a very corrupted country in which most of the population is born in misery and poverty.  Unfortunately my family was one of the many born at poverty level.  My father wanted to give his children a more promising future even if it meant leaving his entire family and country.  In May of 1992 he immigrated to the United States to work illegally in California and financially support his three children and wife who were still residing in Mexico.  He was sending money monthly and he settled in the United States for about nine months.  After such an extended period of time my father was anxious to see his family but he just couldn't risk leaving the country, particularly because he entered it as an illegal.  He instead decided to save more money and have his wife and children brought to him in the United States of America.

In March of 1993 my mother was to cross the border with her three children, ages 3, 2, and 11 months.  She was with a couple of acquaintances and their mission was to enter the United States one way or another. They all agreed to stay together until they reached their final destination.  They tried crossing the river, getting in through the dangerous city of Tijuana and even the dry desert sands.  Unfortunately they were all caught by the Border patrols five times. It was merely impossible to cross the border with two toddlers and an infant.  My mother's other acquaintances considered us burdens so they abandoned my mother in Tijuana leaving her all alone and with three very ill children.  Coincidentally my mother met a woman in Tijuana who was willing to cross her over with her three children hidden in a car compartment in exchange for a small fee.  Miraculously my mother entered the country illegally on her sixth attempt.

I was only three years old when my family arrived to the Unites States therefore my first memories were established in America.  I don't remember anything from Mexico or even recall crossing the border.  I just heard the stories my mother told her friends about our life in Michoacán and the dangerous journey we had when we bravely traveled from Mexico to the United States.

The only home I knew was America.  I embraced the American culture and initiated pre-school, went to kindergarten and later on excelled in elementary and in middle school.  As a matter of fact I was top graduate in my eighth grade graduation.  It was such an honor to hear all the applauses and receive all of the awards.  Everyone told me I had a bright future ahead of me and that I was going to attend an extraordinary university and have an admirable career if I kept up my excellent grades in high school.

I entered high school and I knew I had to take honor classes, AP courses and join extracurricular activities in order to attend a good university.  I had my mind set on success and I knew that there was nothing stopping me.  Or at least I thought there was nothing stopping me.  When we first arrived to the United States my father applied for the I-94 and my brother, my sister and I all qualified for it and we received it in the form of a social security.  The card was valid for certain social benefits, but not valid for employment.  I knew my country of citizenship was Mexico, but since I had this social security card I thought everything was settled. I honestly believed this little card would help me receive loans and grants for college.  Throughout my entire high school career I was dedicated to my schoolwork and activities.  I was enrolled in approximately seven AP courses including Calculus, Physics, and Chemistry.  I was also part of the track team, cross country team, drama and dance departments and I still managed to maintain my grades in excellent shape.

When I initiated my senior year of high school I wanted to keep my options open so I decided to apply to many universities.  First I applied to the state universities and that's when things started getting complicated. Since I wrote down my social security I also had to write down my alien registration number and I didn't even have an "alien registration number".    I also didn't qualify for the fee waivers which meant that I had to pay for every single application I submitted, to any university I applied for.  I thought this was utterly unfair because several of my classmates were applying to various universities and I was just left there feeling rejected.  Many of these students didn't even take school seriously, they didn't work nearly as hard as I did and worst of all they took everything for granted.  To make matters worse my parents couldn't afford to pay for my college applications; they told me that they were only willing to pay for one.  So I applied to a couple of universities with the help of two amazing teachers who were willing to pay for some college applications.

When March came around I found out that the social security I had was not valid for financial aid and that I didn't qualify for any grants, loans or federal student aid.  The meaning of my illegal status began to sink in.  Apparently the card I had was only given to my parents for tax purposes.  Everything I had worked for suddenly seemed pointless and it literally felt like a slap in the face.  I felt as if my dreams and aspirations were crushed and buried into the ground.  I couldn't help but feel hopeless, confused and discouraged.

It seemed completely unfair that I was being rejected just because I was born on foreign ground.  Was it really my fault that my parents decided to illegally cross the border and bring me to this country?  As a matter of fact they were doing it for my own good.  They didn't want me to grow up in a government that was corrupted and unfair to those who were born at poverty level.  They did what was best for me and my younger siblings.

This country was initiated on immigration.  What ever happened to the "American Dream" or the "land of the ‘free' and home of the brave"?  At that point of my life I felt nowhere near free.  But I did feel brave.  I wasn't ready to give up.  I was willing to do whatever it took to attend college and receive my citizenship.  Fortunately I was smart enough to apply to private scholarships during the months of August September and October and all I had to do was wait for the results.

I graduated high school in June 2008 as salutatorian of my class with a grade point average of 3.96 and with many scholarships and awards.  It still didn't seem reasonable that I was such an excelling student and that I wasn't attending the university of my dreams because I didn't qualify for any grants or federal student aid at any of the universities I applied for .  I also didn't have the documentation stating my residency.

The part that aggravates me the most is that I am not the only one who is going through this.  There are an abundance of undocumented students who graduate high school each year among them valedictorians, salutatorians and top graduates.  My younger siblings are also among this crowd.  My sister is currently a senior in high school and in my same predicament.  She is an excellent student and it is frustrating to see her go through this awful situation.  And it doesn't end there. Unfortunately we will also have to see my younger brother, who will graduate in 2010, go through this as well.  It's not bad enough that I live the life of an undocumented student; sadly I will also witness the struggles my younger siblings will put up with after they graduate high school.

I am an American.  My nationality is Mexican but I consider myself a Mexican-American.  I speak fluent English and know the United States like the back of my hand.  I long to attend Berkley and receive a medical degree.  I see a bright future ahead of me but an obstacle keeps getting in my way.  I am hoping that the DREAM ACT is enforced this year because I would hate to see more students go through what I have to go through.  It breaks my heart to see so much potential go to waste.  I don't see why we are given hope if it's just going to be ripped out of our hands in a split second.  Politicians need to support the DREAM ACT and set it as a top priority because all of the students who will benefit from it will be our next doctors, lawyers' educators and politicians.  We are the future of America; all we need is your support.

Visit DreamACTivist.org to find out how you can help pass the DREAM Act.