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Daughter of Immigrants

Born in a city embraced of ethnic cultures and pride in ones roots; Los Angeles is the city of dreams. Where immigrants come to from all over the world to pursue the American Dream and provide a future of opportunities for their children. Our parents struggled to get here whether is be the legal way or not.  Hispanic/Latino families are raised to stick together and take care of their own.  How we treat others says a lot about our character and who we are as people. Raised to give respect and to be appreciative of everything we have in life. Little did we know what life had in store.  At the age of 5 my father had an opportunity to work in a different state, Arkansas. He was excited to move out of the city where the violence was getting to be unbearable.  Moving to a small town was just what his family needed in his eyes. A new environment, new school, new friends for his children.  The perfect fresh start, little did he know how that would affect his children when it came time for them to start school.  

Springdale, Arkansas was a majority white town, I was one out of two Hispanic children in the class. Being a new child in a school where no one spoke Spanish was hard on me.  I was different, I no longer felt like I belonged, I was an outcast.  Every day I would have to leave who I was and be someone else when I walked into school.  As the years moved on the Hispanic/Latino students were finally sent to a class throughout the week known as English as a second language (ESL). As a child you feel targeted when you have to leave class to go learn more English (even if you fluent).  It separates you from the rest of the population in the school.  When we had to fill out forms about our race, I couldnt relate so I would typically put other.  

My parents made it a priority while in the home to embrace our culture and celebrate the traditions of our culture. No matter how much we wanted to quit or give up growing up, we knew that was not an option.  My father would always say no matter what, always stay one step ahead think about the possibilities and continue to push.  From being a first-generation high school graduate to now a first-generation college student. As a daughter of immigrants, I overcame, I struggled and I learned valuable life lessons.   I did what I had to, to make my parents proud to show them the life they changed and struggled so hard for paid off.