Child Illegal Immigration in the US

The article that I read, "My Life as an Undocumented Immigrant," was written by Jose Antonio Vargas about his journey to and life in the US as an illegal immigrant. He was sent by his mother from the Philippines at a very young age to live with his grandparents in the US. He was able to go through all of his schooling and make a career with fake papers and the help of a network of friends. While this article follows only his story, it is probably very similar to that of countless other illegal immigrants who arrived here as children hoping for a better life. It was a really interesting insight into the specific logistics of how a child is able to get into the US and stay here for their whole lives undetected. The article talked about all the fake papers that he had to have, how carefully he had to keep his immigration “problem” a secret, and how he was supported by a vast network of people. He ended up being a successful journalist and living what he mentioned as the “american dream.” I found this very interesting that he talked about this. I have heard a lot of other stories about immigrants or visitors to the US from other countries who idolized the US from afar, but realized upon arriving here that it was not what it seemed to be and that the “american dream” was much less achievable than they previously thought.
One of the other things that I found really interesting about this article was how his viewpoints on his own immigration status changed. While he was young, he seemed convinced that if he worked hard enough, he could earn his way into legal status. I found this really interesting, and it is probably a viewpoint that a lot of other child immigrants share. It also contradicts common misperceptions about illegal immigrants. He, like so many others, worked hard to get where he did, and lived as if her were a citizen by paying taxes and etc. As he grew older, he began to realize that he couldn't just work hard and become a citizen, and he seemed to accept this fact. He ends by saying that he wrote this article as a way of owning up to who he is and accepting the consequences.

Vargas, Jose Antonio. “My Life as an Undocumented Immigrant.” New York Times, 22 June

2011. https://www.nytimes.com/2011/06/26/magazine/my-life-as-an-undocumented-immigrant.html.

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