(Originally posted on DailyKos.)
I'm an immigrant and I had it easy. When my parents made the heartbreaking decision to leave Argentina because the political and economic situation made life too dangerous and difficult — when they decided that the best they could do for their two small daughters was to leave behind their family, friends and culture, and relocate to the United States — they took a bold and painful step towards the future. They worked tirelessly to give our family the opportunity to thrive. My mother started out as a messenger carrying documents throughout Manhattan. To this day, she knows the city like the back of her hand. My father continues to work 10-12 hour days six days a week driving a truck.
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But compared to the life immigrants like us face today, we had it really easy. You see, I came to this country with a shiny little document called a green card. Today, immigrants like me have few or no options to come to the United States legally. The wait-times for some visas can be decades long. Today, most people in my family's desperate situation come to the United States illegally.
They come because life in their home country has become unbearable — they cannot feed their children or keep them out of harm's way. What's missing from the immigration debate is the fact that most immigrants don't want to leave their country. Most immigrants don't come because the grass is greener in the U.S. — they come because there is no grass in their home country. They work hard, pay taxes, learn English, adopt American traditions, and do the best they can to make a life for themselves and their family.
