Immigration from the perspective of an immigrant college student

By Danielle Perez
May 9, 2016

Danielle Perez

Growing up, I never described myself as an immigrant. I didn’t even know what the word actually meant until I got to middle school. But even as a youngster, I knew that identifying as an immigrant was not always a good thing.

But, why? Why did I, a young immigrant from the Dominican Republic, come to the conclusion that identifying as such in the United States was not an ideal thing to do? And then I grew up and realized why: there is no proper education being given to people in order for them to comprehend that people living in one country, while being from another, is not something to fear nor regard with animosity.

On a Monday evening in April, for Cabrini College’s weekly Catholic Relief Services (CRS) chapter meeting, Cabrini students welcomed Dr. Todd Scribner, the education outreach coordinator for the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. Scribner used the one-hour meeting to speak on the immigration issue happening right now.

During the discussion, Dr. Scribner talked about the realities of immigration and the many misconceptions of many non-immigrants – and immigrants, alike. Scribner’s clarifications shed light on many things that I, as an immigrant, did not know – such as the vocabulary used to describe certain types of migration, as well as many things that I did know and was glad to hear being said in front of other college students.

After the meeting, I got to share some of my personal experiences with the students in my Social Justice course, as well as express my frustration with the ignorance of others and the things I wished people would understand about this issue. And, it resulted in me coming to the conclusion that something significant needs to be done.

This culture of assumptions must stop and we should introduce a new [culture] centered on correct information. We need a culture where people are informed and educated so that they are able to ask the right questions – questions based on something other than ignorance or false assumptions.

I, myself, still have much more to learn about this topic and I intend on doing so. But while I do this, I want others to do the same and learn a few things along with me. I would like the generations after mine to live in a world where the term immigration or immigrant is not associated with a negative connotation. I would like them to live in a society where future generations are not forced to choose between coming to conclusions based on what others say or believe or what they have inappropriately learned.

If we, as a whole, take initiatives to implement more inclusive education in our schools and in our homes, we can ensure that those after us will have fewer things to worry about.

This article first appeared in the Missionary Sisters of the Sacred Heart newsletter for May 5, 2016.

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Danielle Perez

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