The Dreamers

Even though it was 40 years ago, my senses are awakened as I remember my first trip to Mexico!  I loved everything about the place!  The first thing that struck me as I walked across the border from San Diego to Tijuana was color – the bright colors of the paper flowers the little Mexican children sell to all who cross that border.  They were bright and bold and vibrant, and it was exhilarating to think about the day ahead.  And, oh, what a day it was!  

Welcome to my newest vase of Whimsical, Wonky Flowers.  I was hoping to capture the vibrant hues of those paper flowers in this watercolor and wanted it to have a feel of Mexico.  I pictured bright colors as well as soft colors and a bold statement along with subtle overtones.  Well, the soft colors didn’t work, so it’s my usual bright, bold colors.  Inspiration for this painting came from my heart for America’s young immigrants who were born in other countries and brought here as children.  And, it was specifically inspired by a conversation I had with a young woman I’ve known for years.  

Those who know me know that I do not take up a cause lightly, but when I am involved, I am all in.  This year my passion was voting.  Across our country, many people worked hard to get people registered to vote and to make sure they got to the polls or mailed in their ballots.  I was fortunate to find a local group with a leader who had been at this for several months before I became involved.  She taught me so much, and I loved working with her.  We spent many hours in a booth at the Farmers’ Market working to get people registered.  I also spent a good bit of time getting to know the people in our County Elections Office.  Those people worked so hard to ensure everything was as good as it could possibly be.  It was clear they were motivated to work hard under very trying circumstances – a pandemic in a state that decided to send mail ballots to all voters for the first time ever, an attempt by some politicians to make people fear the use of our Postal Service, and attempts by the same group to instill fear concerning the voting process.  Not only did these election workers know their work was critical, especially during a pandemic, but they also had to be flexible due to frequent procedural changes.  It was stressful for these folks.  They worked hard with purpose and dedication, and I think we all owe them our thanks for jobs well done.     

Our small, but focused group, registered many people and provided voting information to hundreds.  It was one of the hardest things I’ve done and one of the most rewarding.  The hard part was to never discuss or even hint at my political leanings while I was working.  Our work was strictly bi-partisan, and we could not have succeeded if it had been otherwise.  

Early on, our group spoke about the need to try to get younger voters and Spanish-speaking voters into our group.  We succeeded on the former, but not so much on the latter.  But, along the way and in my attempts to recruit, I learned something that is deeply troubling to me.  I learned about Dreamers.  I thought I understood what that term meant and who the Dreamers were.  I did not.  My education on this subject began one day last summer when I called a friend of mine here in my little desert town.  When I met this woman many years ago, she had a beautiful little boy.  Now, that little boy is in school and has two little sisters.  My friend and her husband have a beautiful family.  Well, I called her to ask if she might be willing to work with our group on getting people registered.  I told her I was asking not only because she was Spanish-speaking, but also because she spoke English without an accent.  There was a long pause before she answered, in a faltering voice, that she would love to help, but didn’t think she could do so.  I asked why, and she told me that she was undocumented – a Dreamer.  She was born in Mexico and came to U.S. with her parents as a little girl.  This was the only home she knew.  I was surprised.  I really had no idea.  So, we talked, and I mostly listened, and I was stunned at my lack of understanding of the situation in which these folks find themselves.  I live in an area where many people speak Spanish and had no idea what some of my neighbors have been through over the last few years, especially the Dreamers.

Here’s what I did not know:

 DREAM Act – The Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors Act is a legislative proposal to grant temporary conditional residency, with the right to work, to unauthorized immigrants who entered the United States as minors—and, if they later satisfy further qualifications, they would attain permanent residency. 

This bill was first introduced in 2001 but it did not pass. The proposal has since been reintroduced several times, but has not been approved by the Senate.

 DACA –  Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) is an immigration policy established by President Obama through Executive Order in 2012.  DACA allows some individuals with unlawful presence in the United States after being brought to the country as children to receive a renewable two-year period of deferred action from deportation and become eligible for a work permit in the U.S. To be eligible for the program, recipients cannot have felonies or serious misdemeanors on their records. Unlike the proposed DREAM Act, DACA does not provide a path to citizenship for recipients.  

 Dreamers are in a limbo-like situation with no path to citizenship. 

 Dreamers pay taxes – at the same rate as everyone else 

 Dreamers are not eligible for any Federal programs including Social Security, Medicaid,  ACA health insurance, federal student aid, etc. 

 Dreamers may not travel outside the country.  They couldn’t get back into the U.S. if they left.  That means my friend does not know the country of her parents and can’t even visit family there.

I didn’t know any of this and I did not know the fear they lived with because we do not have a path to citizenship for them.  It’s something I so hope our Congress can take up in the new term.  I hope some day she gets to see the bright colors of her native Mexico and taste the deliciousness of tortillas stuffed with carne and queso asadero right off the round burner.  And, those yummy margaritas!   And, wait,  there is the excitement and the sound of the mariachis.  Oh, so many memories from that day so long ago.  I hope my friend gets to experience all of these some day soon.

In the interim, I hope you all enjoy my newest Whimsical, Wonky flowers that I hope are kissed with the possibilities of a kinder, gentler world going forward.

Salud!