Tale of an Immigrant by Christian Betancourt

 

We flee our native lands striving for a better tomorrow

So that our kids and grand kids may have not to suffer the same

Your lands, your culture, and your language we borrow

"You are taking our jobs and our land" you continue to blame.

 

Through the dry arid Sonoran Desert 

We travel one-hundred thousand horrid miles.

My esophagus yearns for hydration.

It must be quenched

Yet it remains as dry as these intense rigid conditions

Empty stomachs that cannot bear any longer

They must be nourished

Our bodies call for rest but

We cannot 

Knowing that across the border 

Is a haven where all dreams are possible.

 

 

 

 

Our feet cannot endure this pain anymore.

Every step afflicts more pain 

To the constant wounds

Yet we progress knowing

Every step forwards is

A step towards stability.

 

Across the long waters of

The deadly Rio Grande River

That stretches for 1,896 miles

Lies a vivid dream.

We must swim in spite

Of the dangers.

 Every stroke is

A stroke closer towards opportunity

That is only strides away.

 

Over the city of El Paso

Surrounds a 21-inch barbed wall

On the other side of the wall

Is hope.

Hope that life will progressively improve

Better life opportunities and

A better quality of life

Are attainable after this intense journey.

 

Many of my brothers never reach to see this hope

Nor to reach their dreams

As their bodies faint to the ground

Unable to continue 

After long rigorous days and nights

Travelling in these conditions

Without rest or vague nourishment.

Their hope is lost along this journey

For the sake of this dream.

 

“You are all lazy!”

 

 

 

Take us not as threatening thieves.

We are here to help not steal

To this great nation.

We are humble people.

We are hard-working.

 

For we come with a simple pursuit of a dream

A dream of one day

Having larger life opportunities.

That perhaps,

We have the opportunity towards a stable life

And an opportunity of our kids

Being able to reach their life aspirations

That may be able to go to college.

To become respectable men and women

Lawyers, Doctors, and Engineers

And contribute to this nation.

A dream much more tangible

Than one that is provided back home.

 

Working in the hot, steamy fields

For very little recognition.

“Go back to where you all came from!”

 You continue to chant

These kinds of jobs are too rigorous

For such small compensation.

Taking on day-long shifts in these conditions

Yet we do so, 

Knowing that there is light,

At the end of the tunnel.

 

 

“You are no good to society!”

 

We are not thieves nor criminals I say.

We come to do the unpleasant jobs

That you do not desire.

Why don’t you try approaching us a different way?

Instead of condemning us,

For attempting to achieve this dream.

 

Is this not what this nation is about?

 

Life

Liberty

And the Pursuit of Happiness?

 

The very own principles in which this nation was founded upon?

I suppose.

 

We are a nation of immigrants

From all over the world.

So how are you and I any different?

 

 

No matter how much you try to restrains us 

From achieving these goals

We will always find a path to surpass

These fences that repress us 

From moving forward.

 

We will not go away

We come to give

And not to take away

Racial discrimination

And prejudice we endure.

 

We will not go away.

We come here to stay.

Oppression

Neglect 

Rejection from you “Americans”

We will continue to endure.