The Struggles of an Immigrant

 

    

There are people in the world who are looking for better lives for themselves or for their families. When they hear of a place full of opportunities, they must leave almost everything behind to get ahold of this opportunity for a chance to live better. But of course, most undocumented immigrants that arrive to the U.S. are not usually welcomed happily by some people and are met with prejudice. When arriving undocumented immigrants are not expecting for everything to go their way, they know that must work harder than anyone else to make sure they have enough for a roof over their heads and at least for some food on their plates.

            When arriving to the U.S. there are many hardships that undocumented immigrants must overcome one way or another to be able to live comfortably in the United States. These challenges that are presented to undocumented immigrants when arriving are troublesome since they are issues that are temporary issues that can lead to becoming permanent problems if they are not taken care of right away. Some of these challenges are stuff like the language barrier, the lack of employment options/opportunities, Housing, and raising children to name a few. Now let’s talk more about these issues.

·         Language Barrier

We all know how hard it can be to learn a new language so to come from other places where the English language will most likely be needed it then of course becomes a problem for the people that want to come over to the U.S. since English would be the most common language that the people would be speaking. The country from which a person resides may not need the use of the English language since most likely most if not every person that would reside in the country would not be speaking English therefore English education may be lacking or not have any sort of English education. The lack of English for undocumented immigrants puts a big stop on most of the things that could be achieved if immigrants knew the language and because of the lack of English certain things that could be achieved is in this case lost. Being able to understand and speak English is important since knowing and understanding the language can help undocumented immigrants be able to gain more opportunities when getting a job since a job is important for everyone, without a job people wouldn’t be able to get and without money there would be no food, housing, or any other items that would be needed for everyday use. Knowing English can really make a difference with the types of jobs that you can get and by knowing and understanding the language can help get a job that pays better than others. Also, if they know English they can be of better help to their children when it come to the language or even with schoolwork. With all the issues that they already must go through with finding a job and providing family they already have a lot of stuff going on in their lives that most of the time they don’t have the time to study and learn the English language. Nowadays some undocumented immigrants know some English or at least understand what someone is saying when speaking English is saying. Now let’s move on and talk about the lack of employment options/opportunities

·         Lack of employment options/opportunities

For an undocumented immigrant that has just arrive to the U.S. finding a job is very crucial since obtaining a job will be the way you are able to get food as well as other necessities that are needed. Of course, finding a job for an immigrant is not all that easy. Many undocumented immigrants when looking for a job are met with prejudice because they are not born in the U.S., they are usually not hired for a job but there are cases where they are hired but do not get paid a lot or enough. Not only that but also many who hire immigrants do it for their own benefit. According to The Quinn Law Firm “Many work in low-paying or dangerous occupations, such as domestic work, construction, agriculture, and food service. These jobs often complement white-collar positions, but employers may take advantage of their undocumented status.” (2022). In these cases, undocumented workers would be forced to work longer periods of times but unlike others they may not be paid for the extra time they put in the work or would not even be paid minimum wage. If anything, the job that hires them may not even give them the benefits that workers should be getting. Undocumented workers have it very tough but they most likely can’t complain and can’t quit because the job is needed and not a lot of people would hire them and could also be threatened by other ways for example cutting down their wages even more and even saying that could call immigration authorities. As it is stated by Vickerstaff Law Office "Newcomers to America often face such barriers as difficulty speaking the language of their employers and co-workers, and not understanding employment laws that protect employees. They may also be afraid that they will be disciplined if they stand up for their rights. As a result, many employers take advantage of immigrants, particularly those who are not in the country legally. Often, immigrants do not receive minimum wage or are denied payment for working overtime. Their employers may deny them breaks for meals or going to the restroom. They might not be given training or safety equipment that can make their jobs safer". Now let’s move on and talk about housing.

·         Housing

For an undocumented immigrant and their family housing just like everything else is a big deal. For a person that is undocumented can’t really get and find a home immediately because they don’t have the money yet to rent let alone buy a house because they may not have a job yet to get said money and also because the price of renting a house is not exactly cheap. For a person coming to the U.S., they may have family already in the U.S. and are able to live with them for the time being while they find a job and pay rent for living with family to pay them back for letting them stay in their home until they have enough to rent a place of their own. But of course, not everyone has family already living in the U.S. for
others they may have to rent a house with many other undocumented immigrants to be able to pay for the rent of a house or apartment but not everyone would be willing to rent out a house or apartment to immigrants. According to youthvoices.live “Housing for immigrants is hard because people talk unacceptable about Immigrants and landlords are making an impediment so they don’t rent to immigrants. That is something that happens a lot because people talk awful about Immigrants.” (Dec 1, 2019).

·         Raising children

For immigrant parents to have to raise children would be considered difficult. With all the problems that they already must go through and with not being so financially stable it could prove to be a challenge for them. If they don’t make that much money but have enough to buy their necessities, then
they should be able to live just fine by only buying what is necessary. With a child there are many things that are needed for them to be taken care of like food and toys for the child and other forms of entertainment for them would be needed and a lot more money is used so that at least everyone has enough to eat, and the child has toys to play with and clothing to wear. In these cases, most immigrant parents give up on their own dreams and start working extra hard for their child to have everything they need. The parents start working not for their own future but for their child’s future so that they can accomplish their own hopes and dreams and for them to have a future where they themselves don’t have to struggle to get by. Of course with people disliking immigrants and wanting them to go back to their country whether it be willingly or by force the children also have that to worry about since if for example ICE were to go to someone's and a family member of there's away and the child or anyone in the household saw this they would of course be distraught by the situation that just occurred and could leave them them scared and worried and could lead to a child being mentally scarred. According to the American Immigration Council

• A 2020 study found that the detention or deportation of a family member was associated with significantly higher rates of suicidal thought, alcohol use, and aggression among Latino adolescents in Atlanta, Georgia.
• A 2020 study examined the impact on children, families, and communities of worksite raids in Ohio, Texas, and Mississippi. The study found that many of the children of workers swept up in the raids exhibited signs of PTSD, including difficulty sleeping, frequent crying, and heightened fear. 
• Even before birth, immigration enforcement can put a child’s health at risk. The 2008 worksite raid in Postville, Iowa (the largest single-site immigration raid in U.S. history) was tied to premature and underweight births—complications that put babies at risk for infant death or long-term health problems. Researchers found that babies born to Latina mothers in Iowa within 37 weeks of the raid were 24 percent more likely to be underweight compared to births over the same amount of time one year earlier. This increased risk was not evident in babies born to non-Latina white mothers in Iowa.

These types of situations can to a family struggling because of fear and that fear has now instantly taken over their lives. Because a family ends up struggling in these situations they know that they could not go back to being the same as before.

I decided to talk about this issue because my family, my friend’s families, and other relatives of mine have struggled with these sorts of issues that I have mentioned. My family comes from Mexico and came over to Los Angeles, I have talked to them and asked them about the struggles that they faced when arriving to the U.S. and have also asked my friends whose families where in the same situation. They told me that some of their families have struggled with these similar issues. I was told by my uncle that even now most people that come to the U.S. still struggle with these issues. I was told that from the start when my family first arrived to California they were working to have enough money for themselves but mainly for me so that I could get a good education and that hopefully in the future I could get a job that I like and don’t have to struggle with work like they have and I want to show them that all the hardships that they had to go through was not for nothing and I feel like that would be the same for many children of immigrant parents.

Work Cited

American Immigration Council. “U.S. Citizen Children Impacted by Immigration Enforcement.” American Immigration Council, 24 June 2021, https://www.americanimmigrationcouncil.org/research/us-citizen-children-impacted-immigration-enforcement.

“Author Victor, Victor, and Victor. “Why Is Hard for Immigrants to Find Housing?” Youth Voices Site Wide Activity RSS, 18 Feb. 2020, https://www.youthvoices.live/why-is-hard-for-immigrants-to-find-housing/.

How Are Undocumented Immigrants Often Treated Unfairly at Work?: John Vickerstaff: Louisville.” Vickerstaff Law Office, PSC, https://www.vickerstafflaw.com/articles/how-are-undocumented-immigrants-often-treated-unfairly-at-work/.

The Quinn Law Firm. “How Serious Are Employment Challenges for Immigrants?” The Quinn Law Firm, https://www.thequinnlawfirm.com/articles/how-serious-are-employment-challenges-for-immigrants/.

Vickerstaff Law Office. “How Are Undocumented Immigrants Often Treated Unfairly at Work?: John Vickerstaff: Louisville.” Vickerstaff Law Office, PSC, https://www.vickerstafflaw.com/articles/how-are-undocumented-immigrants-often-treated-unfairly-at-work/.