Reyna Grande Speech and Immigration

I had the opportunity to attend a convocation in which Reyna Grande was the guest speaker on Wednesday, Nov. 5. Reyna Grande spoke about her journey from an undocumented immigrant to a college graduate and successful author. She also talked about the problems going on in Ayotzinapa, Mexico. It was an honor and a privilege to hear her speak; she inspired me in a great way.

Reyna Grande has a wonderful success story and it means a lot more to me because her story resembles my life. Hearing her speak gives me motivation to keep working for my dreams and to reach out to others and help them out. She went from being an undocumented immigrant to a college graduate and a successful author. The odds were against her and she did the unthinkable. She proved people wrong and she made her family proud.

 In the United States, there are a lot of immigrants coming over to make their dreams a reality and to become successful people. My parents migrated here to the United States to get a better life and to give me a better education. They knew that they weren't going to be able to give me a good education in Mexico because they were poor fieldworkers. They couldn't make more money either because they only made it to elementary school before dropping out to help their parents. In the end, they brought me America when I was 2 years old. I'm grateful they brought me here because I don't know where I would be if I was in Mexico. I came here as a baby immigrant who later turned to a Dreamer.

In the town of Ayotzinapa, there were forty three college students who were kidnapped by the police and the person behind the kidnapping was the town mayor. People in that town and throughout Mexico were infuriated about the situation. The students were kidnapped and they were killed just so that the rebel students couldn't interrupt an event his wife had planned. These students along with a lot of people are frustrated with the government. There is a lot of corruption in Mexico and this was the final straw for a lot people. These students were trying to better their lives’ and the lives’ of their families. That is what makes this all sad; a lot of people in Mexico don't have the money to pursue a higher education. These students were pursuing their dreams and the government came in and shattered them. I didn't know that all of this was going on until Reyna Grande came in talked about the issue.

I want to add my grain of sand by helping these people and the students that are coming to the United States looking to get a higher education. My education here in the United States has been wonderful; I've had wonderful teachers that pushed me to be successful in school and in life. They made me believe that I am capable of a lot of things. This is why I want to be a teacher because there are a lot of kids in America that have a similar story like mine or Reyna Grande's. I want to help these students achieve their full potential. Reyna Grande is right when she said, "It only takes one person to change their family tree". These immigrants are looking to do just that and so were the 43 students in Mexico. It's my duty as a future educator to help every student better their lives’ and hopefully change their family tree for the good.