Sankar Raman

A Focus on the Possible

For Emiliano Ruelas Sosa, the doors to the American dream began to close when he was 15. Due to his legal status he was not allowed to get his driver’s […]

Sankar Raman

A Rebellion Against Silence

Sindy Avila-Gutierrez looks back undaunted on her life as an undocumented immigrant.  “I’ve always been a rebel in that way,” she says. “You tell me

It’s Ok, You Are Going to Be Fine

Petrona Dominguez Francisco arrived in Oregon at the age of 4, immigrating from Guatemala. Growing up, she struggled with her identity.  

John Rudoff

Conquering a Life of Uncertainty

Daniel Franco Núñez’s earliest memory is being smuggled across the border into the US in his grandfather’s arms. Núñez was born in Guadalajara, Mexico In 1985.

Lisa Cohn

Pleading for a Pathway

Azucena Javier-Marquez is relieved about the June 18 U.S. Supreme Court ruling rejecting attempts by the Trump administration to end protections

Jim Lommasson

What Miguel Carried, Orizaba, Mexico

Luz Rowley: Growing up in Mexico, I always knew that I needed an education in order to have a better future for myself. But my parents believed that women needed

Jim Lommasson

Faded Shirt, Mexico City, Mexico

Ivan Hernandez: My mom bought me this T shirt at la Villa de Guadalupe in Mexico City, on our way to the border. She prayed that we made it safe […]

Sankar Raman

Going Public with My Story

For many years, Xiomara Torres avoided telling people she had come into the US as an undocumented immigrant. “There’s so much shame with knowing you were

Sankar Raman

The Strength within Yourself

Instead of a novel, Brianda Alcazar would sneak her geometry book into her room at night and wait till her parents were in bed so she could turn on the […]

Sankar Raman

Stepping out of the Shadows

Even as a small child, Brenda knew that, to keep her family safe, she must not be noticed. As the child of undocumented immigrants from Mexico, she lived in a […]

Paige Stoyer

Undocumented and Unafraid

When Efrain first sauntered into his AP literature class in high school, something triggered him: He noticed that he was the only student of color in the room.

Sankar Raman

In Limbo O’Er the Land of the Free

Depressed and undocumented, Jhoana knew she needed to change her life around. Born in Pachuca, Mexico in 1991, Jhoana grew up in a small house that her  

Sankar Raman

The Marathon Continues

For Carlos, getting a kidney transplant at the age of 20 was probably the most difficult time of his life. But his hardships did not start there. His earliest childhood […]