Creeping out of the Foxhole

Creeping out of the Foxhole

At long last Republican presidential hopefuls crept out of their foxholes, where they’d been cowering and maintaining radio silence, to attack Donald Trump. With one or two exceptions, the field went AWOL as Trump trashed immigrants, calling them drug runners and...
Reagan’s Lasting Gift to Immigrant Families

Reagan’s Lasting Gift to Immigrant Families

This Mother’s Day, I can hug my mother tightly and celebrate with her. I’d like to thank our 40th president for that. Seriously: As a progressive young Latina from a working-class background, whose parents immigrated to the United States from Mexico without papers,...
An American Dream Deferred

An American Dream Deferred

One of the most important lessons I learned growing up was that if I played by the rules and worked hard, I could accomplish anything. This was — and still is — an American value taught to all children who grow up in this country and attend our public education...
Friends Like These

Friends Like These

When I was growing up, my older Mexican-American relatives had an expression: “Tell me who your friends are, and I’ll tell you who you are.” It was my family’s way of making me careful about choosing my friends. Even then, I could see they were right. The smart kids...
Coming Out of the Shadows

Coming Out of the Shadows

When I worked as a community organizer in New Mexico, I once overheard several women talking about a 2012 executive action on immigration. Known as Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), the order made young, undocumented adults eligible for work permits and...