I had no idea what was going to happen to me in the United States. I did not know what events would take place or how I would react when I got stuck in a difficult situation. My only motive was my two kids in Mexico and the better future that I aspired to give them. My name is Maria ... Read More »
By 1920, almost two million Italians immigrated to the United States in search of the American Dream. My great-grandfather, Cecil and his family were five of the thousands coming from Southern Italy. To learn more about my family’s introduction to America, I went to my grandma, Tomasina Flora. She is Cecil’s oldest daughter and has always enjoyed telling all of ... Read More »
As communism spread like wildfire across the vast land of China, my great grandfather made a decision. As soon as his father passed away he would pack up his family and take them to America. It was hard for his first son, George, to leave Chung Sar, a small village he had been raised in outside of Hong Kong. Things ... Read More »
Upon his arrival to the United States of America, one of Arthur Kinyanjui’s many curiosities involved a McDonald’s drive-thru. The Kenyan native was shocked at the sight of his host speaking into a black box that projected voice. “Microphone?” he laughs today. “That was a big one.” Although Arthur had been born and raised in Central Province, one of Kenya’s ... Read More »
Screaming filled the streets, as communist soldiers pushed down innocent civilians. Above the chaos was a vast dark sky that stretched high over the rolling mountain ranges of Russia. The country was distraught, Tsar Nicholas II had just lost his power and revolutions had begun. Not a single person was safe from the aggressive soldiers of the Communist Party. ... Read More »
She and her companions walked for three days. They were without food, but they continued to walk- both out of motivation for the new life they were embarking upon and also out of fear of being caught and sent to a detention center, as she had been twice before. But her life in Mexico had ... Read More »
In the early 1900s, my great grandpa smuggled himself in a boat, hiding from the authorities, coming to America, not knowing what his future held, in a foreign land thousands of miles from his family. My great grandpa, Huey Leong, was born in Canton, China, a period of many cultural uprisings. Huey felt that his life was unfulfilled, and was ... Read More »
Elizabeth was born in Cabugao, a rural town in the Philippines. Recounting her memories of Cabugao, she told me, “There were a lot of poor people. It’s called the barrio, Padayog in Ilocano (dialect of this region). My grandparents’ house was next to our house, so we saw them everyday. I used to have a black cat, and my dad had a ... Read More »
Myriam was one of our featured storytellers at the “Walk of DREAMers” event in April 2017. She’s a high school student in Redwood City and an active member of the Dream Club there. She wonders about a classmate from the Republican Club who gives her pause. Read More »
Imagine waking up and not hearing alarms or factories working, but instead the voices of kids yelling as they played in the courtyard, the sound of food sizzling while being cooked in a cart by our local vendor in Hong Kong. The savory yet piquant smell of Luobo Gao as it wafted throughout the air and into your living room. ... Read More »