Well, technically, you didn’t “find” this information. Rather, after years of silently floating about in a hidden realm known as your parents’ pre-consciousness, this information suddenly decided to make its existence known by jumping out of the bushes and beating you over the head with a “You’re undocumented!” stick. And as with any beating, you come away from the attack a little winded, with utter blankness of the mind, and confusion and anger in your heart. It seems as if your life has come to a halt. You suddenly discover that there’s next to no chance for you to become a U.S citizen, that the number of hurdles you thought you had to jump past in order to graduate college just quadrupled, and that rarely will you ever be allowed a job that requires more than the ability to cope with monotony. Worse of all, you can’t drive. You feel trapped.

…And your first instinct might be to go on a self-destructive rampage. Fragments of thoughts circle your mind like disembodied and floating cartoon heads echoing in a melancholy voice: “…no car, no college, no fuuuuture”, “Whyyyy bother?”, “…trapped foooreveeer.” But, please, hold off momentarily on the hookie-playing, grades-dropping, gang-banging, drug-dealing, unprotected-sexcapading, running-awaying, and other various “-ing”s that you’re thinking about getting involved and hear me out. Firstly, I must inform you that you are not a unique snowflake, meaning there are thousands of undocumented youth in the U.S. currently in a predicament strikingly similar your own.

So, you are not alone.

Self-destructing is especially damaging to undocumented youth because you will not get a second chance. Self-destructive youth who were born in America have, at least, the government (if nobody else) to help them towards personal reform. As for undocumented youth, it’s much easier for the government to oust you than reform you. And yes, I’ll admit that I’m saying this in order to trickle some fear into your already anxiety-stricken bloodstreams. I advise that you let loose all of your self-loving inhibitions only when you no longer wish to live in America. But if you did everything right and still have to face a deportation hearing, you can hopefully have a peace of mind in knowing that you did nothing to deserve it.

On the off-chance that I’m the first person you read after discovering your legal status, I’ll go into a bit more detail as to what you’re in for (and in later posts, how you can cope with it). One of the first things that a person will ask when you confess to them that you’re undocumented is, “Have you seen an immigration lawyer?” Now, after a while, this will be a particularly annoying question to have to hear, but try not to be snippy because they’re not asking out of maliciousness, only oblivious curiosity. So, in preparation for that question, see an immigration lawyer. But I suggest that you not place too much hope in receiving a positive response, because it would make the (most likely) negative news much more difficult to stomach (and the positive news all the more delightful).

I’m not an immigration expert by any means (The information below is far from thorough and could be inaccurate.), but the following is to give you a sense of the kind of response you’re in for:

If you entered the country illegally, there’s no way for you adjust your status while in the U.S. If you entered the country on a visa and overstayed, you can adjust your status through marriage or a work sponsorship (the latter might not apply to everyone with expired visas). If you maintained an unlawful presence for 180 days after your 18^th birthday and decide to leave the country, you will be subjected to a three-year ban (from returning to America). If you maintained an unlawful presence for a year or more after your 18^th birthday and decide to leave the country, you will be subjected to a ten-year ban. If you try to return to America within the ten-year ban, you will then be subjected to a lifetime ban. If you leave the country before you turn 18 years of age, your ban is waived. However, there have been cases of undocumented teenagers, who left before turning 18 in order to try to “get back in line,” being rejected for a visa because they had previously lived unauthorized in the U.S. The only hope that many of you have in gaining a path to U.S. citizenship is the passing of the DREAM Act.

This is a lot to have to take in, and at this time I’m reminded of a quote said by Ron Popeil when describing how to use his rotisserie oven: “Set it… and forget it!”. In the context of this post, I interpret this quote to mean for you to accept the circumstances you’ve been dealt, and don’t “forget it”, but put it in a corner of your mind where it can’t bother you too much. Try not to let yourself become overwhelmed by something you have absolutely no control over. Do not live in fear, live in caution. And try to view what you do have control over in a positive light. No matter where you end up, having spent your youth in America provides a great foundation for your future; its higher education programs alone are worth being here for. Live day-to-day by setting small goals and occasional milestones that you could focus your efforts in, which will make the time go by faster and keep you saner, such as (not an actual list, just something to give you an idea):

• get a good grade in Chemistry
• read that book I’ve been meaning to read
• get high marks for Senior year of high school
• learn how to make a soufflé
• get involved with the grassroots movement dedicated to the passing of the DREAM Act
• save up $500, then try to turn than into $1000, then $2000, and so on
• get accepted into college
• road trip with friends to Las Vegas
• maintain a high GPA in college
• get accepted to a Master’s program
• road trip with friends to the non-boring parts of the contiguous U.S.
• graduate with honors
• move to an immigrant-friendly neighborhood… in a different state than your own
• leave for Canada if the DREAM Act hasn’t passed

Many restrictions have been placed on your life, but it does not mean that you’re trapped; it means that your hands are tied, and you have to use your feet instead.

- Ille the gal

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Hello, everyone. This is my first post at DreamActivist. Hopefully, you guys found it, at least, remotely amusing. I’ll be focusing on giving advice to young DREAMers for my first couple of posts. After that… I have no idea. So, feel free to email me comments, questions, and suggestions.