I interviewed three undocumented college students who all who come from different backgrounds. I wanted to compare how they view the struggles of being undocumented. These DREAMERs, one European, one Asian, and one Hispanic, study in different colleges and are in different places in their studies, but they all struggle with the same issue.

A DREAMER from Albania

Talking to an undocumented student from Europe I realized that we share the same problems but we face different struggles that come from being undocumented. The person that I interviewed showed no real worries. He has never been questioned for his legal status in a public setting. I concluded that it was because of his looks. This person had a white complexion with light eyes and his English is impressive for the 4 years he has been here.

I was curious to know why he had come to the USA if Europe is supposed to be better economically. His reason was that in his homeland everything was easy, he had money, a home but his mother thought it would be better here for them. They came using tourist visas and over stayed the estimated visiting days- just like my family. He was disappointed when he arrived here because he expected something better. However his mother forced him to stay. When he was old enough to leave by himself, he didn't want to because he found here the piece he was missing in his home land. In his case he found struggles making his life interesting and he found a new reason for life. For him, the struggle of being undocumented is not as difficult and his wealth back in his homeland has permitted him a comfortable life style. In my opinion, not all of Europeans are as lucky as him.

A DREAMER from the Philippines

A wonderful Asian woman also shared her story with me. She is currently attending college, works and has a four year old boy name Buddy. At first glance, everyone thinks that she has it all put together. People believe that it is easy for her to have a 3.6 GPA as well as to manage being a single mother and to provide for her son with no problem. This happens because she keeps her immigration status very private. Only a few people know of her real struggles. Once you get to know her you realize she struggles to pay out of pocket for her education because she is undocumented. You can tell she has been through discrimination from her past partner. Even with all the struggles she faces, she still manages to be extremely involved in the community. She brings Buddy to DREAM Action meetings. She teaches him that even if they do not have much he still has to give back. She also has served as the president of Phi Theta Kappa and Vice President for Intercultural Student Association. She is very involved with her community church. Like many Dreamers she was brought here as a child at the age of eight. She completed her elementary and high school years in the Oak Park community.

A DREAMER from Mexico

I also interviewed a person that fits the stereotype of an immigrant. He grew up in the United States and as a child he encountered the hardships of being an illegal Immigrant. He told me that during fourth grade he received an award for an art piece he created. The award was a savings bond that he could use to pay for college. He could not retrieve it because he did not have a Social Security number. Ever since then he has believed that he is not good enough for the system. Currently he is a senior at NIU and works three jobs just to pay for school. He told me he has gotten discriminated while driving and even in the movie theater. I could see he has lost hope. Now he takes any discrimination and obvious abuse from society as a normal thing.