Coming to the U.S. is the last option for a lot of people to help their family. There is at least the chance here to give their family what they need to survive,” says Antonio Bernabe, an organizer at the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights of Los Angeles (CHIRLA). 

Francisco Rodriguez (not his real name), an undocumented day laborer originally from El Salvador, explains that “life in El Salvador is very difficult.  A lot of workers only make four to five dollars a day.” Rodriguez came to the U.S. because “I need money for my family. I need to pay for my kids’ schooling.” He could not come legally because of restrictive immigration laws—the waiting list for legal immigration is many years long.

But after coming to the U.S., Rodriguez discovered that “life in the United States is not easy. Sometimes we (day laborers) don’t have work—and if there is no work, there is no money.”

Barred from many jobs because of their legal status, undocumented immigrants struggle with poverty as well as the challenges of learning a new language—and the constant fear of arrest and deportation. California parents Lorena Chavez, Pedro Gomez, and Maria Sanchez talk about how these pressures affect their families.

Lorena Chavez

“It’s hard to pay the rent…”

“It’s hard to pay the rent and bills and to buy food for my kids. This affects me a lot,” says Lorena Chavez (not her real name), a mother of three kids, ages one, three, and ten. Chavez works as a cook while her husband cares for their children.  

“Life in Mexico was very difficult”

Chavez remembers her home county fondly. “I like the culture of Mexico,” she says. “There is delicious food, and the beaches are beautiful.” It’s hard to think about Mexico, she says, because she has family members and friends there.

But “life in Mexico was very difficult,” she adds. She had a housekeeping job, but it didn’t pay enough to support her family. 

“I want immigrants to have rights”

Here in the U.S., Chavez’s undocumented status makes it hard to provide what her children need. Because her oldest daughter wasn’t born here, she isn’t covered under Medi-Cal. The Chavezes struggle to pay for medicine if she is sick, and can’t afford the glasses that her school says she needs. Undocumented immigrants are also barred from programs like food stamps and CalWORKs that help other low-income families.

And, Chavez adds, “many immigrants are scared of raids,” since the Immigration and Customs Enforce-ment agency began raiding workplaces to deport un-documented workers a couple of years ago. During one wave of raids, Evelyn Sanchez of the Bay Area Im-migrant Rights Coalition reported that some children “suddenly start crying, (or) won’t go to school. They don’t know if parents will be home or not when they come home.”

“I want the future of immigrants to be better,” says Chavez. “I want immigrants to have rights.” This is only fair, she says, because most immigrants work and pay taxes.   

Pedro Gomez

“I don’t have money for my children” 

“It is very difficult. There isn’t much work,” explains Pedro Gomez (not his real name), a Los Angeles day laborer originally from Guatemala. Gomez can repair televisions and other appliances, but without legal immigration status he can’t get a repair job. 

“It’s a hard economy,” says Gomez. “I don’t have money for my children.” Gomez’s children—ages sixteen, twelve, and seven—still live in Guatemala. 

“I need to think of the future of my kids”

Gomez risked coming to the U.S. about two years ago when he was no longer able to pay for his house. “In Guatemala there is not much work,” he explains. “You get very low pay for the little work that there is.” Being separated from his family is hard, he says, but “I need to think of the future of my kids. I need to pay for school—they need money so they can study.” 

“Only God can help me”

Sending as much money as he can back to his family, Gomez says, “it is hard to pay rent, (especially when) there isn’t any work.” Bernabe adds, “Some immigrants are forced to rent a tool shed or a garage rather than an apartment.”

Gomez says he keeps going with the help of the Central American Resource Center in Los Angeles (CARECEN LA), which provides immigrant services as well as educational and cultural programs. Ultimately, he adds, “Only God can help me.” But the right to work legally in the U.S. would make it possible to earn enough to support his family better.

Maria Sanchez

“Something better for my kids”

“I am always looking for something better for my kids,” says Maria Sanchez (not her real name), a native of Peru who now lives in San Francisco. Sanchez and her husband, originally from Mexico, have three children—a ten-year-old and eight-year-old twins.

Sanchez says she came to the United States to provide for her kids and give them better educational opportunities. “In Peru it was difficult to move forward economically,” she says. “Things like uniforms and books are very expensive and it’s hard to go to university.”

“Work is very, very hard”

When Sanchez arrived in the United States, she began working in restaurants and cleaning houses. “The work is very, very hard and sometimes hurts my back,” she admits.  Her husband finds jobs cleaning and installing carpets. 

“I am always worried…”

Life in the U.S. puts a lot of stress on the family, says Sanchez: “I am always worried because I don’t have the right papers to reside in this country.” Although she’s trying to learn English, “It’s hard to communicate when I only know Spanish.”

And because of her legal status, she can’t risk visiting her family. “I would like to be able to return to Peru,” she says, “but I know it is better here for my kids.”

Push for Reform

Immigrant rights organizations help immigrants with legal, economic, educational, and other challenges. They also advocate for changes in U.S. immigrant law that would allow more people to enter the U.S. legally—and immigrants already here to legalize their  status. For more information, contact:

• Bay Area Immigrant Rights Coalition: 510-839-7598, www.immigrantrights.org
• CARECEN LA: 213-385-7800, www.carecen-la.org
• CARACEN SF: 415-642-4400, www.carecensf.org
• CHIRLA: 213-353-1333, www.chirla.org