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Can the Undocumented 'Earn' Citizenship?
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Can the Undocumented 'Earn' Citizenship?

Undocumented Immigrant Experience

Identity and Citizenship

  • The speaker identifies as an undocumented immigrant, emphasizing that despite lacking legal documents, they still consider themselves a citizen through active engagement and participation in society.
  • The struggle to form friendships due to the need for secrecy about their status is highlighted, illustrating the emotional toll of living without legal recognition.

Challenges of Being Undocumented

  • The speaker recalls how having a driver's license from Oregon allowed them to work, noting that Oregon was one of the few states permitting undocumented individuals to drive back in 2003.
  • As deadlines approached regarding their undocumented status, the pressure not to disclose their situation publicly became overwhelming, leading them to eventually share their story in a prominent publication.

Beyond Legal Status

  • The speaker argues that lives are more than just legal documents or laws; they emphasize the importance of recognizing humanity beyond political rhetoric and societal indifference towards undocumented individuals.
Video description

“I'm here as an undocumented immigrant with no papers, no green card, no passport, and no legal documents, but I am still a citizen of this country,” says Jose Antonio Vargas in a new video filmed at the 2018 Aspen Ideas Festival. Vargas, an accomplished journalist whose work has garnered him a Pulitzer Prize, was smuggled into the U.S. at age 12 by his Filipino mother. Although he was raised by his grandparents, who were naturalized citizens, Vargas was never granted American citizenship. In a 2011 essay in The New York Times Magazine, Vargas revealed his status as undocumented. Ever since, he has been a vocal advocate for pathways to citizenship, such as the DREAM Act.  “There's no process for the estimated 11 million undocumented immigrants like me to get legal,” Vargas says in the video. He goes on to explain why the concept of “earning” citizenship is problematic. Subscribe to The Atlantic on YouTube: http://bit.ly/subAtlanticYT