SPOTLIGHT
story by Lizeth Valdes & Chris Velasco Palacios | photos by Maria Mann | design by Lizeth Valdes
Rhetoric surrounding immigration is a constant hot topic in news and media. Terms like ‘border crisis’ and ‘open borders’ have been thrown out quite loosely, creating a toxic discourse in which groups of people are demonized and overly complex issues are reduced to an ‘it’s us or them’ mentality. As we approach the 2024 election, there’s no doubt the topic of immigration will be one of the prominent issues that will be debated within the country. According to a Pew Research Center survey of 5,140 adults, 78% of Americans believe the large amounts of migrants entering the country currently is an issue. Of those who believe it’s an issue, 45% of respondents consider it a crisis and 32% of them consider it a major problem. In addition, the Office of Financial Management found the immigrant population in Washington had increased by 29% between 2010 and 2021, with as many as 230,000 being undocumented. But as the government seeks to find a way to address the large number of people coming into the country, it’s important to understand the perspectives of those who took the journey from their home country into this one. From economic opportunity to fleeing abuse, the reasons for migrating to a country may be different for every individual. PULSE interviewed several students who identify as immigrants on campus, as well as students with immigrants in their families, to hear their perspectives and thoughts. We hope this can add some depth to a topic so often trivialized in media spaces.
Dayana Huayana Montoya is a senior graphic design student who immigrated from Lima, Peru to the United States back in 2012. Having been living in the U.S. for a little over a decade, she recounts emotions, triumphs and conflicts she has overcome.
“I moved here in 2012. My mom wanted a better future for me. She got to a really messy divorce, and she just wanted to get out of that toxic environment. So, we moved here and then later on she met my step dad and they got married. It was a really hard time for me to get used to, because it was like divorce and a new marriage, and it was a lot to handle especially at the age of nine…. I didn’t know any English even though I was taught English in Peru. When I went to school [in Florida] it was really hard to understand what people were saying.”
“I think it was years. ‘Cause she was with my dad since they were about 13 probably. She was just… tired of the abuse, so she just decided one day to actually get divorced. And then she told me, ‘You have a year to decide if you want to move with your dad or do you want to move with me.’”
“Feels, I guess, weird because since I was little, I was like, ‘I don’t want to learn English. I don’t need it. All I need is Spanish because I’m in Peru. That’s all we speak. Why am I going to need it?’ And then here I’m like, ‘Well, I regret saying that.’ But I’m glad I learned it. Part of me is like, I’m glad I got out of that environment. I moved states, like a brand-new family, it just feels better. But part of me also misses my own country. I miss the food. I miss my family; I don’t get to see them as often.”
54 PULSE SPRING 2024