WEBVTT

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Colombia

00:00:09.999 --> 00:00:12.125
(woman)
Being undocumented
isn\'t something

00:00:12.125 --> 00:00:16.999
we can put in the back
of our heads.

00:00:16.999 --> 00:00:17.999
When I wake up,

00:00:17.999 --> 00:00:21.459
it\'s the first thing
I think about.

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Sometimes, in my dreams,
I\'m undocumented too.

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NO HUMAN BEING IS...

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This is more than
a legalization struggle,

00:00:33.292 --> 00:00:34.501
but a psychological war

00:00:34.501 --> 00:00:37.709
that measures
character and patience.

00:00:38.417 --> 00:00:43.000
They want to see
who will break down first.

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My mom raised me
in an environment

00:00:47.792 --> 00:00:51.999
where speaking out
about your status is wrong.

00:00:53.125 --> 00:00:56.501
She taught me
the same fear.

00:00:57.999 --> 00:01:01.626
\"No le digas a nadie,\"
she would say.

00:01:01.626 --> 00:01:03.959
\"Don\'t tell anyone.\"

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But I started
seeing things differently.

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Don\'t Tell Anyone

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(No Le Digas a Nadie)

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Queens, New York

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[radio playing in Spanish]

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Aww, look.

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What\'s he looking for
under the snow?

00:01:44.709 --> 00:01:45.999
Spring!

00:01:46.999 --> 00:01:48.667
Oh, I got an idea.

00:01:48.667 --> 00:01:52.250
Why don\'t you go
watch them...

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Dance?

00:01:53.501 --> 00:01:56.209
Dance with--
NCome on.

00:01:56.209 --> 00:01:57.542
You lead.

00:01:57.542 --> 00:01:58.959
I\'ll lead you.

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Which way are we going?

00:02:02.501 --> 00:02:04.250
From side to side?

00:02:04.250 --> 00:02:06.083
From side...
Okay.

00:02:06.999 --> 00:02:09.542
Now you turn.

00:02:13.459 --> 00:02:15.167
We\'re so lost!

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[both laugh]

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COMMUNITY ORGANIZER

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(woman)
My name is Angy.

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I\'ve been undocumented
in the United States

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almost my whole life.

00:02:36.999 --> 00:02:38.876
I was born in Colombia.

00:02:38.876 --> 00:02:43.042
But when I was three,
my mom sold everything she had

00:02:43.042 --> 00:02:47.125
and financed a one-way trip
to New York.

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I\'m the oldest
of four siblings.

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I have two younger brothers
and a little sister.

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And they are citizens.

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Can you buy something
if I give you money?

00:03:01.626 --> 00:03:04.792
It\'s difficult having
to explain things

00:03:04.792 --> 00:03:07.250
to your little siblings.

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I don\'t tell them about
all the things I worry about.

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I don\'t want them to feel
like this is their burden too.

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I feel like I\'m...

00:03:19.667 --> 00:03:22.918
We talk about
immigration updates,

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but we don\'t really
talk about what is it like

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to be
in a mixed-status family.

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In New York,
we don\'t have to drive,

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so none of us have ever had
to drive without a license.

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But in other states,
you have a mixed-status family

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where parents work,

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and they need to drive
without a license.

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And their children
are citizens.

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So, a routine traffic stop

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could be deportation
for the undocumented people.

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The children
are put in foster care

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or are deported
with the parents.

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So I think,
for a mixed status family,

00:04:01.959 --> 00:04:04.417
the biggest fear
is always deportation.

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My siblings are citizens.

00:04:07.209 --> 00:04:12.000
But my mom and I
could still be deported.

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[music playing,
bowling balls crash]

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Maria
Angy\'s mother

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[indistinct chatter]

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Gabby, but you didn\'t
wait for anybody.

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You didn\'t look
nat the camera.

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Gabriela
Angy\'s sister

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It\'s up here.

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Right here, right here!

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Saul,
Angy\'s brother

00:04:43.417 --> 00:04:48.501
(Angy)
My mom always told me
we didn\'t have papers.

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I didn\'t really understand
that I was undocumented,

00:04:52.959 --> 00:04:55.999
but I knew
I was an immigrant.

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I didn\'t really understand

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what the full impact of that
was going to be.

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I always wondered if there
were other people out there

00:05:05.999 --> 00:05:07.667
besides me.

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I thought
I was the only one.

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There are over 11 million
undocumented immigrants

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living in the United States.

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(Angy)
I was trying to figure out

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a way
I could tell my story.

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It all started
because I drew this.

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I drew my fake version
of Manhattan.

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Then I\'m like, \"Oh, maybe
I should draw something else.\"

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Then it ended up being
a sequence,

00:05:44.667 --> 00:05:47.999
kind of just like,
my story a little bit

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or major events
that have shaped me.

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I have--
this is supposed to be me

00:05:54.209 --> 00:05:55.834
when I was born.

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That\'s in Colombia.

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We lived in the countryside.

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That\'s me in the mountains
and the grass.

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Sometimes, when I think
about Colombia,

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I always feel like
that\'s where my childhood is

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and that\'s where like,
freedom is

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and happiness
and all that.

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SCHOOL

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This is a drawing of me
starting school

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in the United States.

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I\'m in the classroom
by myself.

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And I remember not being able
to speak English

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and being made fun of
for my accent

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or having my ESL teacher
remind me

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that like, in America,
you don\'t speak Spanish;

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I shouldn\'t be speaking it.

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I hated that feeling
of not being able to...

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to be understood,
or to speak with other people.

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All my friends were citizens
in high school.

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And it was difficult for me
to communicate with teachers,

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with my friends.

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[applause]

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There are 1 million
undocumented students

00:07:07.292 --> 00:07:09.584
in the United States.

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Buenos tardes.

00:07:11.250 --> 00:07:13.501
My name is Angy Rivera.

00:07:13.501 --> 00:07:15.375
I was born in Colombia...

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(woman)
nGo, Angy!

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(Angy)
I would hear my mom say,

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\"If someone
takes everything from you,

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they can\'t take away
your education.\"

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(woman)
Go, baby!

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(man)
Now...the graduates of
the class of two thousand...

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[cheering]

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(Angy)
When I graduated
from high school,

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I think that\'s
when it hit me--

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this was real.

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How will I go to college?

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I wouldn\'t be able
to find work like my friends

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or drive
or get financial aid.

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How will I work? FAFSA?

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I had gone
to the financial aid

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administration office.

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I was just trying
to understand

00:07:58.999 --> 00:08:00.999
if I could afford college.

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I remember standing there

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and feeling confused
and frustrated.

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I told her
I didn\'t have a social.

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And instead of helping,
she started yelling at me.

00:08:11.751 --> 00:08:14.250
She said I was
wasting her time,

00:08:14.250 --> 00:08:18.667
that if I didn\'t have the cash
to be in school,

00:08:18.667 --> 00:08:21.876
there was no point
in being there.

00:08:21.876 --> 00:08:23.792
I was so mad

00:08:23.792 --> 00:08:25.375
that I did so much.

00:08:25.375 --> 00:08:28.709
And they told me,
you know, \"Just do well,

00:08:28.709 --> 00:08:30.999
\"extracurricular activities,
get good grades,

00:08:30.999 --> 00:08:33.584
\"and everything will
fall into place.

00:08:33.584 --> 00:08:34.792
You\'ll do big things.\"

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I had believed that,
and none of it happened.

00:08:38.083 --> 00:08:40.959
Hard work
wouldn\'t get me to school.

00:08:40.959 --> 00:08:44.167
No matter what I did
or gave back,

00:08:44.167 --> 00:08:44.792
nothing mattered

00:08:44.792 --> 00:08:48.834
\'cause I didn\'t have
a social security number.

00:08:56.999 --> 00:09:02.667
I\'ve made over 100-something
bracelets, probably.

00:09:02.667 --> 00:09:06.959
Um, this one
is always my favorite--

00:09:06.959 --> 00:09:08.999
the hearts.

00:09:08.999 --> 00:09:12.542
This one takes work
to make too.

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I was trying to figure out
how to pay for college.

00:09:18.999 --> 00:09:22.250
I set up a little
fundraising page online.

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I was honest about it--

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I said, \"I\'m undocumented.\"

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I talked about not qualifying
for financial aid,

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for grants, loans,

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almost all the scholarships
that are out there.

00:09:33.751 --> 00:09:36.999
A reporter from
the \"New York Daily News\"

00:09:36.999 --> 00:09:38.667
wrote a piece about it.

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This stranger
saw the news article

00:09:40.918 --> 00:09:43.501
and thought,
\"Someone who\'s pushing so hard

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to attend school
must really want this.\"

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He tells me, \"I want to pay
for your whole semester.\"

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That action reaffirmed
that saying your story

00:09:54.792 --> 00:09:58.459
and sharing it with people
does make an impact.

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If I wouldn\'t have spoken out,

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this wouldn\'t have happened.

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I didn\'t see
undocumented people

00:10:09.999 --> 00:10:12.626
in the newspaper or on TV.

00:10:12.626 --> 00:10:15.209
You didn\'t see
immigrants themselves

00:10:15.209 --> 00:10:17.667
talk about this
anywhere.

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Until researching
organizations

00:10:19.542 --> 00:10:22.667
and attending events,
that\'s when I found out

00:10:22.667 --> 00:10:26.542
about the New York State
Leadership Council.

00:10:28.417 --> 00:10:31.876
Other people my age
who were also undocumented,

00:10:31.876 --> 00:10:33.999
who understood
what it was like

00:10:33.999 --> 00:10:36.292
to be rejected
from these opportunities.

00:10:36.292 --> 00:10:38.709
I had never been
somewhere like that,

00:10:38.709 --> 00:10:43.125
where people were talking
about it like it was normal.

00:10:43.125 --> 00:10:44.292
Ay, Dios mío...

00:10:44.292 --> 00:10:47.042
(Angy)
\"El Mundo\" was
interviewing someone

00:10:47.042 --> 00:10:48.959
who said she was Latina.

00:10:48.959 --> 00:10:50.417
He interviewed her in Spanish.

00:10:50.417 --> 00:10:53.751
She was like, \"This is America.
Speak English.\"

00:10:53.751 --> 00:10:56.959
And he was like,
\"Okay, anyway...\"

00:10:56.959 --> 00:10:57.834
You gotta talk like...

00:10:57.834 --> 00:11:01.459
(Angy)
The YLC had participated
in a national convening

00:11:01.459 --> 00:11:04.501
with a lot of other
immigrant right groups.

00:11:04.501 --> 00:11:07.999
And we were talking about
coming out

00:11:07.999 --> 00:11:10.292
to an immigration agent.

00:11:10.999 --> 00:11:12.876
A lot of people said, \"Yeah,

00:11:12.876 --> 00:11:15.959
this sounds really awesome;
we should do it.\"

00:11:15.959 --> 00:11:20.959
Like, you have coming out
of the closet for LGBTQ,

00:11:20.959 --> 00:11:23.751
you have \"coming out
of the shadows\"

00:11:23.751 --> 00:11:25.959
with your immigration status.

00:11:26.459 --> 00:11:28.209
And so, in 2010,

00:11:28.209 --> 00:11:31.999
we organized the first
coming-out event in New York

00:11:31.999 --> 00:11:35.292
in front of
the immigration building.

00:11:37.999 --> 00:11:40.999
I understood that
you could do something

00:11:40.999 --> 00:11:42.667
to change your reality,

00:11:42.667 --> 00:11:46.709
or the way
that you were undocumented.

00:11:50.459 --> 00:11:54.083
I remember
spray-painting my shirt

00:11:54.083 --> 00:11:55.999
and being completely nervous

00:11:55.999 --> 00:11:58.999
about the thought
of wearing this in public.

00:11:58.999 --> 00:12:02.042
What will people say?
What will people think?

00:12:02.042 --> 00:12:06.626
Will they stop me to talk
about my T-shirt?

00:12:11.209 --> 00:12:13.667
(Angy)
What does coming out mean?

00:12:13.667 --> 00:12:16.375
Coming out means
to publicly reveal

00:12:16.375 --> 00:12:18.876
or acknowledge something
about yourself

00:12:18.876 --> 00:12:19.959
that nobody knows.

00:12:19.959 --> 00:12:21.334
(Angy)
I was super anxious

00:12:21.334 --> 00:12:24.918
about facing all these fears
and all this shame.

00:12:24.918 --> 00:12:27.999
My hands were shaking,
my heart was racing.

00:12:27.999 --> 00:12:30.250
I saw
the immigration agents there,

00:12:30.250 --> 00:12:32.375
but they
didn\'t intimidate me.

00:12:32.375 --> 00:12:33.999
(Angy)
...has stayed hidden.

00:12:33.999 --> 00:12:36.083
\"Undocumented\"
is just a label,

00:12:36.083 --> 00:12:37.751
but it doesn\'t define me.

00:12:37.751 --> 00:12:41.626
I know how it feels
to not go to school,

00:12:41.626 --> 00:12:44.125
to feel like
you can\'t afford it;

00:12:44.125 --> 00:12:46.834
to be stuck between
two cultures,

00:12:46.834 --> 00:12:48.209
but neither is yours.

00:12:48.209 --> 00:12:51.000
For all those reasons,
I stand here today

00:12:51.000 --> 00:12:55.626
and say that my name is Angy
and I\'m undocumented.

00:12:55.626 --> 00:12:57.999
[people cheering]

00:12:59.542 --> 00:13:00.584
(Angy)
I felt good.

00:13:00.584 --> 00:13:05.417
I felt like I got this
big secret out of my chest.

00:13:05.417 --> 00:13:08.209
You kind of
just get to be real.

00:13:08.209 --> 00:13:13.083
And I remember feeling like,
\"Yeah, this is me.

00:13:13.083 --> 00:13:14.167
I\'m not ashamed.\"

00:13:14.167 --> 00:13:18.999
YES YOU CAN
WE HAVE A DREAM

00:13:21.292 --> 00:13:23.792
My email was on the flyer

00:13:23.792 --> 00:13:25.083
as one of the contacts

00:13:25.083 --> 00:13:27.999
to find out more
about the coming-out event.

00:13:27.999 --> 00:13:31.626
Somebody emailed asking me,
why was I getting people

00:13:31.626 --> 00:13:34.999
to come out,
if I thought that was safe,

00:13:34.999 --> 00:13:38.999
and was I trying
to get people deported?

00:13:40.125 --> 00:13:43.125
This is what I responded.

00:13:43.501 --> 00:13:46.334
\"Hello.
I know exactly what you mean.

00:13:46.334 --> 00:13:49.501
\"I told my mother
a few days ago

00:13:49.501 --> 00:13:51.584
\"that I was coming out.

00:13:51.584 --> 00:13:52.209
\"She was terrified.

00:13:52.209 --> 00:13:55.209
\"She\'s against the idea
of speaking out,

00:13:55.209 --> 00:13:57.999
\"but we must accept
that we\'re undocumented.

00:13:57.999 --> 00:14:01.209
\"Being quiet about it
won\'t change anything.

00:14:01.209 --> 00:14:04.459
\"Something changed inside me
after coming out.

00:14:04.459 --> 00:14:07.542
\"I\'m a much happier
and stronger person now.

00:14:07.542 --> 00:14:09.584
\"My status comes up
in conversation.

00:14:09.584 --> 00:14:15.167
\"I told the UPS guy when he
asked for my ID for a package.

00:14:15.167 --> 00:14:17.999
\"I told my neighbor
when he asked

00:14:17.999 --> 00:14:19.999
\"if I was visiting Colombia.

00:14:19.999 --> 00:14:21.999
\"I feel free, like myself.

00:14:21.999 --> 00:14:23.834
\"Undocumented people
out there,

00:14:23.834 --> 00:14:26.167
\"I invite you all
to come out.

00:14:26.167 --> 00:14:29.042
\"I\'m 100% sure
you\'re not alone in this.

00:14:29.042 --> 00:14:33.959
\"Coming out is only scary
if you let it take over

00:14:33.959 --> 00:14:34.751
\"and limit you.

00:14:34.751 --> 00:14:37.999
\"Maybe sometime, you can
send us your story.

00:14:37.999 --> 00:14:39.999
\"Don\'t be afraid.
Love, Angy.

00:14:39.999 --> 00:14:44.125
P.S.: Here\'s a link
to my story.\"

00:14:48.751 --> 00:14:50.999
I answered that question
publicly

00:14:50.999 --> 00:14:53.167
on the NYSYLC website,

00:14:53.167 --> 00:14:56.751
and then months after,
because of this question,

00:14:56.751 --> 00:14:59.999
came the idea:
Ask Angy?

00:15:00.584 --> 00:15:01.999
It\'s the first and only

00:15:01.999 --> 00:15:06.125
undocumented youth advice
column in the country.

00:15:06.125 --> 00:15:09.999
When I first started it,
I didn\'t think anyone

00:15:09.999 --> 00:15:11.417
would ask me any questions.

00:15:11.417 --> 00:15:15.334
And then I started getting
a wide range of questions

00:15:15.334 --> 00:15:18.584
from folks who maybe
had undocumented children

00:15:18.584 --> 00:15:20.667
to young people.

00:15:20.667 --> 00:15:22.501
I\'ve gotten questions
about driving,

00:15:22.501 --> 00:15:25.999
relationships, coming out
as undocumented.

00:15:25.999 --> 00:15:29.751
Because we get so focused
on the legal stuff

00:15:29.751 --> 00:15:31.999
and how legislation
affects us,

00:15:31.999 --> 00:15:34.709
we don\'t think about
the everyday things,

00:15:34.709 --> 00:15:38.250
like going to the post office
or dating.

00:15:38.250 --> 00:15:42.501
I try to prioritize
the ones that are urgent.

00:15:42.501 --> 00:15:44.042
So, if anyone emails me

00:15:44.042 --> 00:15:47.792
that someone they know
is in deportation proceedings,

00:15:47.792 --> 00:15:49.751
that one is urgent.

00:15:49.751 --> 00:15:52.083
If someone is dealing
with depression,

00:15:52.083 --> 00:15:55.999
sadness, or could
sound suicidal,

00:15:55.999 --> 00:15:58.751
that one is a priority.

00:15:59.125 --> 00:16:03.751
I do get a lot
of hate mail in my email,

00:16:03.751 --> 00:16:05.042
Twitter, and on YouTube.

00:16:05.042 --> 00:16:06.999
CLOSE THE TORTILLA CURTAIN

00:16:06.999 --> 00:16:09.999
and rid our land
of the IFN threat.

00:16:09.999 --> 00:16:14.083
(Angy)
Some people will say,
\"You should kill yourself.\"

00:16:14.083 --> 00:16:15.626
But they don\'t know me.

00:16:15.626 --> 00:16:19.125
How can you wish that?
I\'m someone\'s daughter.

00:16:19.125 --> 00:16:20.667
I\'m someone\'s sister.

00:16:20.667 --> 00:16:23.834
I don\'t understand
why my immigration status

00:16:23.834 --> 00:16:25.751
will make someone hate me

00:16:25.751 --> 00:16:30.542
or wish bad things
upon me.

00:16:30.667 --> 00:16:33.918
These are the stories
that go untold,

00:16:33.918 --> 00:16:34.999
the real stuff,

00:16:34.999 --> 00:16:37.999
people\'s fears and doubts,
for the future,

00:16:37.999 --> 00:16:39.999
for their life.

00:16:45.626 --> 00:16:48.999
Like many of you...
I have felt mad

00:16:48.999 --> 00:16:52.042
sad, depressed.

00:16:52.042 --> 00:16:54.959
I have felt excluded
and alone...

00:16:54.959 --> 00:16:57.999
I have felt
like an OUT--sider.

00:16:57.999 --> 00:17:02.375
I AM undocumented.

00:17:02.375 --> 00:17:06.334
People think they can
treat me like crap

00:17:07.083 --> 00:17:09.375
call me \"illegal.\"

00:17:11.375 --> 00:17:14.542
We deserve to be HERE.

00:17:15.876 --> 00:17:17.876
ALIVE

00:17:19.000 --> 00:17:20.626
And our aspirations,

00:17:20.626 --> 00:17:23.999
voices, ideas, beliefs,
and dreams

00:17:23.999 --> 00:17:26.501
deserve to be treated with

00:17:26.501 --> 00:17:28.918
dignity, respect.

00:17:28.918 --> 00:17:31.876
Don\'t feel alone. You\'re not.

00:17:34.918 --> 00:17:36.542
Despite our differences...

00:17:36.542 --> 00:17:38.999
we\'re in this

00:17:41.667 --> 00:17:43.501
Together.

00:18:00.834 --> 00:18:04.918
(Angy)
What are you going to do
for Valentine\'s Day?

00:18:04.918 --> 00:18:08.999
I might have
the same valentine this year.

00:18:08.999 --> 00:18:10.751
Who?
You.

00:18:10.751 --> 00:18:11.250
Me?
Yes.

00:18:11.250 --> 00:18:13.999
Aww! But you didn\'t
ask me out.

00:18:13.999 --> 00:18:16.417
I didn\'t have to ask
last year.

00:18:16.417 --> 00:18:19.999
I\'m going to be
your valentine every year?

00:18:19.999 --> 00:18:20.999
In social studies,

00:18:20.999 --> 00:18:25.999
when we had to read
what \"immigrant\" was,

00:18:25.999 --> 00:18:29.083
I\'m like, \"Oh, my sister!\"

00:18:29.083 --> 00:18:29.876
[laughs]

00:18:29.876 --> 00:18:31.792
Do you think
you\'re an immigrant?

00:18:31.792 --> 00:18:35.542
No, I\'m from Colombia,
but I wasn\'t born in Colombia.

00:18:35.542 --> 00:18:38.751
Immigrants have to be born
in another country?

00:18:38.751 --> 00:18:41.918
They have to be born
in another country,

00:18:41.918 --> 00:18:44.375
then go
to a different country.

00:18:44.375 --> 00:18:44.999
Interesting.

00:18:44.999 --> 00:18:47.292
What if your parents
are immigrants?

00:18:47.292 --> 00:18:49.751
I don\'t know about that.
[laughs]

00:18:49.751 --> 00:18:54.918
Maybe you\'ll figure it out
when you get older.

00:18:57.542 --> 00:18:59.667
(Saul)
When I first found out

00:18:59.667 --> 00:19:02.250
that Angy and Mother
was undocumented,

00:19:02.250 --> 00:19:05.751
I was young and I kept
having these thoughts

00:19:05.751 --> 00:19:08.876
of what would happen
if they were deported

00:19:08.876 --> 00:19:11.459
or if anything else
were to happen.

00:19:11.459 --> 00:19:14.209
At the age
when I thought of that...

00:19:14.209 --> 00:19:18.292
would we end up
being adopted or something?

00:19:18.375 --> 00:19:21.417
(Luis)
For as long
as we could remember,

00:19:21.417 --> 00:19:24.999
they would always tell us
how they\'re immigrants

00:19:24.999 --> 00:19:26.334
and the plane ride here,

00:19:26.334 --> 00:19:30.584
having to work hard
to find a place to stay.

00:19:30.584 --> 00:19:33.999
But, as for telling people...

00:19:33.999 --> 00:19:36.626
about a family of immigrants,

00:19:36.626 --> 00:19:38.876
it\'s, \"Don\'t ask, don\'t tell.\"

00:19:38.876 --> 00:19:41.999
You know, only speak about it
if spoken to.

00:19:41.999 --> 00:19:45.584
What would you tell someone
that\'s never met one?

00:19:45.584 --> 00:19:48.501
(Luis)
The way this guy
explained to me

00:19:48.501 --> 00:19:51.999
that undocumented people
shouldn\'t be here was,

00:19:51.999 --> 00:19:55.542
he compared it
to someone going

00:19:55.542 --> 00:19:58.083
inside a stranger\'s house

00:19:58.083 --> 00:20:01.792
and saying, \"It\'s okay,
I live here now.

00:20:01.792 --> 00:20:04.000
You can\'t kick me out.\"

00:20:04.000 --> 00:20:07.751
But I would then think,
\"Oh...

00:20:07.751 --> 00:20:11.125
\"what if the owner
did the same thing

00:20:11.125 --> 00:20:14.167
\"before he became
the \'owner?\'

00:20:14.167 --> 00:20:16.125
Would that still
be okay?\"

00:20:16.125 --> 00:20:19.209
And so,
on a governmental scale,

00:20:19.209 --> 00:20:20.501
apparently it\'s not okay.

00:20:20.501 --> 00:20:25.125
Are you ashamed that
your family are undocumented?

00:20:25.125 --> 00:20:25.959
No.

00:20:25.959 --> 00:20:27.167
What about you, Saul?
No.

00:20:27.167 --> 00:20:31.000
(Angy)
I feel like
you two never talk about it.

00:20:31.000 --> 00:20:34.375
If someone says something,
you don\'t say anything.

00:20:34.375 --> 00:20:37.501
Someone\'s telling you...
I mean...

00:20:37.501 --> 00:20:40.042
that immigrants jumped
into someone\'s house

00:20:40.042 --> 00:20:41.542
and just lived there.

00:20:41.542 --> 00:20:44.999
Why do you have to keep
an open mind

00:20:44.999 --> 00:20:46.999
and listen to their argument?

00:20:46.999 --> 00:20:49.083
Did they listen to you?

00:20:49.083 --> 00:20:50.834
How does it affect--

00:20:50.834 --> 00:20:52.709
How does it affect you?

00:20:52.709 --> 00:20:55.167
After you spent an hour
talking about

00:20:55.167 --> 00:20:57.999
being afraid of being
put up for adoption

00:20:57.999 --> 00:21:01.999
and your family being deported,
how does that affect you?

00:21:01.999 --> 00:21:06.250
I mean, we always found a way
to stick together.

00:21:06.250 --> 00:21:09.042
Maybe that\'s why.

00:21:17.292 --> 00:21:21.999
(Angy)
When you don\'t know of other
people who are undocumented,

00:21:21.999 --> 00:21:26.167
you feel alone, isolated,
and depressed.

00:21:26.584 --> 00:21:28.000
After we started
coming out,

00:21:28.000 --> 00:21:31.334
we started providing support
to other young people

00:21:31.334 --> 00:21:34.999
who wanted to
share their stories too.

00:21:34.999 --> 00:21:37.125
[chatting]

00:21:37.125 --> 00:21:41.876
I have been completely
closed about my status

00:21:41.876 --> 00:21:43.167
and the situation.

00:21:43.167 --> 00:21:45.209
Especially in high school,

00:21:45.209 --> 00:21:47.999
it has been really hard
to come out.

00:21:47.999 --> 00:21:52.918
You know, I\'ve been hiding it
for a long while.

00:21:52.918 --> 00:21:54.375
In a movement like this,

00:21:54.375 --> 00:21:56.876
you must be upfront
with your story

00:21:56.876 --> 00:22:00.792
because media and people
are already telling others

00:22:00.792 --> 00:22:01.792
what we are like,

00:22:01.792 --> 00:22:05.999
and it\'s important for us
to put a real face.

00:22:05.999 --> 00:22:07.042
\"Listen, I\'m a human.

00:22:07.042 --> 00:22:08.999
This term, undocumented--
that\'s me.\"

00:22:08.999 --> 00:22:11.918
How did you gain
your mother\'s support?

00:22:11.918 --> 00:22:13.876
My mom thought I was crazy.

00:22:13.876 --> 00:22:17.501
She started yelling at me
to leave the YLC.

00:22:17.501 --> 00:22:19.626
She would make up excuses:

00:22:19.626 --> 00:22:21.792
I wasn\'t spending time
at home,

00:22:21.792 --> 00:22:24.125
that I was becoming
a different person.

00:22:24.125 --> 00:22:28.542
I\'m like, \"I am--I\'m unafraid
of things I feared.\"

00:22:28.542 --> 00:22:31.918
They worked through
an even worse time.

00:22:31.918 --> 00:22:33.083
Yeah.

00:22:33.083 --> 00:22:35.459
The way the media
portrays them,

00:22:35.459 --> 00:22:39.042
it\'s always, \"These people,
these illegals

00:22:39.042 --> 00:22:41.375
\"that brought
their children here,

00:22:41.375 --> 00:22:42.250
it\'s their fault.\"

00:22:42.250 --> 00:22:45.375
\"And they\'re bad
and their children are...\"

00:22:45.375 --> 00:22:48.459
Yeah, so they put that
inside of themselves.

00:22:48.459 --> 00:22:51.459
\"It\'s my fault
my kids are undocumented.

00:22:51.459 --> 00:22:52.999
I am a bad person.\"

00:22:52.999 --> 00:22:57.000
It\'s hard for them to say,
\"This is not my fault.

00:22:57.000 --> 00:23:00.542
I was pushed to come here
through poverty--\"

00:23:00.542 --> 00:23:02.042
you know, all the things

00:23:02.042 --> 00:23:05.751
that forced our parents
to come here.

00:23:15.959 --> 00:23:16.959
Dream Act

00:23:16.959 --> 00:23:18.999
Hello My Name is...Angy

00:23:18.999 --> 00:23:22.167
Chasing a Dream

00:23:22.834 --> 00:23:24.999
I\'m Hungry for Change
We\'re Hungry for Dream

00:23:24.999 --> 00:23:27.999
(Angy)
I wrote a first-person
singular

00:23:27.999 --> 00:23:30.167
about myself and coming out

00:23:30.167 --> 00:23:33.626
and how that was
with me and my mom

00:23:33.626 --> 00:23:35.918
and how it affected
our relationship.

00:23:35.918 --> 00:23:38.542
I wrote it for
\"The Progressive\" magazine.

00:23:38.542 --> 00:23:41.542
The title is
\"Dreaming with my Mother.\"

00:23:41.542 --> 00:23:43.459
See, that\'s my name.

00:23:43.459 --> 00:23:45.000
I wrote it;
it\'s mine.

00:23:45.000 --> 00:23:47.709
\"Coming out
was an emotional experience

00:23:47.709 --> 00:23:49.125
\"that I will never regret.

00:23:49.125 --> 00:23:51.959
\"It was like breaking
invisible chains

00:23:51.959 --> 00:23:52.999
\"that tied me down.

00:23:52.999 --> 00:23:56.083
\"I crushed my chains
and my mother\'s at once.

00:23:56.083 --> 00:23:59.709
\"My mother\'s story goes untold
in so many spaces.

00:23:59.709 --> 00:24:02.292
\"When it is shared,
she is criminalized

00:24:02.292 --> 00:24:05.709
\"for wanting to raise
her daughter in safety.

00:24:05.709 --> 00:24:10.083
\"It is up to me that she be
elevated and acknowledged.

00:24:10.083 --> 00:24:14.292
\"By coming out, I didn\'t only
embrace my struggle,

00:24:14.292 --> 00:24:17.542
but I embraced
my mother too.\"

00:24:23.042 --> 00:24:26.999
Are you going to cook
this with the carrots?

00:24:26.999 --> 00:24:29.709
Broccoli is added at the end.

00:24:29.709 --> 00:24:31.250
It\'ll be good, you\'ll see.

00:24:31.250 --> 00:24:34.876
You\'ll see that
only I\'ll eat this.

00:24:34.876 --> 00:24:35.000
I know.

00:24:35.000 --> 00:24:38.334
You cooked a lot, it\'ll go to
waste and you\'ll yell at me.

00:24:38.334 --> 00:24:42.709
It won\'t go to waste because
you\'ll eat it all today.

00:24:42.709 --> 00:24:44.042
All of this?

00:24:44.042 --> 00:24:46.000
It\'ll be good!

00:24:48.876 --> 00:24:53.375
(Angy)
I know that there were
no resources back home.

00:24:53.375 --> 00:24:54.999
It makes me sad sometimes

00:24:54.999 --> 00:24:57.709
to think about
how your own country

00:24:57.709 --> 00:24:59.876
can\'t provide
those things for you,

00:24:59.876 --> 00:25:02.959
and you\'re forced to leave
to another country

00:25:02.959 --> 00:25:04.999
and leave everything behind.

00:25:06.542 --> 00:25:09.083
Sometimes my mom
would tell me stories

00:25:09.083 --> 00:25:12.000
about the violence
and poverty in Colombia,

00:25:12.000 --> 00:25:14.999
about the gangs, drugs,
and traffickers

00:25:14.999 --> 00:25:18.083
that she was scared of.

00:25:24.876 --> 00:25:28.167
(Maria)
The situation in Colombia
was not too good

00:25:28.167 --> 00:25:32.542
and I found a way
to come to the United States

00:25:32.542 --> 00:25:36.042
to give my daughter
a better future.

00:25:42.999 --> 00:25:46.000
I pretty much ended up
in the street

00:25:46.000 --> 00:25:47.709
without knowing what to do.

00:25:47.709 --> 00:25:52.417
But a bunch of people
opened the door for me,

00:25:52.417 --> 00:25:57.667
and there were
opportunities for work,

00:25:57.667 --> 00:26:00.834
like a job as a bartender.

00:26:02.209 --> 00:26:07.626
I got a room to stay in,
and I remember I told the lady

00:26:07.626 --> 00:26:11.751
that the space needed furniture
nas I didn\'t have any.

00:26:11.751 --> 00:26:15.709
And that\'s how I lived
for some time.

00:26:17.999 --> 00:26:20.999
I cried all year

00:26:20.999 --> 00:26:23.209
\'cause I want to go back.

00:26:23.209 --> 00:26:25.501
But I know
I can\'t go back

00:26:25.501 --> 00:26:29.792
because in my country,
they don\'t have opportunity.

00:26:31.626 --> 00:26:33.501
The fight in my country

00:26:33.501 --> 00:26:38.209
would have been larger
than the fight here.

00:26:41.042 --> 00:26:42.959
(male reporter)
...national immigration debate.

00:26:42.959 --> 00:26:45.959
There\'s another immigration
story you need to know.

00:26:45.959 --> 00:26:49.542
It\'s obscured now by the
screaming election hyperbole

00:26:49.542 --> 00:26:51.334
surrounding this issue,

00:26:51.334 --> 00:26:53.042
but it\'s politically
significant

00:26:53.042 --> 00:26:54.417
and frankly, shocking.

00:26:54.417 --> 00:26:55.999
The Obama administration
is deporting

00:26:55.999 --> 00:26:58.999
substantially more people
than the Bush administration.

00:26:58.999 --> 00:27:01.999
They\'re changing
immigration-enforcement policy

00:27:01.999 --> 00:27:05.999
so they can kick more people
out of the country.

00:27:05.999 --> 00:27:09.292
In fact, President Obama
is expected to deport

00:27:09.292 --> 00:27:10.999
10% more people this year

00:27:10.999 --> 00:27:14.292
than President Bush deported
in 2008.

00:27:14.542 --> 00:27:17.083
I was very afraid
of the consequences,

00:27:17.083 --> 00:27:23.751
of what could happen
with her being so active,

00:27:23.751 --> 00:27:28.751
with wanting to share
her story with the public.

00:27:28.999 --> 00:27:31.751
(Gabriela)
Angy\'s undocumented.

00:27:31.751 --> 00:27:34.751
(woman)
nDo you know what that means?

00:27:34.751 --> 00:27:36.501
What does that mean?

00:27:36.501 --> 00:27:39.626
What does it mean?
Yeah, explain.

00:27:39.626 --> 00:27:42.167
[sighs]

00:27:43.209 --> 00:27:46.125
To not be afraid.

00:27:48.083 --> 00:27:49.918
SECURE OUR BORDERS NOW!

00:27:49.918 --> 00:27:53.542
(reporter)
Officially, the Obama
deportation policy

00:27:53.542 --> 00:27:57.167
is focused not on
undocumented immigrants

00:27:57.167 --> 00:27:58.999
who are otherwise
law-abiding citizens,

00:27:58.999 --> 00:28:02.709
but on those who commit crimes
while they\'re here.

00:28:02.709 --> 00:28:04.999
\"The Washington Post\"
reports this week

00:28:04.999 --> 00:28:07.584
that thousands of ordinary
illegal immigrants

00:28:07.584 --> 00:28:10.125
continue to be targeted
and deported,

00:28:10.125 --> 00:28:12.709
often for minor violations.

00:28:12.999 --> 00:28:15.209
[chanting]
Undocumented, unafraid!

00:28:15.209 --> 00:28:17.999
(Angy)
Deportations are
at an all-time high.

00:28:17.999 --> 00:28:22.209
We realize that
a lot of folks are deported

00:28:22.209 --> 00:28:22.959
on the down-low.

00:28:22.959 --> 00:28:25.999
They say, \"We\'re just going
after criminals.\"

00:28:25.999 --> 00:28:28.918
But behind the scenes,
we have cases

00:28:28.918 --> 00:28:29.999
of Dream Act-eligible youth,

00:28:29.999 --> 00:28:32.501
of parents,
of families being separated.

00:28:32.501 --> 00:28:35.999
(all)
We are immigrants,
so are you!

00:28:35.999 --> 00:28:38.125
We are immigrants,
so are you!

00:28:38.125 --> 00:28:41.751
(Angy)
Go, go, go!
Open it, open it!

00:28:41.751 --> 00:28:43.125
[horns honking]

00:28:43.125 --> 00:28:45.209
(all)
Undocumented, unafraid!

00:28:45.209 --> 00:28:47.459
Undocumented, unafraid!

00:28:47.459 --> 00:28:49.918
Undocumented,
unafraid!

00:28:49.918 --> 00:28:52.999
Undocumented, unafraid!

00:28:52.999 --> 00:28:55.167
(Angy)
If something does go wrong,

00:28:55.167 --> 00:28:57.834
if I\'m put
in removal proceedings,

00:28:57.834 --> 00:29:00.999
I know that I will fight.

00:29:10.000 --> 00:29:15.999
Mommy, do you think that Angy
went to the YLC?

00:29:15.999 --> 00:29:16.999
I don\'t know.

00:29:16.999 --> 00:29:20.792
She is in something
today.

00:29:21.167 --> 00:29:24.042
(Maria)
It\'s very frustrating at times

00:29:24.042 --> 00:29:26.083
because she gets home
too late

00:29:26.083 --> 00:29:29.250
and leaves too early,
and I barely see her.

00:29:29.250 --> 00:29:33.000
My daughter and I have always
had good communication.

00:29:33.000 --> 00:29:38.999
And it affects me when we
cannot communicate that often.

00:29:43.999 --> 00:29:48.501
She wakes up early to go
to the YLC to protest,

00:29:48.501 --> 00:29:50.999
to meetings, to trouble.

00:29:53.000 --> 00:29:57.542
And it\'s like I lost
communicating with her.

00:29:57.542 --> 00:30:02.417
It\'s like a silent wall
between us.

00:30:19.000 --> 00:30:20.292
La Casa Azul Bookstore

00:30:20.292 --> 00:30:21.999
(woman)
Thank you for coming.

00:30:21.999 --> 00:30:26.792
I\'m going to bring up Angy
from \"Ask Angy.\"

00:30:26.792 --> 00:30:29.375
Oh, there\'s a lot of people.

00:30:29.375 --> 00:30:30.000
[laughs]

00:30:30.000 --> 00:30:31.999
Hi, everyone,
my name is Angy,

00:30:31.999 --> 00:30:35.834
a core member at the New York
State Leadership Council.

00:30:35.834 --> 00:30:38.999
I\'m part of the media
and outreach committee,

00:30:38.999 --> 00:30:41.292
so I don\'t only do \"Ask Angy,\"

00:30:41.292 --> 00:30:45.375
I also do behind-the-scenes,
website, Facebook...

00:30:47.375 --> 00:30:49.375
(Angy)
We\'ve created open mics

00:30:49.375 --> 00:30:52.999
because it\'s so much more
soft and soothing

00:30:52.999 --> 00:30:53.999
than a rally is,

00:30:53.999 --> 00:30:57.167
and a lot of people feel
more comfortable

00:30:57.167 --> 00:30:58.999
sharing their stories there.

00:30:58.999 --> 00:31:02.042
\"Looking around nervously,
wondering who else knows.

00:31:02.042 --> 00:31:04.999
\"Será que alguien
se la cuenta?

00:31:04.999 --> 00:31:05.667
\"Can everyone see?

00:31:05.667 --> 00:31:11.375
Like the thief in the night,
I hid among oblivious bees...\"

00:31:11.375 --> 00:31:15.292
\"Each bite of a burrito
is an act of resistance,

00:31:15.292 --> 00:31:17.751
\"moleis
an act of subversion.

00:31:17.751 --> 00:31:18.999
\"Eating is not revolutionary,

00:31:18.999 --> 00:31:22.918
\"but it is revolutionary
to eat something made by hand,

00:31:22.918 --> 00:31:26.999
\"hecho con el corazón,
made by those who love you.

00:31:26.999 --> 00:31:31.999
Food connects me to a place
I haven\'t seen in 15 years.\"

00:31:31.999 --> 00:31:34.999
\"Today it was announced
in my student organization

00:31:34.999 --> 00:31:38.375
\"that they\'ll pay to send
students to a conference.

00:31:38.375 --> 00:31:41.584
\"The travel includes flying,
so I can\'t go.

00:31:41.584 --> 00:31:45.250
\"This is a never ending cycle
of being excluded

00:31:45.250 --> 00:31:46.250
\"and missing out.

00:31:46.250 --> 00:31:48.999
\"Feelings are a hard thing
to control,

00:31:48.999 --> 00:31:52.459
especially when
you have no control.\"

00:31:53.999 --> 00:31:56.876
(woman)
\"We\'re not illegals,
we\'re not spics,

00:31:56.876 --> 00:31:59.042
\"we\'re not niggers,
we\'re not wetbacks,

00:31:59.042 --> 00:32:01.876
\"we\'re not coons,
we\'re not mammies,

00:32:01.876 --> 00:32:03.667
\"and we\'re not chinks.

00:32:03.667 --> 00:32:05.999
\"I am not your model minority.

00:32:05.999 --> 00:32:08.042
\"I am not your token Dreamer.

00:32:08.042 --> 00:32:10.209
\"I am not
your fixed identity.

00:32:10.209 --> 00:32:13.167
I am not what
makes you comfortable.\"

00:32:13.167 --> 00:32:14.042
STOP SEPARATING FAMILIES

00:32:14.042 --> 00:32:18.709
(woman #2)
\"Lady Liberty watched
over the land and sea

00:32:18.709 --> 00:32:19.792
\"with an aching thirst

00:32:19.792 --> 00:32:23.000
\"to defend those who come
from every direction,

00:32:23.000 --> 00:32:24.667
\"seeking solid foundation,

00:32:24.667 --> 00:32:27.292
\"from the homesick feeling
to optimistic smiles,

00:32:27.292 --> 00:32:29.751
\"small triumphs,
and the never-ending trials,

00:32:29.751 --> 00:32:33.417
\"there is nothing stronger
than an immigrant\'s desire

00:32:33.417 --> 00:32:33.999
\"to persevere,

00:32:33.999 --> 00:32:37.083
their ambition is like flying,
so severe.\"

00:32:37.083 --> 00:32:39.999
It\'s not always about me
and other people,

00:32:39.999 --> 00:32:43.999
but about us, how one person
can affect many lives.

00:32:43.999 --> 00:32:47.709
I thank Angy.
You\'re a wonderful person.

00:33:06.999 --> 00:33:09.292
(Angy)
Being able to talk
to others

00:33:09.292 --> 00:33:14.125
about our immigration issues
and our immigration stories

00:33:14.125 --> 00:33:17.125
opened the doors to talk
about other things,

00:33:17.125 --> 00:33:21.709
because we weren\'t always
talking about immigrants

00:33:21.709 --> 00:33:26.709
who are also gay
or homeless or abused.

00:33:29.501 --> 00:33:33.999
Sometimes it felt like
you were drowning.

00:33:37.751 --> 00:33:41.542
I felt like there were
other things impacting me

00:33:41.542 --> 00:33:44.584
and they were
eating me up inside.

00:33:44.584 --> 00:33:49.792
And so I wrote a post
on the YLC website.

00:33:49.792 --> 00:33:50.459
[sighs]

00:33:50.459 --> 00:33:54.334
My God,
how am I gonna say this?

00:33:55.999 --> 00:34:00.999
I was abused by my stepfather
for about four years.

00:34:09.999 --> 00:34:12.417
Angy, come on.

00:34:19.459 --> 00:34:22.999
I was abused by my stepfather
for four years

00:34:22.999 --> 00:34:26.918
until I spoke out
and asked for help.

00:34:30.959 --> 00:34:34.999
The abuse started
when I was four years old.

00:34:34.999 --> 00:34:37.459
Now that I\'m older,
I understand

00:34:37.459 --> 00:34:39.959
what was happening
around me.

00:34:39.959 --> 00:34:42.000
But, in that time
and place,

00:34:42.000 --> 00:34:45.292
you feel like
you\'re alone.

00:34:50.542 --> 00:34:54.292
I drew a picture of me
when I was little,

00:34:54.292 --> 00:34:59.000
and my stepfather is
all the way on the other side.

00:34:59.000 --> 00:35:01.999
I colored it in black.

00:35:03.209 --> 00:35:05.999
Sometimes I would get mad
at myself

00:35:05.999 --> 00:35:10.167
for not saying anything or...

00:35:10.167 --> 00:35:13.334
I would wonder if...

00:35:13.334 --> 00:35:16.000
like, if I would have
said something,

00:35:16.000 --> 00:35:18.417
would things
have been different?

00:35:18.417 --> 00:35:21.999
I would get mad at myself
for staying quiet.

00:35:21.999 --> 00:35:24.417
It made me feel like,
silent,

00:35:24.417 --> 00:35:26.999
like I couldn\'t say
what was happening.

00:35:26.999 --> 00:35:31.792
I was too scared,
or I just--I was tired.

00:35:33.999 --> 00:35:35.792
I think it\'s a process.

00:35:35.792 --> 00:35:39.375
I don\'t know if I\'ll ever
reach a point

00:35:39.375 --> 00:35:42.083
where I\'ll be okay
with everything.

00:35:42.083 --> 00:35:43.999
But I\'ve always believed

00:35:43.999 --> 00:35:46.584
that letting things out
is better.

00:35:46.584 --> 00:35:49.000
And that\'s something
I\'ve been practicing

00:35:49.000 --> 00:35:50.999
with my immigration status.

00:35:50.999 --> 00:35:53.876
So why not like,

00:35:53.876 --> 00:35:58.042
do it with other stuff
that I went through?

00:36:07.792 --> 00:36:10.209
After I shared
my sexual assault story,

00:36:10.209 --> 00:36:13.292
a lot of people
starting contacting me,

00:36:13.292 --> 00:36:15.876
sharing similar experiences.

00:36:17.999 --> 00:36:20.417
Abuse and violence
is very common

00:36:20.417 --> 00:36:23.667
in the undocumented
communities.

00:36:23.667 --> 00:36:25.542
We live under fear

00:36:25.542 --> 00:36:29.167
and we\'re trying our best
to be invisible.

00:36:29.167 --> 00:36:32.959
We don\'t trust anyone

00:36:32.959 --> 00:36:34.999
in an authority position,

00:36:34.999 --> 00:36:37.792
or we\'re scared
that any wrong thing

00:36:37.792 --> 00:36:40.876
is gonna lead
to deportation.

00:36:41.999 --> 00:36:46.584
It\'s hard for many of us
to come forward.

00:36:48.834 --> 00:36:52.292
Atlas: DIY, Developing
Immigrant Youth Center

00:36:53.250 --> 00:36:57.083
(woman)
This book talks about
private versus public.

00:36:57.083 --> 00:37:00.584
What\'s the difference between
private and public college?

00:37:00.584 --> 00:37:04.000
Public schools,
you got financial aid

00:37:04.000 --> 00:37:06.209
from the state
and city...

00:37:06.209 --> 00:37:07.375
Exactly, exactly.

00:37:07.375 --> 00:37:08.999
Are undocumented people
eligible

00:37:08.999 --> 00:37:11.167
for federal financial aid?
No.

00:37:11.167 --> 00:37:12.000
What about state?

00:37:12.000 --> 00:37:15.167
In New York, they\'re eligible
for in-state tuition...

00:37:15.167 --> 00:37:18.999
(woman)
I had known about Angy
for a while.

00:37:18.999 --> 00:37:21.250
I came upon
her YouTube videos

00:37:21.250 --> 00:37:23.250
soon after she started them.

00:37:23.250 --> 00:37:24.667
We were having coffee.

00:37:24.667 --> 00:37:26.918
I don\'t remember
how it came up,

00:37:26.918 --> 00:37:30.459
but Angy mentioned she was
in foster care temporarily.

00:37:30.459 --> 00:37:35.083
I said, \"Have you had
immigration screening before?

00:37:35.083 --> 00:37:39.792
Sometimes foster care can
lead to immigration status.\"

00:37:39.792 --> 00:37:42.501
She said, \"But I know
I\'m not eligible.\"

00:37:42.501 --> 00:37:46.999
I said, \"Would you want
to come in and talk further?\"

00:37:46.999 --> 00:37:50.209
(Lauren)
Okay, let\'s start
at the beginning.

00:37:50.209 --> 00:37:55.834
I found this report card
from when I was eight.

00:37:55.834 --> 00:37:56.999
Great, that\'s good.

00:37:56.999 --> 00:38:00.709
Inside, it says,
\"New York City,\" whatever,

00:38:00.709 --> 00:38:02.999
and then it has my name...

00:38:02.999 --> 00:38:05.626
You got \"goods.\"
Oh, some \"satisfactories.\"

00:38:05.626 --> 00:38:07.042
Some \"excellents!\"

00:38:07.042 --> 00:38:10.501
Are you proud of
your seven-year-old self?

00:38:10.501 --> 00:38:11.667
Is this is useful?

00:38:11.667 --> 00:38:14.751
It\'s how long
I was in foster care.

00:38:14.751 --> 00:38:17.250
(Lauren)
A case had been reported

00:38:17.250 --> 00:38:19.709
to the Administration
for Children\'s Services.

00:38:19.709 --> 00:38:24.250
I knew she would likely
be eligible for the U visa,

00:38:24.250 --> 00:38:25.999
for people who have survived

00:38:25.999 --> 00:38:28.292
serious crimes
in the United States.

00:38:28.292 --> 00:38:30.542
If you are
physically assaulted,

00:38:30.542 --> 00:38:33.125
raped, domestic violence,
child abuse--

00:38:33.125 --> 00:38:35.125
these things all qualify.

00:38:35.125 --> 00:38:37.417
You have to report
what happened

00:38:37.417 --> 00:38:40.250
and the crime
has to have occurred

00:38:40.250 --> 00:38:41.626
within the United States.

00:38:41.626 --> 00:38:45.584
Because your crime happened
to you when you were little,

00:38:45.584 --> 00:38:49.250
your mom was the main person
who assisted police--

00:38:49.250 --> 00:38:51.459
you obviously did as well--

00:38:51.459 --> 00:38:55.999
so we can apply for her
to be certified as well.

00:38:55.999 --> 00:38:59.334
You guys can both
get U visas.

00:38:59.334 --> 00:39:02.709
Do you remember what
the U visa gives you?

00:39:02.709 --> 00:39:05.292
You have your permit,
social security number,

00:39:05.292 --> 00:39:08.000
license, and state benefits
for four years,

00:39:08.000 --> 00:39:11.125
and then you apply
for a green card?

00:39:11.125 --> 00:39:13.250
After how many years?
Three years.

00:39:13.250 --> 00:39:17.417
These are a mess.
I\'ll explain as we go.

00:39:17.417 --> 00:39:21.375
(Lauren)
The U visa was created
in the early 2000s.

00:39:21.375 --> 00:39:24.626
Angy\'s been eligible for it
ever since then.

00:39:24.626 --> 00:39:27.709
We have met kids
in situations like you,

00:39:27.709 --> 00:39:29.999
where it turns out
they are eligible

00:39:29.999 --> 00:39:33.626
to a path towards citizenship
they didn\'t know about.

00:39:33.626 --> 00:39:36.125
They never had
an immigration screening,

00:39:36.125 --> 00:39:37.667
or they were lied to--

00:39:37.667 --> 00:39:41.167
We\'ve met so many cases
of immigration fraud.

00:39:41.167 --> 00:39:41.999
It\'s crazy.

00:39:41.999 --> 00:39:44.626
But you\'re getting there.

00:39:44.999 --> 00:39:48.667
(Angy)
There\'s a lot of things
that went wrong

00:39:48.667 --> 00:39:50.834
in my immigration
history here.

00:39:50.834 --> 00:39:55.501
At that time, translation
in the United States

00:39:55.501 --> 00:39:56.375
wasn\'t that good,

00:39:56.375 --> 00:40:00.999
so they had me translate for
my mother what was happening.

00:40:00.999 --> 00:40:04.667
So I had to tell her
that ACS told me

00:40:04.667 --> 00:40:07.000
we would be taken away
that night.

00:40:07.000 --> 00:40:10.999
I knew what was happening,
and I was crying,

00:40:10.999 --> 00:40:12.751
holding on to her.

00:40:12.751 --> 00:40:15.417
But once I got put
into the van

00:40:15.417 --> 00:40:18.709
to be taken away,
my brothers were hysterical.

00:40:18.709 --> 00:40:21.459
So I stopped crying
to hug them

00:40:21.459 --> 00:40:23.999
and make sure
they were okay.

00:40:23.999 --> 00:40:26.876
This is my brothers and I

00:40:26.876 --> 00:40:30.751
when we were little,
we were separate from my mom.

00:40:30.751 --> 00:40:34.250
And I drew us together
in the same darkness

00:40:34.250 --> 00:40:37.876
that I drew my stepfather
and I.

00:40:40.999 --> 00:40:43.709
(Angy)
\"You\'re not alone.

00:40:43.709 --> 00:40:45.709
\"Their words,
their actions,

00:40:45.709 --> 00:40:48.501
\"their touch
will never crush our spirit.

00:40:48.501 --> 00:40:51.292
\"We are warriors.
We are fighters.

00:40:51.292 --> 00:40:54.999
\"I promise to hold your hand
and hug your soul.

00:40:54.999 --> 00:40:59.542
\"I promise to cry with you
and hide in the darkness too.

00:40:59.542 --> 00:41:02.751
\"We\'ll be strong together,
fight against the demons

00:41:02.751 --> 00:41:05.918
\"and the nightmares--
they cannot bring us down.

00:41:05.918 --> 00:41:08.959
\"We will never be victims,
brought down,

00:41:08.959 --> 00:41:10.375
\"belittled, shamed, or used.

00:41:10.375 --> 00:41:13.709
\"Together, we will fight
until the end.

00:41:13.709 --> 00:41:16.000
\"We are survivors.

00:41:16.000 --> 00:41:18.626
\"We are survivors.

00:41:18.626 --> 00:41:22.083
We will always continue
to survive.\"

00:41:41.292 --> 00:41:45.334
(Angy)
My college life
has been a mess.

00:41:45.334 --> 00:41:49.584
The anonymous donation
covered one semester.

00:41:49.584 --> 00:41:53.834
But in reality,
every semester is a struggle.

00:41:53.834 --> 00:41:56.709
I\'ve been able
to finance my education

00:41:56.709 --> 00:41:58.876
through small scholarships.

00:41:58.876 --> 00:42:00.999
I\'ve dropped out of school

00:42:00.999 --> 00:42:05.083
a couple of times to work
and save money.

00:42:05.083 --> 00:42:07.209
It\'s been very sad for me

00:42:07.209 --> 00:42:10.250
to watch my other friends
move ahead

00:42:10.250 --> 00:42:13.042
and finish school.

00:42:15.709 --> 00:42:18.542
I\'ve just channeled
my sadness

00:42:18.542 --> 00:42:21.167
and loneliness and anger

00:42:21.167 --> 00:42:22.999
into other activities

00:42:22.999 --> 00:42:27.999
where I felt like I was
making an impact somehow.

00:42:33.999 --> 00:42:35.999
Albany, New York

00:42:35.999 --> 00:42:38.918
[people cheering]

00:42:39.626 --> 00:42:43.501
I believe in a New York
where your immigration status

00:42:43.501 --> 00:42:47.334
should never be a barrier
for young, undocumented

00:42:47.334 --> 00:42:48.459
college-bound students

00:42:48.459 --> 00:42:50.999
getting a good,
quality education...

00:42:50.999 --> 00:42:54.792
[cheering]

00:42:54.999 --> 00:42:58.999
...to make this dream
a reality.

00:42:59.334 --> 00:43:02.459
If the assembly member
doesn\'t meet with us,

00:43:02.459 --> 00:43:05.542
we\'ll meet with the secretary
or a staffer

00:43:05.542 --> 00:43:08.209
or whoever does
their education work.

00:43:08.209 --> 00:43:10.083
So we come inside,

00:43:10.083 --> 00:43:13.292
we say, \"Hi, my name is Angy

00:43:13.292 --> 00:43:15.999
\"with the New York
State Leadership Council.

00:43:15.999 --> 00:43:18.626
\"We came here
with over 200 people

00:43:18.626 --> 00:43:22.083
\"to talk to you about
the New York Dream Act--

00:43:22.083 --> 00:43:25.250
\"a bill that would open
the tuition-assistance program

00:43:25.250 --> 00:43:28.626
\"regardless of immigration
status in New York.

00:43:28.626 --> 00:43:31.918
\"Sixty-five thousand
undocumented youth

00:43:31.918 --> 00:43:34.375
\"graduate from high school
every year.

00:43:34.375 --> 00:43:38.959
\"Out of those, only 5% to 7%

00:43:38.959 --> 00:43:39.999
\"go on to college.

00:43:39.999 --> 00:43:43.167
\"So there\'s a big drop-out rate
after high school,

00:43:43.167 --> 00:43:48.125
and the reason is not being
able to finance education.\"

00:43:52.292 --> 00:43:53.999
Okay.

00:44:05.626 --> 00:44:10.083
No assembly members met
with Angy\'s group directly.

00:44:17.125 --> 00:44:19.667
(Angy)
Oh Ma, look.

00:44:19.667 --> 00:44:20.918
Oh, the article.

00:44:20.918 --> 00:44:24.626
I saw it on the
Internet yesterday.

00:44:32.709 --> 00:44:36.876
Yeah, I really loved it.

00:44:38.125 --> 00:44:40.584
Are you serious?

00:44:40.918 --> 00:44:45.042
They sent me
financial aid paperwork.

00:44:45.209 --> 00:44:47.834
Don\'t worry.
Someday you\'ll qualify.

00:44:47.834 --> 00:44:48.999
It\'s cool, right?

00:44:48.999 --> 00:44:51.792
I was going to take one to...

00:44:51.792 --> 00:44:54.167
You\'re gonna burn yourself.

00:44:54.167 --> 00:44:55.792
Come on.

00:44:57.626 --> 00:44:57.999
Hmm?

00:44:57.999 --> 00:45:01.584
I was going to buy one
for the pastor.

00:45:01.584 --> 00:45:02.959
Why?
People are complaining.

00:45:02.959 --> 00:45:06.876
He wants to know
about your publicity.

00:45:08.250 --> 00:45:11.792
What did you think
of the article, Ma?

00:45:11.792 --> 00:45:12.999
Are you proud?

00:45:12.999 --> 00:45:16.000
How come
nyou don\'t say anything?

00:45:30.167 --> 00:45:34.083
\"The New York Times\" wrote--
it reads,

00:45:34.083 --> 00:45:38.334
\"Finding a Path
to a United States Visa,

00:45:38.334 --> 00:45:39.999
Often by Luck.\"

00:45:39.999 --> 00:45:40.667
\"When Angy Rivera

00:45:40.667 --> 00:45:45.209
\"was a young girl in New York,
she was sexually abused

00:45:45.209 --> 00:45:46.542
\"by her mother\'s boyfriend.

00:45:46.542 --> 00:45:48.999
\"He was imprisoned,
but only recently

00:45:48.999 --> 00:45:51.667
\"did Miss Rivera discover
that her cooperation

00:45:51.667 --> 00:45:55.834
\"with investigators qualified
her for a special benefit--

00:45:55.834 --> 00:45:58.876
\"a visa for victims
of crimes.

00:45:59.709 --> 00:46:03.999
\"Another illegal immigrant
who gave her initial--J--

00:46:03.999 --> 00:46:05.999
\"said she revealed to a lawyer

00:46:05.999 --> 00:46:07.999
\"during her deferred action
consultation

00:46:07.999 --> 00:46:11.083
\"that she was raped
by a smuggler at 11

00:46:11.083 --> 00:46:15.999
\"as he helped her get to
the United States from Guyana.

00:46:15.999 --> 00:46:19.125
She then filed a petition
for a T visa...\"

00:46:19.125 --> 00:46:22.792
T visas are for victims
of human trafficking--

00:46:22.792 --> 00:46:23.626
for those victims.

00:46:23.626 --> 00:46:27.459
\"...\'J\' is now 18
and a sophomore in college

00:46:27.459 --> 00:46:32.125
\"in New York, and said when
she heard about the T visa,

00:46:32.125 --> 00:46:35.792
\"she cried, partly because
she was angry with herself

00:46:35.792 --> 00:46:38.250
\"that she had never
disclosed her experience.

00:46:38.250 --> 00:46:41.709
\"\'I felt that if I had
said something earlier,

00:46:41.709 --> 00:46:44.999
my situation could have
been changed before.\'\"

00:46:44.999 --> 00:46:46.709
I think that\'s common.

00:46:46.709 --> 00:46:51.334
That\'s usually the first thing
you ask yourself:

00:46:51.334 --> 00:46:54.542
\"Why didn\'t you
say something before?\"

00:46:59.999 --> 00:47:03.417
(Lauren)
We\'re gonna start
running through it.

00:47:03.417 --> 00:47:05.999
Just turn it over that way.

00:47:05.999 --> 00:47:07.167
Then you\'ll have it.

00:47:07.167 --> 00:47:10.209
G28? 918?
(woman)
Yep, yep.

00:47:10.209 --> 00:47:13.125
The 918B? We got that.

00:47:13.125 --> 00:47:14.501
The affidavit?
Yes.

00:47:14.501 --> 00:47:17.000
Letter from ACS
to Queens Family Court?

00:47:17.000 --> 00:47:20.709
(Angy)
If I am accepted
for this U visa,

00:47:20.709 --> 00:47:22.918
it will change
a lot of things.

00:47:22.918 --> 00:47:27.626
What will I do with my life
if given that opportunity

00:47:27.626 --> 00:47:29.999
to do something more?

00:47:33.876 --> 00:47:36.334
We do this with every case.

00:47:36.334 --> 00:47:37.834
Why aren\'t you sprinkling?

00:47:37.834 --> 00:47:40.167
I thought you guys
were supposed to...

00:47:40.167 --> 00:47:43.626
Everybody who wants
to send good mojo sprinkles.

00:47:43.626 --> 00:47:46.375
You do this with every case?
I do.

00:47:46.375 --> 00:47:50.334
Form I-918 Application
for U Nonimmigrant Status

00:47:55.584 --> 00:47:57.709
Ready?
Choose a mailbox.

00:47:57.709 --> 00:48:00.999
This one\'s clean.
No, this one.

00:48:00.999 --> 00:48:03.125
You want to put it in?

00:48:03.125 --> 00:48:06.125
We could put it in
together.

00:48:08.709 --> 00:48:10.918
Ah!
It\'s done.

00:48:12.999 --> 00:48:15.167
I\'m happy for you.

00:48:40.542 --> 00:48:41.083
Arepas Cafe

00:48:41.083 --> 00:48:43.834
Why are you eating
with a fork?

00:48:43.834 --> 00:48:46.250
Dude, there\'s no...
Ask for a spoon.

00:48:46.250 --> 00:48:48.959
Did you celebrate
your birthday yesterday?

00:48:48.959 --> 00:48:51.375
Yeah...
And you\'re leaving tomorrow?

00:48:51.375 --> 00:48:54.083
Okay.
What time is your flight?

00:48:54.083 --> 00:48:55.959
Six.
In the afternoon?

00:48:55.959 --> 00:48:56.709
Yeah, not too early.

00:48:56.709 --> 00:49:00.709
Take the transit train to
Newark International Airport.

00:49:00.709 --> 00:49:03.876
Lately, I\'ve been
stopped by police twice,

00:49:03.876 --> 00:49:06.209
and I don\'t have
a driver\'s license.

00:49:06.209 --> 00:49:09.667
They search me, like,
\"How come you don\'t

00:49:09.667 --> 00:49:10.999
have a driver\'s license?\"

00:49:10.999 --> 00:49:13.375
\"I don\'t want
to go into that.\"

00:49:13.375 --> 00:49:17.042
I almost got my [blank] beat
for not having ID.

00:49:17.042 --> 00:49:21.918
\"Give me your ID.\"
I\'m like, \"I don\'t have one.\"

00:49:21.918 --> 00:49:22.959
They surround me.

00:49:22.959 --> 00:49:26.959
\"Where\'s your ID?\"
I\'m like, \"I don\'t have one!\"

00:49:26.959 --> 00:49:29.542
\"Stop lying!
Where were you going?\"

00:49:29.542 --> 00:49:30.626
\"The library.\"

00:49:30.626 --> 00:49:32.042
I almost
started crying.

00:49:32.042 --> 00:49:35.083
I was
\"Undocumented and Afraid.\"

00:49:35.083 --> 00:49:35.834
[laughing]

00:49:35.834 --> 00:49:39.584
I was scared I\'d go
to jail and get deported.

00:49:39.584 --> 00:49:42.626
(man)
I\'ve had way too many
experiences...

00:49:42.626 --> 00:49:44.959
It\'s weird,
it\'s scary.

00:49:47.501 --> 00:49:51.125
(Angy)
Clothes for tomorrow.

00:49:51.542 --> 00:49:55.375
Fly--that\'s the one thing
you\'re not supposed to do,

00:49:55.375 --> 00:49:57.334
but my friends have done it.

00:49:57.334 --> 00:50:00.751
My homework--oh, I have to
take my homework.

00:50:00.751 --> 00:50:03.999
I know about flying
while undocumented

00:50:03.999 --> 00:50:07.375
because my friends
told me how they did it--

00:50:07.375 --> 00:50:09.918
fly with an ID
that\'s not expired.

00:50:09.918 --> 00:50:12.792
If it\'s a passport,
have it open

00:50:12.792 --> 00:50:15.375
so they don\'t
check the stamp.

00:50:15.375 --> 00:50:17.751
(Maria)
She takes the chance

00:50:17.751 --> 00:50:19.417
because she is really young.

00:50:19.417 --> 00:50:22.792
But I don\'t want
to take the chance.

00:50:22.792 --> 00:50:24.375
Now I asked my lawyer

00:50:24.375 --> 00:50:27.375
if I can travel
to another state.

00:50:27.375 --> 00:50:29.209
She said,
\"I don\'t recommend it

00:50:29.209 --> 00:50:35.125
\"because sometimes, they look
too much at your passport

00:50:35.125 --> 00:50:37.209
and make you in trouble.\"

00:50:37.209 --> 00:50:39.999
Ma, nobody\'s gonna notice.

00:50:39.999 --> 00:50:40.999
(Maria)
Oh, yeah.

00:50:40.999 --> 00:50:45.751
(Angy)
My mom has lived in such
a big state of fear

00:50:45.751 --> 00:50:47.999
about flying,
about leaving New York,

00:50:47.999 --> 00:50:51.000
about them asking her
for an ID.

00:50:51.000 --> 00:50:54.167
She gets nervous
every time I fly.

00:50:54.167 --> 00:50:56.334
Your charger?

00:50:56.334 --> 00:50:59.959
Yes, I have my iPod,
my phone.

00:50:59.959 --> 00:51:03.417
I don\'t want to hear
nI couldn\'t call you

00:51:03.417 --> 00:51:05.542
because I didn\'t
nhave my charger.

00:51:05.542 --> 00:51:09.501
(Angy)
I don\'t understand why
she\'s so afraid of things.

00:51:09.501 --> 00:51:13.709
And she doesn\'t understand
why I\'m the opposite.

00:51:22.999 --> 00:51:25.083
Ay.

00:51:27.959 --> 00:51:30.667
Bye, Mama.
Bye,mi\'ja.

00:51:32.292 --> 00:51:32.876
Okay?

00:51:32.876 --> 00:51:37.834
Yeah, I\'ll text you
when I\'m on the plane.

00:51:37.834 --> 00:51:40.334
It\'s gonna be fine!

00:51:51.999 --> 00:51:54.209
(Angy)
I like being able to fly.

00:51:54.209 --> 00:51:58.626
It\'s nice up there,
and the view is so beautiful.

00:51:58.626 --> 00:52:00.751
I feel so like, free.

00:52:00.751 --> 00:52:03.125
(female flight attendant)
Ladies and gentlemen,

00:52:03.125 --> 00:52:04.999
welcome to
St. Louis, Missouri.

00:52:04.999 --> 00:52:08.417
Our arrival time
is 12 minutes after 3:00.

00:52:08.417 --> 00:52:12.000
For your safety
and of those around you,

00:52:12.000 --> 00:52:13.999
please remain seated...

00:52:13.999 --> 00:52:15.918
(Angy)
I was invited to speak

00:52:15.918 --> 00:52:18.792
at the National Council
for the Social Studies.

00:52:18.792 --> 00:52:22.375
They bring together a bunch
of social studies teachers

00:52:22.375 --> 00:52:25.999
to go through workshops
that impact them

00:52:25.999 --> 00:52:27.792
and their students.

00:52:28.083 --> 00:52:30.042
So I was on two panels,

00:52:30.042 --> 00:52:31.999
both addressing
undocumented students

00:52:31.999 --> 00:52:34.542
and how they could
access education,

00:52:34.542 --> 00:52:36.999
how I was able
to do it

00:52:36.999 --> 00:52:40.167
and what \"Ask Angy\" does
to help students.

00:52:40.167 --> 00:52:44.209
In high school,
I thought I was by myself,

00:52:44.209 --> 00:52:47.417
that I was the only person
without papers.

00:52:47.417 --> 00:52:49.667
Already,
as an undocumented student,

00:52:49.667 --> 00:52:51.334
you feel out of control.

00:52:51.334 --> 00:52:54.250
We can\'t vote,
we fear being deported,

00:52:54.250 --> 00:52:58.375
we have no control
over legislation and things,

00:52:58.375 --> 00:53:01.834
so it feels like,
\"I don\'t have control

00:53:01.834 --> 00:53:03.334
over my education either.\"

00:53:03.334 --> 00:53:04.334
But that\'s not true.

00:53:04.334 --> 00:53:08.584
It took me stepping out
and saying, \"This is happening.

00:53:08.584 --> 00:53:10.417
Is there any help
out there?\"

00:53:10.417 --> 00:53:14.667
(woman)
I\'m curious if you have
any tips for teachers

00:53:14.667 --> 00:53:17.209
about creating
a supportive environment

00:53:17.209 --> 00:53:20.167
where a student could
come to them

00:53:20.167 --> 00:53:21.250
to talk about resources.

00:53:21.250 --> 00:53:24.918
(Angy)
Yeah, my teachers
would put up applications

00:53:24.918 --> 00:53:27.417
for things students
could apply for

00:53:27.417 --> 00:53:28.125
on bulletin boards.

00:53:28.125 --> 00:53:30.999
Those things often needed
social security numbers.

00:53:30.999 --> 00:53:34.125
It would have been great
to have some--

00:53:34.125 --> 00:53:36.250
\"These are for
undocumented students.

00:53:36.250 --> 00:53:38.999
\"If that\'s you,
check that out.

00:53:38.999 --> 00:53:40.334
There\'s things for citizens\"--

00:53:40.334 --> 00:53:42.959
Make it a part
of the conversation.

00:53:42.959 --> 00:53:45.999
Those little things
will make a difference

00:53:45.999 --> 00:53:48.709
in somebody\'s life,
their family, their community.

00:53:48.709 --> 00:53:53.999
(woman)
I\'m pretty sure I have
more undocumented students

00:53:53.999 --> 00:53:55.292
than I think.

00:53:55.292 --> 00:53:56.167
Yeah.

00:53:56.167 --> 00:53:59.125
It\'s hard to pull that out

00:53:59.125 --> 00:54:01.375
and give them that hope.
Right.

00:54:01.375 --> 00:54:03.959
It is difficult
because you\'re raised

00:54:03.959 --> 00:54:06.209
to live in fear,
not speak out.

00:54:06.209 --> 00:54:09.292
And if you have
an authority figure asking,

00:54:09.292 --> 00:54:11.999
\"Do you have papers?\",
it\'s like, \"Uh...\"

00:54:11.999 --> 00:54:15.542
I\'ve seen, speaking
in classrooms,

00:54:15.542 --> 00:54:16.999
when we share our stories,

00:54:16.999 --> 00:54:20.751
two or three people
will say, \"Oh, me too.\"

00:54:20.751 --> 00:54:22.999
Or they\'ll come up
in the end

00:54:22.999 --> 00:54:27.918
and say, \"I don\'t have papers;
my siblings don\'t.\"

00:54:41.083 --> 00:54:44.334
(Maria)
It\'s really nervous

00:54:44.999 --> 00:54:47.209
because the visa,

00:54:47.209 --> 00:54:49.999
I need to wait and wait.

00:54:49.999 --> 00:54:52.083
But it\'s only time.

00:54:52.083 --> 00:54:55.999
I know it\'s coming.
It\'s only waiting.

00:54:59.999 --> 00:55:01.250
Okay.

00:55:01.250 --> 00:55:04.918
\"My mommy is as sweet
as cotton candy

00:55:04.918 --> 00:55:07.542
\"and filled
with lots of sugar.

00:55:07.542 --> 00:55:11.542
\"She is so pretty
as a fashion designer

00:55:11.542 --> 00:55:13.125
\"with heels

00:55:13.125 --> 00:55:17.167
that have jewels
all over.\"

00:55:18.375 --> 00:55:19.999
(Angy)
That was beautiful.

00:55:19.999 --> 00:55:21.999
What did you make that for?

00:55:21.999 --> 00:55:25.667
That was for Mom.
I wrote a little face.

00:55:25.667 --> 00:55:27.999
Okay.
This thing I did.

00:55:27.999 --> 00:55:30.999
Then I did
a little fancy thing

00:55:30.999 --> 00:55:33.999
like a bow tie
in the back.

00:55:33.999 --> 00:55:36.709
You\'re very creative.

00:55:49.626 --> 00:55:53.999
(Angy)
So this is the case status

00:55:53.999 --> 00:55:56.000
for my application.

00:55:56.000 --> 00:56:00.792
It says that
on February 4th, 2013,

00:56:00.792 --> 00:56:04.501
\"your alien registration
number was changed...

00:56:04.501 --> 00:56:08.167
Please check our website
for more updates.\"

00:56:08.167 --> 00:56:11.792
And it\'s still
in initial review.

00:56:11.792 --> 00:56:13.999
So...

00:56:13.999 --> 00:56:15.459
it still hasn\'t moved.

00:56:15.459 --> 00:56:17.999
I checked it
a few months ago

00:56:17.999 --> 00:56:20.501
and it was still
in initial review.

00:56:20.501 --> 00:56:22.999
The next button
after that is \"Decision,\"

00:56:22.999 --> 00:56:27.751
so I\'m hoping to hear
by the end of the month.

00:56:27.751 --> 00:56:30.876
It says here that

00:56:30.876 --> 00:56:32.876
the average time

00:56:32.876 --> 00:56:33.709
is 13 months.

00:56:33.709 --> 00:56:38.083
I mean, I\'ve been undocumented
since I was three,

00:56:38.083 --> 00:56:42.667
so thirteen months to hear back
isn\'t that bad.

00:56:42.667 --> 00:56:47.375
Let\'s see what else
is here.

00:56:54.999 --> 00:56:58.999
John Jay College of
Criminal Justice, Manhattan, NY

00:57:02.501 --> 00:57:07.250
(Angy)
I got a scholarship
for a year.

00:57:07.250 --> 00:57:08.542
I was really emotional.

00:57:08.542 --> 00:57:11.834
I told my mom
and she was super excited

00:57:11.834 --> 00:57:16.375
that I was able to pay off
a year of school.

00:57:16.375 --> 00:57:17.999
I am currently a junior.

00:57:17.999 --> 00:57:20.999
The first time I was
a full-time student

00:57:20.999 --> 00:57:23.667
was when I got
the anonymous donation.

00:57:23.667 --> 00:57:25.999
This scholarship gives me
the opportunity

00:57:25.999 --> 00:57:29.292
to be
a full-time student again.

00:57:29.999 --> 00:57:32.999
I want to finish school
and move on

00:57:32.999 --> 00:57:36.334
and figure out what\'s
out there for me.

00:57:36.334 --> 00:57:39.792
It\'s nice because
I remind myself,

00:57:39.792 --> 00:57:43.000
\"Look, my life is not just
\'Ask Angy,\'

00:57:43.000 --> 00:57:44.209
the undocumented girl.\"

00:57:44.209 --> 00:57:47.167
My life is
so much more than that.

00:57:47.167 --> 00:57:51.584
Who I am is so much
more than that.

00:58:05.542 --> 00:58:08.167
Hi, Angy.
(Angy)
Hey.

00:58:08.167 --> 00:58:10.459
Where you comin\' from?

00:58:10.459 --> 00:58:12.459
The park.

00:58:12.459 --> 00:58:13.709
Hi.

00:58:13.709 --> 00:58:16.751
Angy, wanna see
my water bottle?

00:58:16.751 --> 00:58:18.292
Sure.

00:58:18.292 --> 00:58:20.876
(Angy)
Today is Sunday.

00:58:20.876 --> 00:58:23.626
I am with my family.

00:58:23.626 --> 00:58:27.000
It\'s nice to spend time
with my family.

00:58:27.000 --> 00:58:28.834
I rarely see them.

00:58:28.834 --> 00:58:32.250
And, um...

00:58:32.250 --> 00:58:35.459
I don\'t know,
I miss this.

00:58:49.876 --> 00:58:52.083
Stop...

00:58:55.250 --> 00:58:58.999
(man)
Here we are observing

00:58:58.999 --> 00:59:00.999
two sisters

00:59:00.999 --> 00:59:03.751
of the Rivera family.

00:59:04.292 --> 00:59:07.834
Shooting it over.
Finally.

00:59:10.334 --> 00:59:12.459
In 3D.

00:59:12.459 --> 00:59:15.999
Stop making comments!

00:59:37.125 --> 00:59:38.501
In recognition
of her activism,

00:59:38.501 --> 00:59:41.459
Angy has been chosen
to be one of the Three Kings

00:59:41.459 --> 00:59:42.375
at the Three King Parade,

00:59:42.375 --> 00:59:45.999
one of the largest
Latino parades in New York.

00:59:47.999 --> 00:59:52.125
[in Spanish]
I used to see the parade
when I was a kid.

00:59:52.125 --> 00:59:56.626
It\'s an honor to be
one of the Kings this year.

00:59:56.626 --> 00:59:58.792
You\'ve continually
nbeen an activist

00:59:58.792 --> 00:59:59.417
for immigrant rights?

00:59:59.417 --> 01:00:03.167
Yes, I became involved
in immigrant rights in 2010.

01:00:03.167 --> 01:00:05.375
For once,
nthere needs to be

01:00:05.375 --> 01:00:06.918
legislative action
non immigration,

01:00:06.918 --> 01:00:09.999
real reform that changes
the immigration status

01:00:09.999 --> 01:00:10.876
for many people.

01:00:10.876 --> 01:00:12.999
That\'s why it\'s important
to say,

01:00:12.999 --> 01:00:14.876
\"Look, there are
undocumented people

01:00:14.876 --> 01:00:18.999
coming out of the shadows,
so you can too.\"

01:00:18.999 --> 01:00:22.375
[drums beating]

01:00:59.334 --> 01:01:01.999
[sniffling]

01:01:07.626 --> 01:01:09.584
I\'m sorry.

01:01:09.584 --> 01:01:13.417
(Angy)
On November 22, 2013,

01:01:13.417 --> 01:01:14.999
my attorney called me

01:01:14.999 --> 01:01:18.000
to tell me my U visa
was approved.

01:01:18.000 --> 01:01:22.959
I hadn\'t stopped to think,
what would I do

01:01:22.959 --> 01:01:25.125
if I got approved or not?

01:01:25.125 --> 01:01:26.250
What would that mean?

01:01:26.250 --> 01:01:30.667
I didn\'t stop to think
about any of that.

01:01:37.501 --> 01:01:41.000
Thank you
for letting me know.

01:02:07.999 --> 01:02:09.292
Hey, Mom.

01:02:09.292 --> 01:02:10.999
Cómo estás?

01:02:10.999 --> 01:02:12.209
Did you call me?

01:02:12.209 --> 01:02:17.959
No, because I\'m on my way
to see the lawyer.

01:02:19.125 --> 01:02:20.542
Okay.

01:02:20.542 --> 01:02:22.417
Yeah, okay.

01:02:22.417 --> 01:02:23.417
Bye.

01:02:23.417 --> 01:02:25.167
Love you too.

01:02:42.459 --> 01:02:44.918
So this is it.

01:02:44.918 --> 01:02:47.999
This is your U visa.

01:02:47.999 --> 01:02:50.792
It\'s as if--
imagine on November 22,

01:02:50.792 --> 01:02:53.542
that you had magically
walked across a line

01:02:53.542 --> 01:02:57.584
into the United States
and they stamped your passport.

01:02:57.584 --> 01:02:58.542
It\'s like that.

01:02:58.542 --> 01:03:02.209
Mmm.
It\'s overwhelming.

01:03:10.042 --> 01:03:11.959
Closing Letter

01:03:11.959 --> 01:03:15.999
(Angy)
I wonder if
my counselor is here.

01:03:17.751 --> 01:03:22.999
(woman)
What did you do?
nI didn\'t tell her.

01:03:22.999 --> 01:03:24.083
Well, surprise.

01:03:24.083 --> 01:03:26.167
You can tell her.

01:03:28.417 --> 01:03:30.918
How are you?

01:03:39.834 --> 01:03:44.042
It had to be you
to make me cry.

01:03:44.834 --> 01:03:47.999
Of course
it had to be me.

01:03:54.042 --> 01:03:58.042
I needed to talk to you
about it.

01:04:03.292 --> 01:04:05.751
Wow. Wow.

01:04:05.751 --> 01:04:10.918
(Angy)
I knew from the beginning
that I would feel angry...

01:04:10.918 --> 01:04:12.292
and sad.

01:04:14.292 --> 01:04:15.334
And hurt.

01:04:15.334 --> 01:04:19.709
Like, I have to look at this
and think about everything--

01:04:19.709 --> 01:04:24.375
that\'s the only way
they\'re gonna recognize me.

01:04:25.000 --> 01:04:28.042
(Angy)
It feels like
it didn\'t really matter

01:04:28.042 --> 01:04:31.626
how much you worked
or gave back or contributed.

01:04:31.626 --> 01:04:35.834
It makes me mad that being
abused makes you eligible,

01:04:35.834 --> 01:04:37.709
being raped
makes you eligible,

01:04:37.709 --> 01:04:40.999
but not just living here
and having a family

01:04:40.999 --> 01:04:44.042
and giving back--
that doesn\'t \"matter.\"

01:04:44.042 --> 01:04:45.584
You know?

01:04:55.709 --> 01:04:58.083
I had a love/ hate
relationship

01:04:58.083 --> 01:05:00.167
with being undocumented.

01:05:00.792 --> 01:05:05.918
It\'s not like I would wish
for anybody to be undocumented.

01:05:05.918 --> 01:05:06.667
It sucks.

01:05:06.667 --> 01:05:11.334
But I also learned how to
live with it and use it

01:05:11.334 --> 01:05:13.542
and find empowerment
through it.

01:05:13.542 --> 01:05:19.792
So I know that this is like,
a new journey.

01:05:49.876 --> 01:05:53.167
(Maria)
\"Thank you, United States

01:05:53.167 --> 01:05:57.876
\"for giving me an opportunity

01:05:57.876 --> 01:06:01.083
\"to live on your land.

01:06:02.792 --> 01:06:10.542
Even though we don\'t
have your permission.\"

01:06:16.709 --> 01:06:21.667
Fear is like an invisible line
in your life

01:06:21.667 --> 01:06:23.459
to cross.

01:06:23.459 --> 01:06:24.959
But when you speak,

01:06:24.959 --> 01:06:28.751
you cross the line
and it\'s no more.

01:06:30.125 --> 01:06:31.626
I think it\'s time

01:06:31.626 --> 01:06:34.042
to get out of the shadows.

01:06:34.042 --> 01:06:37.999
She\'s encouraged and powerful.

01:06:37.999 --> 01:06:41.459
She finds something
in so many places.

01:06:41.459 --> 01:06:43.667
You never tell me that.

01:06:43.667 --> 01:06:45.709
It\'s surprise.

01:06:45.709 --> 01:06:49.042
I\'m feeling...

01:06:50.000 --> 01:06:53.751
I don\'t need to tell
you everything.

01:06:53.751 --> 01:06:55.626
I try to show you.

01:06:55.626 --> 01:07:00.250
The words is so
difficult sometimes.

01:07:02.667 --> 01:07:04.667
It was a surprise for me

01:07:04.667 --> 01:07:06.999
because you were
always against it.

01:07:06.999 --> 01:07:09.834
You hated when
I went to rallies,

01:07:09.834 --> 01:07:11.334
when I went to events,

01:07:11.334 --> 01:07:14.626
when I joined the YLC,
you know?

01:07:14.626 --> 01:07:15.292
Yeah.

01:07:15.292 --> 01:07:18.250
So I was surprised
that you wanted to.

01:07:18.250 --> 01:07:22.999
But not everything
needs to be the same way.

01:07:22.999 --> 01:07:26.459
Sometimes...

01:07:26.459 --> 01:07:28.876
changes coming.

01:07:28.876 --> 01:07:32.709
Maybe that can help
other parents

01:07:32.709 --> 01:07:35.250
to make the same decision.

01:07:38.125 --> 01:07:42.626
\"I am undocumented.
I refuse to stay silent.

01:07:42.626 --> 01:07:45.000
\"I will cry
and get up again.

01:07:45.000 --> 01:07:47.459
\"I will be unafraid--
so unafraid,

01:07:47.459 --> 01:07:50.751
\"my voice will shake
when I speak out;

01:07:50.751 --> 01:07:51.959
\"everything
will stand still

01:07:51.959 --> 01:07:55.876
\"when I open my mouth
wide to shout my story

01:07:55.876 --> 01:07:59.000
\"till my vocal cords rip
and bleed out

01:07:59.000 --> 01:08:00.167
un-American blood...\"

01:08:00.167 --> 01:08:00.999
My name is Juliana.

01:08:00.999 --> 01:08:04.999
I\'m Colombian, undocumented,
unafraid, and unapologetic.

01:08:04.999 --> 01:08:07.501
[cheering]

01:08:08.792 --> 01:08:10.999
\"I will vocalize
my weaknesses

01:08:10.999 --> 01:08:14.083
\"for every undocumented person
in the shadows,

01:08:14.083 --> 01:08:15.959
\"still afraid,
without papers,

01:08:15.959 --> 01:08:19.667
so that in my weakness,
others will be strong...\"

01:08:19.667 --> 01:08:21.542
My name is Viviana Sanchez.

01:08:21.542 --> 01:08:24.999
I am 19 years old,
almost 20.

01:08:24.999 --> 01:08:25.999
I am from Ecuador,

01:08:25.999 --> 01:08:31.292
and I am undocumented,
unafraid, and unapologetic.

01:08:35.459 --> 01:08:36.876
Thank you.

01:08:43.167 --> 01:08:45.334
\"I will work
to stop injustice,

01:08:45.334 --> 01:08:48.083
\"never for their pleasure
or their profit,

01:08:48.083 --> 01:08:51.209
\"but because I want to,
I have to,

01:08:51.209 --> 01:08:52.918
\"because my family
needs me.

01:08:52.918 --> 01:08:55.999
\"I will be unapologetic
until every part of me

01:08:55.999 --> 01:08:58.999
\"stops apologizing for this
immigration status and abuse,

01:08:58.999 --> 01:09:03.042
till every part of my parents\'
bodies stops apologizing...\"

01:09:03.042 --> 01:09:07.792
My daughter,
who is among you today, Angy.

01:09:07.792 --> 01:09:08.999
[all cheering]

01:09:08.999 --> 01:09:14.667
You came out in public
three years ago.

01:09:14.667 --> 01:09:18.292
I personally...

01:09:18.292 --> 01:09:23.000
refused to support
her coming out.

01:09:23.000 --> 01:09:24.999
I was more than scared;

01:09:24.999 --> 01:09:29.125
I was terrified
that we would be deported.

01:09:30.584 --> 01:09:34.292
Thank God,
I am no longer scared.

01:09:34.292 --> 01:09:36.959
She did not listen to me,

01:09:36.959 --> 01:09:39.918
but rather found the courage
to come out.

01:09:39.918 --> 01:09:43.999
That courage has helped
many people today.

01:09:43.999 --> 01:09:46.542
If she had courage,
why couldn\'t I?

01:09:46.542 --> 01:09:52.292
Undocumented and unafraid,
I am Maria Yolanda Rivera.

01:10:01.667 --> 01:10:02.999
(Angy)
\"I will scream,

01:10:02.999 --> 01:10:06.584
\"if that is the only way
to be heard,

01:10:06.584 --> 01:10:07.999
\"until I am understood,

01:10:07.999 --> 01:10:10.042
\"for every time
we are silenced,

01:10:10.042 --> 01:10:13.125
\"every time we are raped,
abused, exploited,

01:10:13.125 --> 01:10:17.083
and killed,
I will be unafraid.\"

01:10:22.999 --> 01:10:27.999
In February, 2014,
Maria\'s U visa was approved.

01:10:29.999 --> 01:10:30.667
Angy will graduate

01:10:30.667 --> 01:10:33.792
from John Jay College
of Criminal Justice in 2016

01:10:33.792 --> 01:10:35.334
and continues to be a part

01:10:35.334 --> 01:10:38.792
of the New York State
Youth Leadership Council.

01:10:38.792 --> 01:10:42.876
Accessibility provided by the
U.S. Department of Education.