The Influences of One's Surrounding in The Distance Between us by Reyna Grande and A Better Life

In Reyna Grande’s memoir, The Distance Between Us, Grande explains how difficult it was for Reyna to grow up with many parental figures in her life. Reyna’s parents left Iguala, Mexico for the United States in search of work to build their dream home in Mexico. As a result, Reyna and her two siblings were sent to live with their cruel Abuela Evila. The living conditions (living condition in US and mexico) Reyna had many parental figures in her life that affected her identity, Tia Emperatriz, Mago, Mila, and Natalio, but Diana Savas had the greatest impact by mentoring and encouraging her to go to school and become a writer. Although Tia Emperatriz, Mago, Mila, and Natalio had an impact on Reyna’s identity, Diana Savas had the greatest parental effect on her because she was there when she

My parents immigrated to the United States at a very young age. Having no higher education than elementary school, the only jobs they could find were working in the orchards. They would pick and thin apples during the summers, and prune trees during the cold winters. As soon as I was of working age, I would go out into the fields with them from early sunrise until the intense heat scorched our necks and faces. At a young age, I learned the harsh reality of what the daily life of an immigrant is. The long hours of hard work in the unforgiving heat of the sun; all for the low wages they were paid. These experiences in the orchard instilled in me a sense of drive to further my education and work hard to help families that were at a disadvantage as

Simply put, America is the land of opportunity. In the past, immigrants have left most of their family, memories, and familiarities with their homeland in search of a better life in America, where jobs were easy to find and the economy was booming. These immigrants formed almost the entire American population, a demographic anomaly in which people from nationalities separated by land and sea; these people come from countries separated by expansive distances can live within the same neighborhood. Both Anna Quindlen with her essay “A Quilt of a Country” and John F. Kennedy with his essay “The Immigrant Contribution” have documented the story of these immigrants and

Eleanor Roosevelt said, “the future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams.” That statement holds strong for immigrants in America. Equal access to opportunities allows immigrants to achieve the American dream. Their success correlates with America’s success because of the contributions immigrants provide to America. Unfortunately, the current immigration policy in America denies many immigrants the American dream. It is crucial to understand the historical context of immigration in America. Initially, most immigrants were from Europe and were not restricted by any immigration laws. Now, most immigrants come from Latin America but are restricted to severe immigration laws. The Latino/a community is one of the most

Immigrating to America is a process in which many people all across the world entrust as their one way ticket to a better life. Whether they do so legally or illegally, coming to the United States ensures better opportunities, economically, politically, and so on, to people who would have otherwise been worse off in their countries of origin. Even so, the common understanding of being “better off” can be considered a misconstrued concept when it comes to living in the states. Many families that choose to immigrate to the U.S. fail to realize the cultural hardships that newcomers tend to face once on American soil. Anything from racial discrimination or bias at work, in neighborhoods, at school, etc., can all be challenges that people encounter when making a move to the U.S. Such challenges are described by Richard Rodriquez in his autobiography Hunger of Memory. In this passage, he explains how cultural differences between Mexican and American ways of life have shaped him into the person that he is today. He also chooses to highlights the problems that he faces growing up in a predominately white neighborhood, while attending a predominantly white institution. Much of his writing consists of the cultural differences and pressures he feels to assimilate to Western culture and how this process, in turn, changes him into the person that some may find to be unethical, but nonetheless, someone he is proud of.

As a young girl growing up in Haiti, I experienced first hand that the path my parents chose for themselves was not the life that I wanted for myself. I was able to relate closely to Richard Rodriguez in “The Achievement Desire” because he faced many struggles that I too faced as a young girl. My parents always pressured me to work hard at school, I was always suppose to have my homework for Monday done by Friday night, which made

Many people immigrated to America to run away from impoverished countries. After this, people still faced struggles with getting out of the tough times that everyone experiences. However, Document A shows that, as time goes on, the poverty rates of immigrants decrease. For example, immigrants that have been in the US for 4 years or less have a 33.3% poverty rate and people that have been in the US for 4-5 years have a 25.5% poverty rate. This means that within a few years, 7.8% of people that were impoverished successfully pulled themselves out of the terrible times of poverty.

Many immigrants come to America in hope for a better life for themselves and their children, but sometimes they leave without experiencing the great opportunities they were promised. Lately, people are struggling to make ends meet and thinking that they made a great mistake coming to this country. People from all over have been questioning whether the “American Dream” is actually attainable now and in the future. Barack Obama, our 44th President, spoke on this briefly when he addressed his keynote at the Democratic National Convention before his presidency. He mentioned a young woman who had struggled with money when he said, “the young woman in East St. Louis, and the thousands more like her, who have the grades, have the drive, have the will, but doesn’t have the money to go to college. (Obama,7)”. In this keynote, he was addressing many of the problems that people had that the government was not resolving. He addressed this issue because it is very serious,

Growing up as an immigrant I view the world in a much more different light than most people do. Whenever an opportunity presents itself to me I am willing to put in the effort if I know it will better my life. This trait of resourcefulness originates from my family who, over the years have created a life for themselves out of virtually nothing. I moved to America at the young age of two years old with my father. Though he didn’t have much to begin with, my father decided to move to this country in hopes to lead a better life and follow on the path of the American dream. I vividly recall being in the backseat of our car while my father trained me on the importance of remaining perceptive and hardworking in school and abroad, I remember he would

The main takeaway from Shari Robertson and Michael Camerini’s documentary “Immigration Battle,” is that the United States’ immigration policy is decidedly flawed. The policy facilitates the separation of families in which some members are U.S. citizens as well as the deportation of immigrants whose work benefits the nation’s economy. Taking into consideration the problems that immigrants have had to endure, the solution to the immigration crisis should not be to limit the number of immigrants allowed into the country, but rather to install an open border policy. This recommendation is based on a moral and economic justification. Helping immigrants escape poverty is the right thing to do and these individuals often inject valuable skills into the American economy. Arguably, one could also conclude that America’s prosperity lies in its diversity.

In 2012, there was a surge of Mexico's citizens transitioning into a country where they weren’t fully accepted, all to better their children’s lives along with their own. Being a immigrant in America is hard due to having to start over from nothing. Immigrants find themselves working hard manual jobs despite not having any interest in the field they are working in. Some immigrants also see themselves as a burden to the country due to having plans

When most people think about immigration to the United States, they think of the U.S. as being the “land of opportunity,” where they will be able to make all of their dreams come true. For some people, immigration made their lives richer and more fulfilled. This however, was not always the case. A place that is supposed to be a “Golden Land” (Marcus 116) did not always welcome people with open arms. Even after people became legal citizens of the United States, often times the natural born Americans did not treat the immigrants as equals but rather as outsiders who were beneath them in some way. In some situations, people’s lives were made worse by coming to the “land of opportunity.” Often times people were living no better than they

The “American dream”, a national ethos of the United States, is sought after by many struggling immigrants who go through much risk in order to make a better living in the U.S. A long debated issue over illegal immigration into the U.S revolves around Mexican/Latino immigrants. With Honduras having little to no medical care and harsh living environments, many of its citizens seek to find jobs to support their families. Enrique’s Journey, bye Sonia Nazario sheds a new light on immigration in the U.S with the account of one particular Honduran boy who is trying to immigrate to the U.S. From the view of privileged individuals, these immigrants may be seen as a problem, with a simple solution; do not let them into the U.S. However, this problem has a much more complex lining.

Throughout history, immigration has been a big impact on how many people live and how they survive. The United States of America is country of immigrants, and many immigrants immigrate here. Many immigrants leave their home countries for a better life or they hear that America was the land of opportunities, but sometimes it does not happen. Many times immigrants who move to the United States of America, actually have to work many jobs to make ends meet. Many people have to resort to horrible jobs, just so they can make ends meet. Some people get lucky and find a decent job, and are able to make a living in America without having to live in poverty. Poverty and immigration go hand in hand throughout history. In Maggie: A Girl on the Street by Stephen Crane, Maggie is an Irish immigrant that has to turn to prostitution to be able to survive, and many immigrants today have to worry about fighting poverty; while immigrants like Sadie Frowne, and the Irish cook are able to obtain great opportunities in America and are able to live a happy and stable life.

Man is a product of the culture in which he is born and brought up. For the same reason, no one can negate the influence of the society in forming one’s personality. I am well aware of the fact that my views, thoughts, and attitude have been shaped by the society I live in; hence, any attempt to sketch my personal experiences would be incomplete without referring to the part played by my surroundings. Throughout my life, I have paid utmost importance to initiating and maintaining interpersonal relationships with others. I had to face varied situations out there, both joyous and depressing. However, each instance was a great lesson for me to learn several things about my practical life – I wouldn’t be exaggerating when I say that I have learned more outside the four walls of my classroom than within them. My autobiography is closely associated with my social connections including my experiences with my family, educational institution, and the larger society I reside within.