Una Vida Mejor: A Better Life

Funding for this program was provided by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. America was built by immigrants. Many of them came here from Mexico and other Latin countries seeking economic security or political freedom. In the beginning most left their homelands for border states like California and Texas. Our country's heartland is the new destination. Where opportunities flourish. Understanding is sometimes hard to find. Robert Martina's found his future in Arkansas. Thousands more are hoping to do the same. Get rid of me. Somebody else will see something on that one.

We feel very fortunate. To be here. You are very proud of being part of this community because is in comparison. From what I have seen in the state that I've got there. And I think we all know what we have now. I love my home town mainly because I looking for. What better way. I believe in a better opportunity. I didn't see any future. In that little town. There were no jobs whether my father was going to the rising fuel costs and plant corn and beans and that through you know all that we have you. Know industry of any kind. I heard that many some of the immigrants the same to work

in the United nice. Were going back to the families and they had money and they had buried cloth. And I want something that you know is similar to what they were bringing back. In the process. More Chance in my life I have learned a great deal. Of your accounting. In 1987 we were chosen for the honor of being in the far far primary of the year. We were very fortunate that you know to be part of that closet and ourselves and being new to the community and to read through that and the great honor of being selected to be the farm property. When we bought this place. What about 40 acres of land with up to

all to get the houses and there was no house in the place so we bought a mobile home. So we thought to expense that this farm is lonely you know by buying these other 40 acres to build the hog farm from these 40 acres. This farm have grown to 400 acres. Robert and his wife Dina lived near the Queen small southwestern Arkansas town of 4500 residents close to the Oklahoma border. Read it and I've been friends for and Dina for eight years I guess six eight years. Father Scott friend is a bilingual Catholic priest whose parish the queen has grown to 90 percent Hispanic in recent years. I live here listening to Roberto. Last year he spoke at the Chamber of Commerce dinner and talked about his experience of

coming up here and he said something it was just beautiful I guess when I grew up in my small village and there is a small village because I went in and he said you know we didn't have any of the. Amazing you have radio. All we had was a road. And he goes on that road. That. Was. The first. Time. As a kid people will come back stage and tell all kinds of stories about what it was like here you know streets play bingo type of thing. Similar tales have been told in water and globs. They had the losses. He practices immigration law in Arkansas on taxes. When are they allowed mass and so forth. They are strangers in a strange land. They are immigrants. So it's not the land of milk on milk and honey and actually some of my clients are quite shocked

that some of them have grown up. Some of them have grown up hearing that on the streets paved with gold. This is something that goes back centuries as far as any of us in this country go. And things are not any different. However once they get here and once they accept the realities that for example rent here is a lot more expensive than it is in a developing country. Utilities are much more expensive but at least there are utilities we can my and left her home in Mexico. Join her husband Santiago in the United States. They settled in the community of which outside the Queen where he does maintenance work at a poultry. Now just getting in. The way we live in Mexico and the way we live here it is totally different even though we are poor here.

It is much better here because Mexico sometimes you in money and sometimes you lose it. Here it is a steady paycheck every week. I know I am going to get 200 on our score that my wife she cooks for everybody. And I don't know how she knows. She makes her food a stretch even when her neighbors come by. We offer them something to eat and we always have enough. One of my heroes and the kids in fact he and his wife were both heroes of mine as Santiago and his wife will be my. Son. The light Santiago. Does not read or write but what he does know how to do is go to great wisdom. Because he's learned to. Well I just think that he's he's worked hard all his life. He loves got a lot. He loves his family.

He made me the way I make my life in Mexico once. Well I've been poor all my life. I began to work when I was 10 years old. I was also real poor. They had me working from that saving in that little town one of them. MoVida followed Santiago with both fear and hope. I feel bad about coming here up there. But we had no other choice. My husband business has failed. So we had no money for food. He had to serve up there and life here is no place to live for us. He asked me to come to. So we me too. I do not want to leave my family. It was real hard to see but I

decided to follow him. He told me he was buried here and we can be together. So I came here with my parents so we could be together Syria very well. When I first broke my family to this house I feel like we just got married again except with a family. I feel good about having all my family. He like living in a new world. There's a lot of love in the house. Your kids are all around them and you just get a sense that sanity in the midst of some really great struggles of trying to do the best for his family having to leave home up here work hard. You know he's done that because the Levys his first family is just great. He and his wife just have a lot of respect for her because I know that it's not been easy for them and yet they still remain faithful and they're very joyous.

To release the parties go first or how to think more than I think my father is called because he has drawn and torn a lot of hearts. He's like a magnet school pools. When I first green it here I couldn't believe what I saw when I first entered the church. I only saw three or four people and I thought gosh where are we going to be. I was up to the world called arriving the queen. A month later a church was born. And it's just really more than anything else just being in love with everybody that I'm working with and I'm in Philly called to to serve them as best I can. So. In one sense that's all just the great mystery is why you fall in love and you know the same thing in a relationship but in another sense it just happens to come out of what God is calling

me. A. Majority of the Hispanic population is Catholic. Norma Sanchez and her husband is also a strong attachment to St. Bernard. And. Priest. Scott this. There are no words to express how we feel about father Scott to me. He's a beautiful person. There are not too many people like him in this world. He has helped us through a lot through all our problems. He has always come through for us not only for us but for anyone in need. Both Israel and Norma they have been through lots of struggles as Israel is. Engineer was an engineer makes sense what his degrees work working planet to me. And I don't want to you know I hate to see that he's got all these towns and he's getting a degree in all of that and yet he's not able to use them. You'll never hear his real complain

about whatever he's trying to make the best of what he can and he represents often what's happened to a lot of folks why they've come up here to the United States just because they live in a situation where there's a lot of poverty. There's not a lot of opportunity. Arkansas poultry plants are providing many Hispanics with an escape from poverty. The industry has a continuing supply of low skilled jobs which local workforces often cannot. Israel works at a queen poultry plant where 40 percent of the employees are Hispanic. The company has a very good place to work out because it's the place that's feeding my family. The times I have needed anything from them. They have always come through for me. It bothered me at first when I was doing work unrelated to my studies. My first job in the United States was not in the plant. It was in the fields picking avocados. Was very frustrating to me after

so many years of school. It is still difficult but I am planning to continue my studies in electronics. Princip is amazing. It was very hard for me in the beginning because Durango's a big beautiful city then suddenly finding myself in a small town was really difficult to adapt to at first but now I'm very pleased here. I like it because it is a better environment for my children to grow up in. It's a real peaceful town and there are many problems for children here as there are in the big cities. Sheila Gomez counsels hundreds of immigrants in her work for Arkansas's Catholic Diocese of. I have an opportunity to visit with a lot of people and to hear their stories because people call the office people come in. But we go around the state. And present workshops on immigration to immigrants and these workshops are given in

Spanish. And we have the opportunity not only to to relay information about what is happening in immigration law we also talk about discrimination in the workplace. We're talking about document abuse. We talk about civil rights. And citizenship. So we are it's a it's an arbitration relay information to people but it's also an opportunity here to get feedback from all of it from people who have immigrated to Arkansas and it's a wonderful opportunity to hear what are their concerns. What's really happening out there. You know what's going on there in the timber industry. What's going on in poultry know what's really happening there in the workplace what's what's happening in their families what problems are they having. And they share that with us and sometimes it's by questions that they ask during the interview during that workshop. Sometimes it's after the or if you go and say that

a common thread that. Runs through all the different stories people that I come in contact with. One hope that they come with hope and. I believe that that is common to all immigrants who come here and most people are coming from situations of extreme poverty here and that of know fans who have come to our stop. And they come. In search of a better life. Now I don't really know it's a better life or you know come in and take it for handouts coming in there and that's kind of the Hispanic culture or better life. I can work I can be productive. OK. And so there's hope that finds them there and that their children will have a better future. The large numbers of people who have moved to Arkansas mainly from

Mexico but also from Central America. And and then people who have changed domiciles from California and moved here to Arkansas from other places. And we haven't had families of people who now reside here in Arkansas. You know. Aunts Uncles Cousins. So they become Arkansan. My name is Bob little Where is the name of my town in Mexico. I moved from California. I lived in California for seven years. I lived in Salinas for a while and then I moved to Palm Springs and then I moved to Arkansas. And I would like to leave and I can say I've got a lot of trees. Looks like my country. I like this

country better than California. I guess you know too many people out here. But I moved to here because my family would like to live in a small town. I like too much noise. I like keeping quiet. Not many people live there. I think it's a pretty good. Decision to move. And so. The people in our survey are pretty nice. Regardless of how they come here. This group of immigrants have come seeking what they couldn't find at home. The number one reason why people are here working is because they can't work in Mexico. OK. So somewhere along the line somebody in their family has made a moral decision. To stay here where I can't feed my family or I tell them to go someplace where I can keep my

family and get a job. Immigrants come for the same reason and immigrants came in centuries past and that is to work to make a better life for their children. I don't think we can know of any opportunity because I come in from that little town from Mexico. And we grow corn in Mexico. We wait for the rider coming down some time with the cup and we know heavenly and the corn and you say well we go out of town and. Get it. Sometimes we move too hot or make coffee. We try to move to big cities so it's impossible to get that opportunity because we

we are good preparation means. We go to and go to school because we know have time to learn a lot of different things in Mexico. Most of the time we spend to work in the field of. Work and the farm. Is the one. Thing. It's impossible to get it to work in Mexico in the rural areas of Mexico and throughout Central America you have relatively poor schools. People basically go maybe to the sixth grade if that and then the rest of their life is just toil in agriculture or other manual pursuits. And that's the nature of life. And so nobody worries about it. But the vast majority of people are trapped into that situation so they don't have education. And when they come up here they just came to work.

So this is where they come to this has been the attraction. And at the same time they've been cut loose pushed out encouraged to leave California by overt and you know less intentional things it's just you know what Proposition 187 and some of these newer legal mechanisms out there have been set up an environment where they're moving on. California you got to maybe you've got a lot of competition with. And. I'm the gold guy. And I can't wear it anymore. Got. What I try. Real life. Take your time. Cry. Do. See what I tried my own business. And so. That's my first thing with the show and you.

Know I try and be great. My job is pretty hard because we work seven days a week. Me and my family all the time and the kids go out of the school they come to me and wave when they go to school. We were just me and my wife every day we wake up but I clock in the morning take a break for three bad everything to come to the store clean them that are working in the store wait for the customer. There's work here and they're wanted. And then of course this sets up the thing. Well we've got all of these people that just flow across the border and that's creating an attitude problem for the local populations and it as it did in California California. There's a certain group of people in California that wanted them to work there and get the

people that don't need them not necessarily want them there. Well let's see. We've got similar circumstance here in Arkansas and it's not just in Northwest. I mean you know it's around the state as well you've got this new population that is imposing itself. On the local population. Trying to deal with the issues that we have including this from strictly on the local level. What happens in other places. Pretty much immaterial to me and the way we respond to changes. Our biggest change and our biggest challenge is growth sheer numbers rather than where they happen to be coming from. You all do learn about fine and some bargains are selling some of this now. OK you're just paying for it. It seems to me like the attitude of the citizens and Rogers has been such that the growth and the demographic shift has been handled very well. There are those that say well but in so and so this is what happened and I've said I don't care how it happened and

so and so this was Rogers and this is how we choose to deal with it. And that was the fun funny side. I don't need that but it's such a bargain I'm going to get back. I don't accept the fact that just because there have been such problems in other communities that it is preordained that when these changes occur that it's going to result in a violent and difficult clash. I simply don't believe that. And maybe that philosophy helps someone. About eight or nine years ago people in northwest Arkansas started noticing and especially in the grocery stores that they were hearing Spanish and it's more Hispanic people joined us. It came to a realization that the community needed a way to provide people who were new to the community with good accurate information. And that was the very first kernel of the beginning of the multicultural centers. And when we felt as a group and this was a very community wide group decision that if we turned our backs if

we covered our lives if we pretended like we didn't see we didn't know we would end up with a polarized community and we didn't want that we didn't want people living in bodyless off not learning anything about us and not learning anything about our culture and not being welcomed into it. But where were you born. You know in that way in some. Places in Mexico somewhere. Mexico. Is that they only have somewhere a writer and a voice of reason and marriage by way of Puerto Rico. It was heard by Anglos and Hispanics both young and old and. My name is Alvin Lopez Vargas. And I'm a student relations coordinator for Rogers High School. And I work as a consultant for the city of Rogers. I want to meet with a lot of talk.

Let's talk about the back champ. Are you going to. Be. Pop rap. It's my performing name my my father Papa is papa. Spanish and I'm just the father that does rap music positive rap music. And that's you know how I incorporate that into my world. Every time I can. We have a club that we created at the school it's called multicultural club. Then it's pop rap and the MCs different people from different race races just in there. You know having fun and getting along try to work together. What's your name. Where are you from.

Right. It's like the sun and we do lots of Capossela you know the first thing we do and we select is we live we meet friends. Hello how are you doing. And I'm so so I'll talk about me you'll talk about you. Get to know each other. The second step is you know finding out more about ourselves you know where you're from Mexico what part of Mexico where are you from that on that is. And then things that affect those concerns. I know that we're we're making a difference and we're not saying that hey you know we're not shoving down low though like the multicultural issues. No it's just a natural thing. All we're saying is hey changes don't happen overnight. It's going to take time. But what's important is the size. That's.

Why. He's been invaluable to the city in helping us in translations of our materials and of just being an ambassador of goodwill. If if a little blip comes up on the screen and one of the neighborhoods around the business community or in the school system Mr. Lopez has a very unique talent in helping people to understand each other. Let's be friends amigos if we can eventually it's going to happen. And when you see the little kids in you know playing together and having fun together I mean I think really that. If we keep on working. On that and keep on sending that message it's it's it's going to happen. What I've seen in art has been very proactive.

People are taking measures and doing things before something becomes a problem. That's the way I understand the word and what I see in Arkansas is different from what I've seen in Texas and what I've heard about same Florida or in California was cross-cultural efforts or efforts at understanding or bridging cultures or something along those lines is not undertaken until there is a problem until there's a crisis. What I've seen in Arkansas throughout since I've been back is people trying to take care of potential problems before they become problems and not putting fires out there preventing fires. One potential blaze was snuffed out when people took time to talk and listen.

A disagreement between Anglos and Hispanics over noise and late night congregating in a Rogers Neighborhood led to some harsh exchanges. Roland go to cocina. A Cuban immigrant who's now an area banker helped mediate the flare up at Mountain a village. Well that first meeting was was pretty rough there. There were some people that came to that meeting with I think their only intent is to insult and embarrass the Hispanics and apparently they objected to there. But to the credit of most of the residents of that neighborhood they stood up for human rights and they insisted that the business be kept to business and let it be known that verbal abuse is just

wouldn't be tolerated. Mountain villagers Ray Ann-Marie forehand wanted to be part of the solution. There were complaints about a little bit of everything. Went back to start way a lot out and that was just just prejudice and people were here and suddenly they were faced with. A neighbor on each side and maybe were Mexican. And it just was hard for them to deal with. At the second meeting that we attended of the mountain a village the talk at that time was dramatically different. The talk before we started the meeting was that somewhat mysteriously. Most of the problems if not all of the problems had disappeared. But towards the end of the meeting a young man a young Hispanic who had the courage to show up to the second meeting after the name calling that went on. And the first meeting

asked me to translate this for him. And these aren't my words. These are high made great these words. One of the residents that lives of mountain village he simply said we're new to your country. We don't know your rules your regulations and your laws. Teach me and I will teach them and I promise you we will be the best neighbors that you've ever had. I've heard a lot of powerful speakers in my life and but I don't think that I've ever seen were have this type of effect on a group of people. You could just see the Brotherhood began to occur in that room that night were going up hill in our community where we're making a lot of progress.

And I hope that the people who see this will take heart and work towards brotherhood friendship in their neighborhoods in their communities. In a gesture of friendship the forehands opened their home to a learning experience with their Hispanic neighbors. Mother. I. Have. A. Very good year. We have two neighbor ladies and one of their brothers in law Arkansas who come on Tuesday nights and Friday nights. And we have e s l English Second Language class. It isn't a real formal class but I feel that we're learning. I pick up a pretty good Spanish words to. Another one. Week.

I say do you know what that word means. Watch Feis. Hey. That's a new word for your vocabulary. How do you say that in Spanish. No. No. OK. I am so very proud of them for their hard work their effort their determination. They are learning. They are they have ambitions to forge a better education and they realize that first they need to learn the English language and they're working very hard at this. And I'm very proud of them. Their children are learning English. Their children are learning American. Laws. Their children are learning American ways. Just our

philosophy. Our points of view and how things are done in this country. And you see it time and time again. The children are being raised as Americans. They're not foreigners will not speak English so I try because I would like to learn English. I think it's a very crowded for me learning because I'm old guy. But four years ago to practice English and. My english looks like I'm Mexican very very clear. I got to treat kids. When they were. 11 7 and the other one is three are they doing OK. Three pretty good English for what I happy with my kids because I think they are growing up in the United States.

They control the swine. They can get something for. Them. My kids they speak almost perfect English so I know a lot of people say to me. I think they should speak English yeah. Easier said than done. I'm out you know if you if you move tomorrow to Mexico you speak Spanish in two years. Depends on how talented you are. Are you gifted in the area of languages. But I'll tell you their children are going to speak English of course. So I'm just depends. It just takes a while. Just as soon as the Hispanic population is growing so has the enrollment high school Spanish classes. And Lopez sees multicultural experiences such as the Turing ballet folklore as a way to help unite the student body. Will take some kids from the Spanish class that are learning Spanish. Combining them with kids that are new in this ESL class you know and there is

going to be there together not making a big deal. You have to sit together and you have to be friends know that at least to be able to share together and be able to have one thing in common. It. When. Not the only ones working to make it happen is as to work as a one as a community. But there's other places already doing in improving that that it can be done. But in the end the queen Hispanics have been there already for over 10 years

and to see how the community has developed and is working together it's like wow this is great. This is a good community. We are here. We like what we do. I mean we like the people and we're neighbors. And we are fortunate to be of your kind of. Friends. So quiet. Where I live right now along with. So. Many where. I live. I feel. Like love again. To my view. People here are nice. Nobody's looking at me in the wrong way. No work for anyone. They are all

ratings would be on. Yeah we can learn about each other. We can even learn each other's language we can learn each others culture way of doing thing. And you know your life is much richer and fuller because of it. Cultural gaps and the queen often bridge the concert or Technical College School President Frank Adams advocates across community activities. The college does take an active role in Mexican holidays like Cinco de Mayo. Now last year when we participate in this event there were 700 800 Anglos and Hispanics that came to a park over a day period and they found that they all were after the same thing to enjoy a day to have some camaraderie and to understand one another a little better. So.

Anyway. The queen has learned about dealing with diversity but it's been a slow process. Mayor for. The first concern for implies for me was say

that I remember. Which was about the time that I took office about 1983. In. Certain parts of town we might get a call from an elderly lady. Living there in that particular block and it might be there was it all. Kind of a dilapidated rundown house you know fairly close to it and they would be five or six miles move in there. And one was you know and she'd be scared as the. Hispanic people would come to town. And. In order to secure employment with them. That's the way they came. There are very few families came you know intact at one time. It when they start getting their families here then they should. Start having you know outside parties you know cook outs and things of course you know

playing the loud music in there you know and or CRX stereos. Of course it's a it's they always played Mexican music. And you get a few complaints that mostly not so much of the time music but just the volume of it you know and they stay out and you know they start started three o'clock Saturday afternoon and they dig a hole in and cook a pig or a goat or something. And you know it may go over 12:01 2 o'clock at night and used to get a noise complaint. So we have to do a little we have a little noise ordinance that we have to kind of change it to make it fit the situation and we did that and then and then they were slaughtering these animals of course that got you know everybody agitated right quick and we've got to get this little order. So got that said.

People are people and you know what amongst immigrants as in any groups of people there won't be people who are breaking the law who are involved in things they should not be involved in. And but that's not the purpose. We can't judge everyone by few. And then I think as we interact with with with new we get to know why are you here. And all of a sudden they're not the Mexican over there but that's Jose my friend. They're really not that much difference. If you read them to see it they all want that same thing is that has got a little late start say because they were somewhere else where it was kind of hard to get started. Good to get started. Most of us come from a small town but very little or not in the street at all. Many of us come from a little village where we have no electricity or running water. So it is a tremendous sense it's a rather common sense. We are leaving.

Behind these little dusty streets. These little neighborhoods we all know everyone. In town. We come to a place where some things we have rejected. Some things we think of in many times we have not. So we kept the fight in the way out by finding our ability. ROBERTO And Dina one of the things that they're trying to do now is to get back to their community and they've gotten a lot in there. They are prosperous and they are successful and they haven't forgotten the community is still trying to work and develop community and still learning if these here would be easier go on. I think that I'm a simulated and it did not belong to that group of you meet us anymore. But the reality is that I'm still in me even though I'm a United

States citizen and I'm very proud of that. However I feel that because of the Godhead blessed of our life that we were I saw you do not forget the people that I came into that same way I deal with the little experience and knowledge that we have here that we ought to cherish in house. You know I thought if they could I'd them self to better themselves populous states like California and Texas have handled massive migration for decades. You're seeing those similar situations occurring in Iowa Kansas the Midwestern states up to and including Minnesota and Wisconsin. It is different in border states. The attitudes towards immigrants is a lot more laissez faire. It's a lot more if you will. Jaded

one of the benefits that immigrants in Arkansas has is that it's a new thing that Arkansas hasn't experienced this before. And that to me from my point of view is a plus for everybody the immigrants and for Arkansans. There's a novelty to this whole thing that allows for a if you will a grace period of understanding and maybe checking each other out as far as cultures and and societies when you go to Arizona and California many many of the Hispanics out there start working in one form to the next five to actually. And so they're never at home. They continue to be those people they never get to be. Maria and Jose who goes to my church. That's a difference. And

that is the opportunity that we have in our community that a lot of other communities didn't have. And I think of a Hispanic person that's setting in a rural village somewhere in Mexico who hears this story from a relative or friend about this wonderful place called the Queen Arkansas. And with a tremendous amount of courage and hope faith it picks himself up out of the rural village and comes to this area leaving his family behind. But this was real hard. When my husband first let me go he came by. I used to wonder why he want to leave me. Does he know of me anymore. I have never been known before.

I didn't know how to deal with it because he used to do what I want to do with him. I said what. In those days was my dad you know everything from you. You're right. I wonder about these men. I told my son I agree with this. When my started coming here was painful I doesn't want to take my kids for me too. He's not experienced in life. My children were just starting their lives. I wonder if they would be say what they would do. This was very painful for me because I did ask him the first time I in Mexico it was hard for me to when I left home. Everything went dark. It was nighttime for me. It took

me eight days to get here. When I came I could not stand fact that I wasn't able to speak to my family to my wife. I had done much money to pay for phone bills my biggest check in six months was 120. The race between 80 and 100. I couldn't write to my wife because I don't know how to write. I could perhaps find a friend who can write for me. I could tell him to write intimate things to my wife. I couldn't tell him to say I love you or I miss you. It was very hard for me. So worth the terrible conditions I was living in. At first we were living like chickens for the first few weeks. I guess is that in. The future we see for a train the way we are going right now they are studying hard. They have already come a long way in a long way. We want them to study so they can get a better job than one. My husband he I look for an opportunity to do a great job

because he doesn't know how to speak English so I would keep asking. So that makes it easier for. We can see there is hope in the way they are starting their future with BP. Now was. The dream of a better life for our children is universal and has been with America since its beginnings. It's no less important for young Walter and Jessica Sanchez than it was for the immigrants who came before them. Say this I have hope to grow more in our Catholic faith and to be more involved with my children. When Walter our son was born I felt very happy. For most males in Mejico having a boy is something special. I wanted my boy to be like me to be a technician. But when he was 5 years old my son told me he wanted to be a priest. I didn't like this at first but now that we are closer to the Catholic faith his dream has become ours. And I want. To be a priest.

I went to study. And when I got. To. Go back to Mexico. I'm back here. In the US citizenship. Here. We. Go. Everywhere. Let me bring Jessica my daughter. She has her own dream to become a teacher. This is what she wants and we feel real good about that since my wife has been a teacher. It's. Time. To. Step up to. What I want is to stand behind my children with the one to you can do to help them in every way. They are everything to us. And to help parents provide to their children is very important for their projects and life.

As much as the Sanchez's want their children to grow up and prosper here. They say they cannot let them forget where they came from. As we talk about our Mexican culture we don't let that down. We brought books from Mexico so that we can teach our children about the culture. We don't let them forget that we know growing up here is different from doing. We are still trying to teach them about the culture the one they live on and the one they leave behind. The way I look at it. Both kids will keep their heads up their language or their culture and it will be a big mistake from the first to the night. I think they ought to help them to keep that tradition the language that proves that our

way of life. Because kids can learn easily but then which is part of pop culture where you can contribute a lot by bringing and keeping our culture and I think by keeping the rich the families and the communities we have our work family is with the roots of these shows we have ended up having more Protestant in the families and communities. So the stronger their families are the thought of the community this can be. I think that I would like to be part of the Medhi camp for Friday. I feel that I am. One my daughter and my you know part of that. However I

want them to not want to come from the keep some of the family traditions and some of the values of that on. The eve of the vote is not that they don't know who they are or where they came from or how it got here. I mean. I am Mexican-American. I will die Mexican-American. I. Feel. I. Am.

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