I am a proud Mexican who comes from illegal parents.
Let me say this louder.
I AM A PROUD MEXICAN who comes from illegal parents.
The American dream was so important to my mother
making sure that we weren’t born like the other
Mexicans who can’t cross the line, the border
So at 8 months pregnant my mother struggled in order
To make us born American Citizens.
I could only imagine the sweat and tears she shed
The blood on the bottom of her feet, and not being fed
For days, because she had a dream that we would be Americanos
Born and raised here, not like them who were chicanos.
Surrounded by the American Culture, trying to assimilate
I felt so left out, like I could never relate
To the sleepovers I could never attend
And it was so hard explaining to your friends
because they wouldn’t comprehend
that being Mexican came with parents who were afraid
that I might get hurt or my friends would betray
me because my parents were illegal.
Being bilingual was a skill I never embraced
With my parents speaking broken English, I felt so ashamed
You could barely understand them, they had to repeat
Always being translators for them, when they felt the defeat.
I always felt sorry for them because they never finished their education
But they were dedicated to our lives and had the motivation
To work at least 50 hrs a week to sustain our house with no loans
And I thank God every day that he built our strong home
From love and care and tears draped with sacrifice
Because what they did for us, to me it is like paradise.
No tengo miedo de hablar en Español,
Soy Mexicana y tengo el valor
Para pelear por los derechos de mis papas
Han habitado en este país por más
De 24 años.
That should be enough,
Being a social worker opens many doors to fight
For those who need to be heard, because we ALL have rights
We all are humans and are under the God
Who did not abandon my mother the nights she would sob
Herself to sleep, because she was afraid to live in a society full of hate
In a society where racism exists and instead blame
Others for their own actions, but I am no longer ashamed.
Of who my parents are because they are illegal
So I will say this clear and loud
That as a daughter of illegal parents, I am PROUD.
