Each family wants a good life and a bright future. However, every family has their own definition of happiness. One of the factors includes providing as many opportunities for the children as possible, and that includes immigration.
A lot of parents believe in power of good education. Unfortunately, a lot of countries cannot provide that for various reasons. For example, lack of teachers, resources, or even presence of corruption within the school. Fwd.us shared, “During the 2019-2020 school year, approximately 1,075,496 foreign-born students were enrolled at U.S. colleges and universities, representing 4.6% of the total U.S. student population. Students come to the U.S. from roughly 200 different countries, though more than half are from China and India.” That doesn't include kids from K-12th grade.
Being an international student myself, I was fortunate to see amazing resources provided within each school I attended. Not only there is provided technology, help with language barriers, opportunities to be part of higher education - the professionals/teachers are incredible. It is obvious that most American teachers care for the future of their students. Being aware that others believe in you motivates many to work harder every day to reach both small and large goals.
That is what every parent wants for the children. They desire for the kids to feel valued, respected, taught, and cared for. In addition, immigration to United States means that at least one family member will know English. Knowing this language is a big deal. As an example, an employee in Mexico can receive three times as much as they earned before for knowing English. As a result, they hope for even bigger success stories when it comes to their children.
Although an ideal situation for a family would be to move together and start a new chapter of their lives. Unfortunately, some families cannot afford it. Consequentially, fathers end up going first to earn money and find a place to live before the rest join. Situations can be different: some enter the country illegally and work somewhere secretly for cash, others arrive documented and ready to be hired by a company. Either way, their stay without the family can become long. There might be good intentions, but it takes much more effort to keep a strong connection with each family member. Especially the kids feel the difference whenever such change happens.
This week, during class, we walked through a scenario of a Mexican family immigrating and what happens a lot of times during such changes. There were predictions of separation between extended family, difficulty raising kids without a parent, or those children following the footsteps of their parents even when they move. For instance, if the dad worked illegally – there is a chance of their oldest children to do something similar with their future.
Having one parent or the other gone, brought a completely different discussion on whether it is possible to raise a successful generation “on their own.” Interestingly, a lot of students raised their hands when the question was asked “Who thinks that a mother has a bigger influence on a child during their teenage years?” while only a few thought that a father would be the answer.
As I was studying the material and observing the lectures, I understood one important factor – to not generalize one situation or a study to every individual or family. When it comes to immigration, not all are there illegally, or not all kids inherit their parents’ footsteps. Every family can have a different leader. I believe in the importance of both parents being present in the family. They have different points of view, experiences; therefore, there can be a lot more taught. Not only it is healthy for the children, but also for partners. I would like to end today’s entry by sharing the quote that I discovered in my religion class. It is from Elder David A. Bednar, “Because of their distinctive temperaments and capacities, males and females each bring to a marriage relationship unique perspectives and experiences. The man and the woman contribute differently but equally to a oneness and a unity that can be achieved in no other way. The man completes and perfects the woman and the woman completes and perfects the man as they learn from and mutually strengthen and bless each other.”
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