Immigration and the American Dream - refugees, undocumented immigrants, American reactions

Laura Vazquez, an analyst for the National Council of La Raza (NCLR), presented this statement to a Congressional subcommittee at the hearing “S. 952, DEVELOPMENT, RELIEF, AND EDUCATION FOR ALIEN MINORS (DREAM) ACT OF 2011” on June 28, 2011.

In this excerpt, the narrator, a young Chinese girl, poses as a boy with forged papers, trying to gain entry into the United States. When she realizes the American immigration agents are checking identity papers at the dock, she fights past them and runs for her life.

In this poem, the speaker traces the senseless killings taking place abroad and at home, with a particular focus on the African-American community. The speaker also calls communities to action to "grow our hope and heal our hearts" in order to live together in peace.

In this interview, Luis Rodriguez describes how the systemic demoralization he faced in school and society at a young age drove him to join a street gang and how writing his book, Always Running, was an attempt to call his son and other young people in similar situations to change their lives.

Brought to the United States illegally from Mexico as a child, Reyna Wences has stepped forward to make the case for immigration reform.

Patricia Smith explores the nation's divide over how to deal with illegal immigration. She outlines the role of immigration in our history, notes the "wariness" felt over immigration ever since, and questions when and how Congress might act on the issue.

Seventeen-year-old Itrat shares what it’s like to be a Muslim girl in America and explains why she chooses to wear a scarf.

An 1886 advertisement for a laundry detergent called the Magic Washer shows Uncle Sam booting out a group of stereotypically depicted Chinese Americans.