Newspaper Page Text
AN IMMIGRANT'S STORY
Coming to Athens, Part 1
Editor’s note: The story below, the first in a series, is an
account of coming to the U.S. by a Mexican immigrant
living in Athens.
W hy did I come to the USA? I had
several reasons. I can say it was be
cause I was escaping the poverty in
my hometown, and it really is true that I was
affected by NAFTA. After the free trade agree
ment was implemented, it was impossible to find
a good job. More people became unemployed,
government corruption grew, as well as hunger
and reduced opportunity. But my reality was dif
ferent. Perhaps you will not understand. I really
just wanted Nike tennis shoes, which I could not
afford over there. I still can't afford them.
Seriously, though, most people in Mexico talk
about getting big trucks or nice clothes. That is
part of their American Dream. But my goal was
not this. I dreamed of going to New York City to
play saxophone under a bridge and look at the
Statu^pf Liberty, contemplating it. The Statue
of Liberty stands to welcome people coming from
across the sea. I didn't come from across the
sea, though... I think about democracy, justice,
equality, liberty—these concepts never have
been real for me. They are beautiful words but
they have never existed for me; they are ties,
beautiful lies. Jazz is different—it was created
for poor people, oppressed people, marginados. I
think jazz is for me.
I was not at a good point in my life at that
time, and going to the USA was an opportunity
to realize my dreams. I said goodbye to my fam
ily; I borrowed some money from them and I left
everything. I left 30 years of my life behind me.
CROSSING OVER
I traveled to Hermosillo, in Sonora. It was an
unforgettable experience. The surprise began out
of the airport. There were a lot of vans waiting
to drive us to different points of the border. On
the way, the van I rode in had mechanical prob
lems and the driver stopped. Finally he called for
someone to come for us, but in the meantime, all
of us were expecting something to happen, like
maybe some bandits coming to steal our personal
things. We talked about this and that* a person
came to me saying everything was so strange and
he thought it was a good idea to hide our money
just in case, but that suggestion worried me.
What if this person did not have good intentions
and he wanted to see if I hid something? He
would know I had money with me, and so I was
suspicious. Nothing happened after many hours
of waiting, yet we distrusted each other.
After dark, another van came to pick us up,
and we got to the hotel. The room had two beds,
a single and a double. Twelve of us shared the
room, sometimes more. People were moving in
and out of our room and you wanted a chance *o
get a little space in the bed so you could get a
little rest. Later that night, we tried to jump for
the first time. We had prepa r ed for it. While we
were waiting to go, there was nothing to do but
try to sleep, which was difficult or impossible.
Most of us were talking or listening to the stories
and experiences of people trying to cross the
border or the techniques the coyotes would use
to bring us to the other side. Then I heard about
this little boy who I met later. He was very short,
but he was the best He could lead big groups,
20 or 30 people. And he succeeded. While we
were waiting in our room, we learned all about
what you need to know and what you can expect
on the trip. For example, you cannot bring any
bags or suitcases, just what you are wearing at
that moment. But most of the people wore extra
pants or t-shirts and followed the group. You had
to know that if you lost the group, you would
be on your own. Nobody would help you, and if
you came across someone else, you wouldn't be
able to help them, either. You could find yourself
alone in the middle of who-knows-where.
SEPT 7 - WRONGLY ACCUSED
SEPT 8 - JIMMY DRIFTWOOD &
, ^ _ HIS LEGENDARY SIDEMEN
8 7 0 HA WTHORNE A VE
706-353-6244
'h!,h.ir,ind()nil cum for more into 1
' #
SHOWCASE
ROCKING
THE
DAWGS!
SIGN UP
FOR OUR
MAILING LIST
FOR A CHANCE
TO WIN
MONTHLY
PRIZES!
WWW.MYSPACE.COM/MUSICIANSWAREHOUSE
1 50 CRANE DR. • (706) 54^-7233
4*+* 4m
II FtAGPOLE.COM • SEPTEMBER 5,2007
NEWS I. FEATURES I ARTS & EVENTS I MOVIES I MUSIC I COMICS & ADVICE I CLASSIFIEDS
JASON CROSBY