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He came to this country when he was one. 29 years ago.
His family moved here for a better life. Away from the things that worry most. The things parents universally worry about. Providing a better life, opportunity, a piece of the dream that life in this country represents. But they didn’t have much. They didn’t have choices. They could only take action. Would you do anything differently? Much has been written one way or the other about dreamers and those like him. On one side statistics have been provided by the current administration to cite the lack of contribution that he represents. I offer SNOPES as a way to fact check. Please see the attached: Get the facts A story about a Maria – from Forbes. Her story as a dreamer. Human context Where does this leave him? He works. More than most. He paid for a trip for his grandmother to take a cruise, the first in her life – with her family. He builds a life. He cares about his dogs. He supports the economy and his community. He has his documentation. He studies for his citizenship. He awaits the chance to prove why he belongs. Why he deserves a piece of the dream. He is human. He pays taxes. He contributes. Many in his country want to have him removed like a tumor. Recently, I helped him study for his citizenship test. Much of the information he knows, I do not. Many of us do not. Many of those wishing to prevent him from being a part of our society do not. So. I offer this. A gift from France My Polish and Irish relatives saw this. Many of your families did too. One doesn’t exist on our southern or northern border. To the north we ask for no wall. To the south we now require one. Why? What’s the difference? Is it the color of our skin? What do you think? How do we start to bridge the gap and connect?
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It was against all odds really. We sent her to a private school at first - for what we thought was a better education. We should have known the first year what was to come.
"She is very bossy." We asked, what does that mean? "She tells the other children what to do." Like what or how? "When they fall behind she tells them what to do." We asked the question of our daughter. She wanted to help those that were falling behind. When the teacher was busy, she showed them what to do or how to solve a problem,. This was defined as bossy. "She gives the boys a hard time." Again, we asked to provide an example. Our daughter said, "they told me I could not be a Jedi." "Girls they said - can't be a Jedi - it isn't possible, so I told them they were wrong." My daughter was told during show and tell (of toys) that she could not be what she wanted to be because no female action figure existed. Years later she encountered similar inequities to what I can only say is a systematic issue of misdirecting female talent. To make it worse, girls of color are even more likely to experience misdirection. Please see the attached articles: Gender bias exists Race and Gender in Education When in middle school she was told to not pursue the sciences or math. "You aren't good enough" she was told. Later when asked why she was interested in the sciences she was asked "why don't you just marry a doctor instead." These were things stated to a minor, a student in a classroom. This happened on our watch. As parents and educators we have to constantly be mindful of the messages that are being sent to students and children. These are more direct examples, but the risk to kill dreams and talent by simple bias is real. So what happened? We switched schools. She thrived. I am happy to report that she is 18 and has graduated 3rd in her class. She was also honored for her leadership role as a teen for pursuing the sciences by the YWCA, as well as receiving a Senior Award from her school for her achievement in this area. She will be studying in the sciences in college. She has been asked to already work on a research project during her freshman year. As for the most important issue, yes, there is a such thing as a female Jedi knight. While on business, I bought her this action figure. She brought it to show and tell. Dad chose bossy - and she kicks butt. |
AuthorDave Paczkowski has worked as a HR Business Partner, Employee Development and Diversity Leader. He has been actively engaged in supporting non profit organizations and issues related to supporting LGBTQ youth. ArchivesCategories |
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