Immigration on my mind. Many friends near and far very heavily affected by the current state of things. Understandably so.
I was born to American citizens of Norwegian and Swedish descent in Minnesota. Raised and educated in San Jose, California. My maternal grandfather moved here from Norway in 1904 at the age of 14. He gained his citizenship in 1951. I have his papers and the flag given to him at his citizenship ceremony.
He spent years of his life in the US as a legal resident, but not citizen.
I was raised around Iranians, Indians, Vietnamese, Mexicans, Cubans, Japanese, Chinese, Salvadoreans, Colombians, Ethiopians, South Africans. Some of them fled revolution and political persecution. Others came for better economic, educational opportunity, and a stabler place to raise a family.
The people I knew were universally some of the most driven, intelligent, and hard working people I've ever known. Completely the opposite of every racial/cultural stereotype joke I ever heard about them. These people played no small part in my growth as a human being.
I moved to Seattle when I was 23. I didn't see the same diversity that I was accustomed to growing up. It took some getting sued to. However, in my late 20s, I began meeting a series of people who would have a huge impact on my life going forward.. Russian, Polish, Turkish, Bulgarian, Romanian, Bosnian, Serbian, Croatian, Puerto Rican, Mexican, Indian, Jewish.... and lots and lots of LGBTQ people. I was introduced to new foods and music. Engaged in spirited political discussion with people who defected from behind the Iron Curtain. People who survived the Yugoslavian dissolution wars. People who fled Poland after illegal incarceration by the Communist party. Actors. Artists. Musicians. Economists. Engineers. Cooks. Writers. Social workers. Programmers. A wide spectrum.
These people expanded my mind and helped me see a much clearer picture of a larger, more interconnected world with so much to offer.
I married an incredible Polish woman whose parents I adore. We have carved out a pretty good life. Amazing family. Friends we consider family. A little zoo and farm of our own. Some comfort and stability.
When we chose to buy a house, Seattle proper was definitely not a consideration. Price wasn't the only reason though. We liked White Center because of it's diversity and cultural vibrancy. We were largely beat out by cash buyers as White Center is becoming a new hot spot and the housing market was very affordable.
We see this house in Burien. We loved the yard. It would make what has become an amazing garden. A giant German Shepherd barked at us in the neighboring yard. His person, Octavio, the Shepherd's person, introduced himself. We chatted for a while and he gushed about the neighborhood. Just the warmest, friendliest guy.
We loved the house and made an offer. One of the big reasons we fell in love with the place was our new neighbor to be. A ridiculously hard working and incredibly nice man from Oaxaca. He defies every Mexican stereotype you've ever heard. Kasia and I adore him and his entire family. You couldn't ask for a better neighbor. He is a green card holding permanent resident working toward citizenship.
Our other neighbor is a gay man of Cuban descent. He's a teacher. He frequently brings us cherries and other fruit from his parents' farm in Yakima. He too is an amazing neighbor. We frequently chat for long stretches of time over the fence as we're doing yard work. He sold his place and is moving and we're both extremely bummed about the development and wish him all the best.
What does this have to do with anything? In this current climate of fear of immigrants, I have to share my experience with immigrants because my life has been intimately molded by those who moved here to carve out a better life for themselves. To improve their lives and the lives of those around them. I would not be the person I am without these people in my life.
I would and will do anything in my power to help the immigrants (and their descendants) in my life and want to help more for the immigrants coming here today that are being treated with legal, emotional, physical, and bureaucratic brutality. #immigration #lowiq45 #immigrantsmakeamericangreat
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