Oscar

"I was born in Michoacán, Mexico which is in the southern western part of Mexico on the pacific coast and I was brought to the U.S. when I was three and a half years old by my parents but my parents were actually here before me and my great grandparents were going back and forth so its interesting that way. It was a very financial experience that I had. I speak Spanish fluently, English of course and a little bit of French, I could speak it. I think it’s worth mentioning that I was first generation, I’m the first person in my family from both sides to go to college. I was very lucky that my parents back in the years were still able to arrange their papers really soon so I was only undocumented for three years.”

"El compadre has two sons that kind who are the same, age as me and my brother right. Kind of looks like us, not a lot but we were from a very very very poor town in Mexico. My family was a very hard working class. So we borrowed the clothes from these two kids who looked like us and their same age as me and my brother right. Kind of looks like us, not a lot but we were from a very very very poor town in Mexico. My family was a very hard working class. So we borrowed the clothes from these two kids who looked like us and their green card and everything. We got to the border and we are supposed to say who we are. I think my name was Oscar or something and I couldn't remember what my name was. So the immigration official asked me what is your name and I looked up to my dad and said 'what’s my name?' so I don’t know why that guy let us through. Maybe he felt sorry or something.”

“ ... So going to college for me wasn’t difficult...but there are still challenges being a first generation...I rarely call myself a Chicano because a Chicano is more like a political consciousness... ""The push pull factor occurs way long before we are born. It happens even before our parents meet and decide to have kids and a lot of push pull factors that happens within immigrants in particular are political factors that have nothing to do with our families sure my family was really really poor... and like sure we could have died like my grandparents brothers and sisters. But that’s not really the push-push factor. It’s the fact the economy that my parents saw that they could have a job there. So that was beyond my parents..."Grandparents came here first as Brazeros to work in the fields. "The push-pull factors is more than just what your family needs, it’s more you are at and people run where there is money and shelter..." People confused him anything but a student. My Family was very conservative and didn't support him with going to college because believed that it was not necessary.