Artifact 4: Dreamers (the book)

For my fourth artifact, I chose to review the book 'Dreamers.' The premise of the book is that Dreamers are living among us, some of them are even the kids next to us in our classrooms. Immigration is much more local than we think this is, these students and kids are here in plain sight, and we need to recognize that.
Many of the stories in this book are anonymous, like one boy's input:
"You see me, but you don't see me.
I could be your best friend, or neighbor.
I could be a student, or your classmate.
I could be the person who walked by you today.
People have this idea of who I am, but do you know who I am?
You see me, but you don't see ME as I fall away in the shadow of uncertainty."
Who are these people anyway? Immigrants are human beings, just like you and I. They probably came from countries where they had no hope, an unequal education, violence and poverty.  They came to find better lives. Their parents could have brought them to the United states at a young age so their children had a better place to grow up. Wouldn't anyone do that?  I know that I would, and so would my parents.  Think about someone you love.  Where would you stop when it comes to providing them with healthcare and education.  Think about it.  If we lived in a place where basic needs were denied to us, wouldn't we actively seek a place where we could get them?  Wouldn't all of us want our loved ones to be safe, fed and educated?  This does not come at a cost to citizens, contrary to what most believe.  They don't degrade our schools.  There is enough food for us all, and Obama Care allows them basic healthcare.  I wonder how many of the students in my class receive the benefits of Obama Care.  Probably few.
This relates to The Distance Between Us because many of these students, like Reyna, were left behind in Mexico by their parents. Unlike Reyna's situation, some of their parents never went back for them. On the other side of the coin, some of these students' parents were deported to Mexico and unable to get back, leaving the kids alone.

In the back of the book, there is a section titled Common Myths about Immigration and Immigrants. I took a picture of it so it's accessible to this blog.

I apologize for the large size of this image not fitting the blog format, but it's easiest to read this way.