Immigrants fighting hard to stay in U.S. - The Elkhart Project- msnbc.com »
Posted By Eagle_Eye 4 months, 1 week ago in NewsElkhart County, Ind.— Angel Rodriguez stood on the front lawn, cradling his infant son, surrounded by porcelain figures, a playpen, a couch, shoes — the familiar ephemera accumulated in better times.
Losing his job with a supplier in the boat manufacturing industry forced Rodriguez and his family to trade their trailer in Milford, Ind., for a single bedroom in the one-bathroom, one-story dwelling they share with eight others some 20 miles north, in Elkhart. It also meant shedding belongings to compensate for the lost space, as well as lost income. So Rodriguez was having a yard sale.
"When I lived in Milford, I lived alone with my kids. I didn’t need anybody’s help," said the husband and father of two. "Now I have to sell my things."
A dozen people living in a single house is not ideal, but it's the price Rodriguez must pay to stay in the United States. Like other Mexican immigrants hit by the recession, it gives his family a way of dealing with the loss of income without having to return to his native country.
"Us illegals, we don’t have unemployment," said Rodriguez, an undocumented immigrant from Mexico City. "If I had unemployment, I wouldn’t have had to give up the trailer."
Hispanic immigrants, chiefly those here illegally, are particularly vulnerable as the recession lingers. Without proper documentation, those out of work can’t access unemployment and other government benefits, increasing the pressure to pull up stakes and look for opportunity elsewhere. Still, many who came to the United States looking to improve their life — make money, open up opportunities for their children, help support family still in Mexico — are hardly eager to return.
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Eagle_Eye
I am a female who has lived a complex life with complex situations and have learned a lot from my experiences.
I love the Environment ...
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DropkickaLib4 months, 1 week ago
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Now if they would just fight hard to get in the country legally and wouldn't vote in our elections. Obama's census will not even consider citizenship or legal residency status so illegals will be counted for representation purposes.
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