Monday, April 06, 2009

Origins



As of late there's been a ton of action going online because the DREAM Act got reintroduced in the senate a while back. Everyone in cyberlandia is posting on the different ways you can help and support the cause, why we're doing what we do and all sorts of good, positive actions. I could bombard you with all sorts of facts, figures and reasons as to why the DREAM Act is great all around, but I'll spare you. If anyone is reading this, chances are you already know the score and don't need to be reminded. But if you want some of that, go here.

However, there have been bigger things on my mind as of late in terms of the future, what I'm fighting for and what I'm about. I can write and talk about how much I'm going to give back when the DREAM Act passes, but it's all turning into the same old song and dance. I have great admiration for all of my colleagues and friends who stand by my side, support the cause and have been diligently spreading the word about the DA. I honestly don't think it would have gotten this far if it wasn't for the solidarity we have all shown online and off.


My experience is that no matter how hard you fight for something, how much you protest and bring awareness to it, if you can't put a face behind it and establish a connection with your audience, then your message will be lost. Through my writing and this blog, I have been putting a face, but not mine. Almost everyone who blogs about being undocumented does in from behind the veil of the internet. I myself have taken full advantage of this veil in chronicling my escapades, thoughts and aspirations. Yet as things continue to heat up and this "battle" continues to escalade, more and more lives are being to be lost and families are being destroyed.

I have been living this way since I was 7 years old and I'm tired of it all. Tired of having to watch my back, watching what I say, what I do and how I interact with the world. I'm done with this BS. I'm not hiding from anyone or anything anymore. I've been trying to embrace life to it's full potential, but there is always something holding me back. It's the same thing over and over again. Change is never going to happen like this, change will only come after someone decides to take the first step and come out, so to speak. I'm not the first and I won't be the last, but I'd like to think that out of all the bloggers out there, I'm one of the first to just come out and reveal who I really am. A person in the world, living in the U.S. as an undocumented resident because my parents brought me here to give me a better chance at life.


Their good intentions have caused me nothing but grief, phycological torment and a bunch of other personal identity issues I've had to deal with over the years. I'm surprised that I am who I am, in-spite of what I've dealt with in my life. Even at that, what I've gone through doesn't compare to what others have or will go through. My shitty drama is nothing compared to others, I'm one lucky cabron, straight out. With that being said, this is going to push my luck beyond anything else I've been through, but whatever the outcome, I'll be ready for it one way or another.

My name is Erick Huerta. I have been living in the United States since the age of seven and have come to love my adoptive country. I'm a full time college student working weekends to pay for my schooling, bills and other random things I spend money on. For the last two years I've been going back and forth from friends houses crashing where ever I can and making the best out of the hand I was dealt. Life gets hard at times, but I now that eventually things will get better, even if it's not within my life time.

The work I do now will help those who have yet to come. Someone is watching over my back, destiny and the faiths have been kind to me, my family and friends. I may frequent the road less traveled and take wrong turns every now and then, but I always end up where I need to be. One way or another. All I need are the tools to be able to actualize my full potential and give back after taking soo much.


~ Con Safos ~

Erick "El Random Hero" Huerta