Because of the sensitive nature of our project topic and the limited resources we had available to us, we were only able to conduct one interview by ourselves. One of our group members reached out to an undocumented interview that she knew, but they declined to be interviewed. Therefore, for our second and third interviews we were able to find interviews that had been conducted by other people. We wanted to be able to hear the voices of undocumented immigrants because their lived experiences create the truth of the narrative.
Our first interview is important because it shows the reality of life as an undocumented immigrant. This interview deals with hard topics, such as crime and drug use, and it also gives voice to an immigrant who isn't perfect, but is also hard-working and honest. This interview helps provide humanity for a group of people who are often dehumanized.
Interview 2
This interview was conducted by Mark Laita, and in this video-recorded interview he speaks with a man named Raul, 42, who is currently living in Los Angeles, California. Raul was born and raised in Chihuahua, Mexico. His mother lives in Mexico, while his father was a US citizen but passed away 5 years ago. Raul says that he only met his father a few times, and he helped his mother raise his brothers and sisters alone. He says that he was “the man of the family” which meant that he had to “grow up fast and start [helping] my mom with money.”
Raul went to school in Mexico, and when he came to the United States at the age of 24 he didn’t know any English. He says he learned English by watching TV with the subtitles on and that his friends helped him learn as well. He says that he knew that if he wanted to be in the US, he had to learn English, and he isn’t afraid to speak it. He says, “If somebody laughing, you know, I will learn!”
He says that he initially came to the US with a visa, and that it was easier to come to the US 18 years ago than it is now. Laita asks “If your brother wanted to come to the US, they couldn’t do it now?” Raul shakes his head and responds “I don’t think so, no.” Raul says that when he first came to the US he was working with Motorola, but after that job ended he got into construction work. With the money that he made he helped his brothers go to school back in Mexico. He says that one of his brothers is an engineer, and the other went to school for nursing. He says that he no longer sends money to his brothers, but “I take care of my mom” who still lives in Mexico.
Raul says that when he first came to the US he tried to get to know his dad so that his dad could help him start a life in the US, but “he never helped me, so I said well, I would do it for myself.” He says that his father could have helped him become a US citizen but he didn’t. “I think he forgot about us [Raul and his siblings]…He make money for himself, he get married. I have a half brother I never met. I never told me.” 18 years after coming to the US, Raul still remains undocumented.
Raul tells Laita that he has opened a painting business four times but that he has never been successful. He says he thinks his business has never been successful because he has to trust someone else and give them all his money so they can pay the IRS, insurance, etc., and that they can take all the money from him if they want. This is what he says has happened every time he has tried to start his business. Because he doesn’t have a social security, he is unable to manage the financial aspect of a business by himself. He received painting contracts from companies who pay big money, often upwards of ten-thousand dollars, and they pay with checks. But, Raul has to run all that money through another person – this is the person who opens a bank account for the business, who purchases insurance for his workers, who pays taxes to the government. “They always have 100 percent of that money,” Raul says. He says this is why he gets “burned” when he tries to run his business, because “people never want to do it right, so they say, ‘oh, I’m going to take cash’” and then “they left with me nothing.” Because Raul is undocumented, he has no legal way to get his money back from those people. Despite having lost his business four times now, he remains determined and optimistic. He says “I need to find someone I can trust, really trust.”
Laita asks what he would do in Mexico. Raul says he would easily be able to find work because he knows machines and tools and is a hard worker. Laita asks what is stopping him from going back to Mexico and working there. Raul says, “the pay over there, you know, like it’s not very good. I can make more money here.” Later in the interview he says that in the US, “you have more opportunities to grow…You want to fight for something, like open your business, you can do it…you can work hard, make the money little by little…over there in Mexico it’s impossible.” He says that in Mexico “if you don’t have the cash you are never going to make it. Here, you can open doors.” He says that the way he opens door in the US is by working hard. “My work is my recommendation.”
At one point, Laita jokes, “your solution might be to marry a nice girl here in America.” Raul becomes serious and says “I don’t want to marry somebody just to get a paper because … people they do that, and I don’t like that…people get twisted up…it’s too many problems, you know, if you do that.”
Laita asks Raul if doing this interview and allowing it to be published online with his features unedited would get him in trouble. Raul is confident when he says no. “I am doing this because I wanna be somebody, you know, and you need to find a way. Whatever you have to do, you have to try, you need to fight.” He says that he has never had any trouble with the law. When he gets contracts from companies for a painting job, they always know about his undocumented status. He doesn’t seem worried when he says, “if they deport me like…I know, because I know the rules, I know the laws, that is what it is…I’m willing to deal with everything because that’s just what it is.”
Raul tells Laita that he does drugs something. Laita asks what drugs Raul uses, and he says weed, cocaine, and crystal [meth]. He says he uses weed a little, that he used to use a lot of cocaine but decided to quit, and that he still smokes crystal but “a little, not too much.” He says that he uses drugs so that he can work. He says that often he has to work one shift at night and one shift during the day, and the drugs help him keep working and lower his stress levels. “It’s not really good, but sometimes there’s no other way.” When Laita asks if he thinks he’s addicted he says no, because “I can quit…like I say ‘I don’t want it no more’.” He says this is what he did when he decided to quit using cocaine and he has never had any problems. Laita says “so you use [meth] like coffee?” Raul agrees. “I know it’s going to sound bad, but something you have to use it…to do something.” He gives a warning about drugs, saying “don’t let drugs control you, because if the drugs control you you’re going to lose. I always keep that in my mind.”
Laita asks what Raul is hoping for the future. “I want to make my life here…to open my company again. I’m not going to stop, but I need somebody I can trust.” Laita asks, “What’s been the most important lesson you’ve learned?” Raul responds, “Money…always corrupts people…they can stab you in the back just for the money.” “I need to keep trusting, you know, there’s not another way I can do it,” Raul says at the end of interview.