Trail of Dreams

So this post is a contrast of some of the most awesome and least awesome people ever!

First the most awesome:
Four students set out on the "Trail of Dreams" on January 1 of this year. Their goal was to raise awareness of the difficulties that undocumented young people face in the U.S. by walking 1,500 miles from Miami to Washington D.C. All four of the students were brought to the U.S. as children, and so had no choice in the legality of their immigration. Now, only one of the four 'walkers' as they call themselves has been able to get citizenship.

It's hard to imagine how different my life would be if I were an undocumented young person in this country. I wouldn't be able to get financial aid to go to college, I would have a much, much harder time finding a job, I would live in fear of my family and myself being deported despite the fact that I'd grown up in the U.S. These are the experiences that the walkers on the Trail of Dreams describe: http://trail2010.org/

These four people and the many other people for whom them march are victims of a broken system. Felipe, Gaby, Carlos and Juan did not have a choice in where their families moved or how or when.They would like to participate fully in the society in which they were raised, but they are not allowed to.

As frustrating as that is, I think I think the Trail of Dreams is so inspiring and I have so much respect for the walkers. The fact that a march is still a valid way to get the world's attention is reassuring. After all, you don't need anything but your own two feet to march in protest, and no one can ever take that away from you. Sure, authorities lock people up to stop marches, like they did during the Freedom Rides, but to be arrested for marching means you have drawn public attention; you have forced the world to see you; you have succeeded.

And the least awesome:
In a backwards way, I guess what happened in Georgia at the end of February is a measure of the Trail of Dreams' success in raising attention. The KKK scheduled a rally against the "latino invasion" to coincide with the walkers stop in Nahunta, GA.

There are no words for this video. It's so weird to think there are people in this country who actually believe this. In a way, I think it's a good reminder.