In the last couple months leading up to this election for president of the united States, there have been many disputes over illegal immigrants, specifically Mexican immigrants. As one of our presidential candidates, Donald Trump, stated, "When Mexico sends its people, they’re not sending their best. They’re not sending you. They’re not sending you. They’re sending people that have lots of problems, and they’re bringing those problems to us. They’re bringing drugs. They’re bringing crime. They’re rapists. And some, I assume, are good people!" Now, on a personal level, I was rubbed the wrong way after I heard this, and I was very angry, but then I calmed down and assessed the situation and what he said. I could go on and on about why I believe Trump shouldn't be elected president, but that's not what I'm here to write about today. Mr. Trump falls into a category of Americans that I like to call "Misinformed Americans." I say this because Americans who believe that Latinos in this country are "ruining America" or "taking away our jobs" don't realize how difficult it really is to be a citizen in the United States, let alone receive a work visa, and all these people want to achieve is "The American Dream."

To get a real idea of how difficult it is to come this country, I asked my mother about how she, my father, and my brother came to this country. First, my father came to this country illegally in 1988, looking for a better opportunity for his family. He ran through fields and a river to end up on the other side. Later, my dad got a job working in the fields, so he was able to receive his work visa for one year. Then he told my mom to come with their son (my older brother), who was three at the time. She told me, "When we came to this country, we had to run through fields and walk through a river, but I didn't know how to swim, so I almost drowned with my son while trying to get across. There was an instance where an immigration officer would walk by and we had to hide in bushes, and suddenly, your brother needed to go to the restroom, but I had to silence him until the officer passed by." I asked her, " Were you scared?" She replied, "I was terrified the whole time. I kept on praying to God and every single saint I could think of to help us. Once we got to San Diego where your dad was waiting for us, all of a sudden an immigration officer confronts us and asks, 'Are you here legally in this country?' and your dad replies 'Yes.' Then he asks, 'Are they here legally (pointing at my mom and brother)?' Your dad pauses for awhile and says, 'No, they're not.' He asks your dad, 'Is this your son?' 'Yes, he is. He's only three years old.' The officer then asks where they were headed, and your dad says 'The airport.' The officer nods his head and says, 'I'm going to walk over there to my car, and you never saw me. You have a safe flight.' My heart was in my throat the whole time. I thought we were going to have to be sent back. I've known of people being taken away from their jobs and homes and being taken to a bus and sent back to Mexico with the clothes on their back and just thrown in a random town without any assistance, and you have to find your way back home, wherever that is for people."

It took seven years for my mother to receive a residence visa, because from 1989 to 1995, she was working without any papers or visa. "It was a lot easier back then to work without any papers. I'm not proud of it, but I did what I needed to do for our family." From what I gathered from my mother, the only reason why she was able to receive any type of visa is because my father received his and could submit applications for visas for her and my brother because they were his wife and son, but it still took a total of six years! That's insane, especially since my dad tried to get papers for them the right way. Fortunately, my mother received her American citizenship in 2008 and my father did in 2010.

Imagine if you're in Mexico struggling to make even $100 a month (that is a very good salary out there for an average person) and trying to spread that out to put food on the table and pay bills and support your kids. You wish to come here, but you don't have anyone "up north" to help arrange your papers to help you come here legally with a work visa. Are you willing to wait around six years to give your family a better life? I know many fathers and mothers who would sacrifice everything they have to give their family a better future, and unfortunately, coming here illegally is a risk they're willing to take.

Even today, my mother is trying to get her brother and sister a visiting visa, but it's been a long process (we started the process in 2010), and we're still unable to get them over here. Getting a visa is sometimes pure luck, and that's the most unfortunate part of the process.

I'm not saying it's OK for Mexicans to come across the border illegally, but what I am saying is make the process easier for immigrants to come here and work. As I see it, if the government makes it easier for Latinos to come here legally with visas and eventually become American citizens, that's more money in the government's pocket. It would mean more people to tax, and the more tax money comes in, the better our economy flows.

I'm grateful that my parents made this sacrifice for us to become better people and move forward as a family and give my brother, sister, and myself better opportunities to succeed. It bothers me when American people put down the Latino community, especially because I know how difficult it is to learn two different languages at the same time, as well as growing up and adapting to the American culture while keeping ties with the Latin heritage. I believe that the Latino community has some of the most hard-working people in this country, regardless of whether or not they're here legally.

Every day, families make the ultimate sacrifice to come to this country, looking for "The American Dream." I believe that this country became great because of influences from immigrants from all over the world. The easier it is for people to come here legally, the better this country will become economically and culturally.