My mom is a U.S. citizen and I still ended up having to live with DACA
I just need to vent because I’ve been thinking about this a lot lately.
I came to the U.S. when I was around 5 years old. My mom is a U.S. citizen, but she never took care of my immigration status when I was a child. I eventually ended up with DACA, and now at 28 I’m still living with all of that uncertainty.
What I keep thinking about is why bring me to America in the first place?
Why bring me here, put me through elementary school, middle school, high school, and college, and let me build my entire life here? I became a nurse, built a career, bought a home, and this is the only life I really know. Yet on paper, I’m still left feeling like I don’t fully belong here.
My DACA renewal has been pending for months, and the stress from everything has gotten so bad. My leave ends August 21, and I’m scared about what happens if my work authorization still isn’t renewed.
What hurts even more is that my mom refuses to acknowledge that she did anything wrong. I was a child. I didn’t understand immigration. I couldn’t file paperwork for myself. I depended on the adults around me to take care of those things.
I love my mom, but I’d be lying if I said I don’t feel angry and resentful. Sometimes I think about how different my life could have been if this had been handled when I was younger, and having her act like none of it was her responsibility makes it even harder.
I’m not looking for legal advice. I just needed somewhere to vent because I feel exhausted, scared, and frustrated by the whole situation.