'Immigrants Day of Action' rallies behind undocumented community

"I was only 10 months old when I left my motherland. I left a life I'd never get to know," said Alejandra Martinez-Soto at Eastern's "Immigrants Day of Action." Her mother, who was studying accounting in Acapulco, Mexico, had made the difficult decision to pursue a new life in the United States to provide a more opportunistic future for her daughter.

"She made the heart-wrenching decision to sacrifice everything. She sacrificed her dreams, her education and the stability she had worked so hard to build to keep our family together," said Martinez-Soto, who was a child when her mother was "deported due to the Georgia Security and Immigration Compliance Act."

On Oct. 15, various organizations at Eastern Connecticut State University participated in the "I Stand with Immigrants" initiative to celebrate its National Day of Action. University Opportunity Programs (UOP) as well as student organizations such as Freedom, the Organization of Latin American Students (OLAS) and the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) worked together to make the event happen. Eastern was one of more than 200 campuses nationwide to celebrate the event and the only campus in Connecticut to do so.

"Today we wanted to spread the word and to educate people about the undocumented population here on campus," said Gabi Varela Santana, president of Freedom. "Our goal is sharing resources with undocumented students. Eastern is a TheDream.US partner, so there are a lot of undocumented and DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) students here."

Freedom strives to be a safe space for the undocumented and immigrant community on campus and to serve as a bridge between them and other communities. "Especially now with the upcoming election, it's more important than ever to share why it's important to be politically engaged and to vote if you're able to."

TheDream.US is a career success program for undocumented students. It offers scholarships, career development services and partners with schools in more than 20 states, including Eastern, to help undocumented students earn degrees and pursue successful careers.

The day's events were hosted in the UOP room in the J. Euegene Smith Library. "Opportunity Programs include about 12 different programs here at Eastern," said Christina Irizarry, director. "We provide academic and social support to about 10 percent of the student population and have about 400 students throughout our programs." UOP works with organizations such as TheDream.US, Achievement First, Higher Edge, Promise Scholars (Hartford, New Haven and Waterbury) and Hispanic Alliance of Eastern Connecticut.

OLAS attended the event to support undocumented students. "We want to let students know that we're here for them and to show how OLAS supports the immigrant community," said Claudia Guerrero, president of OLAS. "We promote cultural events for them to be able to keep their heritage and culture and share it with one another. We're supporting a subcommunity within our community; we know a significant portion of our club members are a part of the undocumented community as well."

The NAACP also showed its support. They focus on the advancement of the economic, educational, social and political status of racial minorities. "We listen to our stakeholders and bring their concerns to the state and national level," said Fanta Konate of the NAACP. "Undocumented students do work with us and we're always taking (their concerns) to state and national conventions. We see what the NAACP can do to help solve these problems, especially if they're here on campus."

In addition to campus organizations promoting resources for students, the event featured emotional testimonials from students in the undocumented community. Martinez-Soto explained: "I became my mom's eyes, her ears and voice in situations where she couldn't communicate." Language barriers are a common obstacle faced by many immigrant families in their first years in the States.

"My mom eventually became a single immigrant mother, shifting her focus entirely from my father to me. She carried the weight of her dreams, now intertwined with my future," said Martinez-Soto. "She ingrained in me the value of education, encouraging me to maintain high grades, believing that high academic performance would lead to a better life."

The "I Stand with Immigrants Day of Action" brought together numerous organizations and students to advocate for and learn about the undocumented community at Eastern. As a TheDream.US partner school, Eastern is home to a significant undocumented population and organizations like UOP, OLAS and Freedom play a key role in helping undocumented students succeed during their college years and beyond.