Dear Washa,
Even though only 5 days have passed since I left St. Petersburg, Russia, our home where you and I were born, I already miss you so terribly. It pains me very much knowing that I will not return to our beautiful city for a very long time. Memories of our wonderful, cheerful childhood, and the last days we spent together, cling on to my soul tightly. I cry every single night and yearn to return very much. I cannot wait until mother and father find jobs to make enough money for a trip to Russia. That thought is the only bright light that keeps me going during the hot summer days here.
You are probably wondering what America is like through my eyes. For me, things are different and confusing around here. It's hot and sticky, basically unbearable. The English language is a bunch of meaningless blabber to me for I know only a couple of very simple words. Mama told me that when I go to school next month it will take me a very little while to get used to it, and soon I will be talking better than her. It certainly seems extremely unbelievable to me. Like a miracle is to occur which is going to come without much of my efforts, just by existing ... and boom I will know a whole new language.
Money is a big problem in our little family. But don't worry about us, we are coping and hopefully soon papa will find a job because he knows English better than any of us. Let's hope he'll succeed.
Washa, I miss you very much and cry for our friendship. I'm sure we will remain the close friends we were in St. Petersburg, even over the seas.
Your Friend,
Anastasia
My mother came to this country twelve years ago, hoping that I would live a good life in America. Since the first day she arrived to this country, she has worked hard. My mother started working in restaurants receiving salaries that were much less than minimum wage and getting exploited by the owners. For about eleven years, my mom has worked at the same kind of job. Working for more than 12 hours each day, and hardly spending any time with the family. Now that there is enough money for her to quit her job and go to school, she has. She hopes that she will get a quality education and find a job that is better for her. She also wishes to make up for the years that she didn't spend with me.
Children of immigrants have more of a chance to live a better life. But this doesn't mean that their lives are perfect. Almost all immigrants have to face racist people in their school or in the society. People do not realize that everyone is an immigrant no matter when they came. Everyone migrated to this country from some place in the past. It's just a matter of when.
I am an immigrant myself. I would like to say that I'm glad my parents came to this country. Back in my country, Russia, there were no opportunities for the future. They were very limited because of the way the government was controlling everything. However, my parents were happy because they had good paying jobs and a nice house. The reason they came here was for us to become more educated and experience the many advantages that are given to us for the future. They want us to become lawyers or doctors, with a high salary and no worries about money. Also, they want to try and protect us from the difficulties we sometimes faced in my other country. Yes, New York isn't such a safe area, I admit. However, it is safer here than it is now in my country. My parents opened new doors for us and I'm very happy. I can become something here and I'm sure I will.
Should Immigration to the United States Continue?
by Jonathan Yam
Although I am only a junior high student, I have a strong position on the issue of immigration. I strongly believe immigration should be decreased, with strict rules enforcing it. Immigration may contribute to American society, but the negatives presently outweigh the benefits. Immigration has caused serious population growth that is decreasing the standard of living. There is a shortage of jobs and schools are overcrowded. Many students don't have seats to sit in and lack individual instruction. Immigrants do not have English as their first language. This results in students falling back in there education and hanging out with gangs. This causes crime to rise and extra danger to society. I hope to see the number of immigrants decreased soon.
Immigration
by Denise Johnson
The biggest problem faced by younger immigrants is Americanization. Usually, the younger immigrants feel that America is their homeland and they want to learn American ways. Most of them go to public schools, where the immigrants mix with children of other races. This opens up new experiences and opportunities. For this reason, children are torn between keeping their family traditions and learning America's new customs.
I feel that Americanization has its good and bad points. It gives people a better chance to survive in America, but it lessens their views about their own culture. Some children must adapt quickly. Their parents depend on them to understand the language and culture. All the stress is put on them and some are not ready for this.
Welcome to America?
by Igor M. Gerevile
There isn't any golden door because when I came here people called me names. You say this is freedom, but I don't think so. I was well treated in my country; better than I was here. I had the same rights and we had freedom. You can call yourself the symbol of freedom, but in reality you are not.
Difficulties Faced by Immigrants in School
by Dmitry Shenkelbakh
This essay will discuss three difficulties faced by the immigrants in school. I am an immigrant from Ukraine. I came to the U.S. with my family four years ago. Currently I am finishing up ninth grade. Language is by far the biggest problem that immigrant students face if they are from a non-English speaking country. In school you cannot do the work. If you like a girl you cannot ask her out because you are lacking communication skills. If you are mad at someone or something, you cannot explain your anger and someone might get hurt. Another problem that immigrant pupils have in school is embarrassment. I had problems pronouncing some words.
Another thing that immigrants have to deal with in school is clothing. In the school that I went to, I had to wear a uniform. In the U.S., if you don't wear stylish clothes, people tease you. Immigrants must deal with name-calling. I have seen some students called some ugly names just because they wore their traditional clothes to school.
There is one seduction that is hard to resist and that is money. Sometimes when you want something so bad and you have no money to buy it, you can almost steal the thing that you desire. Parents feel guilty for not being able to provide their kids with the things they want and kids get mad at their parents.
America
by Isabelle Beekhizen
The United States would never be the country that it is today if it weren't for immigrants. America was built by immigrants. As an immigrant myself, I can relate to all of the hardships and sorrows that each of the ethnic groups went through. All immigrants, young or old, rich or poor, came here to enrich their lives.
I was born in Colombia in the city of Cali. I came to the United States when I was about three years old. Even though I was raised in the U.S., I have had to deal with many things. Life in the U.S. has not been easy for my parents For them the language barrier has been very difficult to overcome. They don't have time to take English classes; so the little they know they've learned from their children. My mother is very thankful to this country because, "this country is the land of opportunities. You can get things much easier. Another quality about this country is that you have more freedom as an individual." My father has different ideas about this country. "As immigrants, we must work very hard to get them. It's not true that you can get rich very easy. We have to start from the bottom and rise very slowly. It just doesn't happen in one day. You have to work in low wage jobs and sometimes even get humiliated by other people." For my father it has been very hard to adapt to the U.S. My father left everything in Colombia and came to work over here. After he was here he found out that it had all been a lie. My father has had to work in what he calls "jobs for people with low education." He has dealt with many injustices in his job because of his way of thinking. He has worked eight years as a parking attendant for the same company and still hasn't gotten a raise in his wage.
