The determination of these kids to stay and get their high school diploma! Quite amazing. - - Donna Poisl
by John Faherty - The Arizona Republic
In the predawn darkness, Gerson Gonzalez wakes without an alarm.
He always wakes this way. He lies silently in bed for a moment under his blanket. The January air is cold. Gerson showers quickly and dresses in the dark in the back room of the narrow trailer.
The trip to North High School will require a bus, then light rail, then another bus. But he wants to be there early. He is always hungry in the morning, and school means a free breakfast.
Gerson lives in this trailer with two other young men. They are all seniors in high school, and they are all in the country illegally.In the aftermath of Arizona Senate Bill 1070, which made it a state crime to be an illegal immigrant, Gerson's father was deported. Jonathan Labrada's family moved away, and Alejandro Sau's family, such as it was, began to fall apart.
Click on the headline above to read the rest of this story! This is only a small part of it.
This country was built by immigrants, it will continue to attract and need immigrants. Some people think there are enough people here now -- people have been saying this since the 1700s and it still is not true. They are needed to make up for our aging population and low birthrate. Immigrants often are entrepreneurs, creating jobs. We must help them become Americans and not just people who live here and think of themselves as visitors. When immigrants succeed here, the whole country benefits.
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