DREAM Act Portal Forum - 'My American'

‘My American’

They try to take away who I am;
Revoke my identity.
Days filled with panic attacks; nights, insomnia
Now I have no serenity.

Let me tell you a bit about me,
As I try to breathe and relax.
Try to guess who I am
Based on the following facts.

I follow NPR on AM radio,
On FM, I mostly listen to Country,
I love how George Strait sings,
Though my favorites are Brad, Reba and Carrie.

I say football not soccer,
I follow my college basketball team.
I hoot and holler all the way through
No matter how bad they may seem.

I love Tuesdays with Morrie
and all of the Harry Potter books.
In my free time, I do yoga
and check messages on facebook.

When the sun is out in summer,
I look forward to getting tanner.
You say national anthem,
I’ll think of ‘Star Spangled Banner’.

You say national hero,
I’ll say Martin Luther King Jr.
I look forward to Christmas, Thanksgiving
And the Superbowl every year.

Every July 4th, I love tailgating,
Fireworks, barbeque, and fries.
I hope by now, who I am
is not a surprise.

I am an American.
But they say this is untrue.
Who else am I supposed to be?
Honestly, I haven’t a clue.

What did I do wrong?
Why am I at fault?
Oh yea, I was not born,
In this land, but I was brought

To live out the American Dream
Of prosperity and success.
This I have tried to do,
But it was not enough, I guess.

I think in English, speak in English
Way better than my mother tongue.
United States is what I know and love
Ever since I was very young.

I still don’t understand what I did wrong.
Elementary to high school: got all Straight As.
3.76 in College while being a pre-med
And working two jobs minimum wage.

Honor roll, national honor societies,
Volunteer at least 10 hours a week
My dreams? Getting a MPH and a MD,
I’m the person they wish their children could be.

Found the perfect guy,
Fell in love, found my soul mate.
Despite knowing all my problems,
He wants to get engaged.

But people tell me if I love him,
Then him, I should forsake.
Because I’ll never be able to prove
That my love for him is not fake.

I’m always helping those
Who cannot help themselves.
All the while, not realizing,
I could not help myself.

No matter how much I try,
And no matter how hard,
None of this mean a thing
Without that green card.

I guess it’s too late
to think about all this now.
Got to preserve my identity
my humanity somehow.

But what now? Leave what I consider home
And never look back?
Leave behind my friends and my life,
just like that?

Isn’t it funny
that all this could be changed?
By one piece of paper
with my name,

The paper that could define me.
and give me back my identity.
The same identity I have always know about;
Of being an American; this time without any doubt.

The saddest thing is
there’s so many here like me
Waiting for that day
We get to try at our destiny.

You want us to repent?
Let us make our own mistakes
Don’t punish us
For the ones our parents made.

You’ll see we’ll only
make this country stronger.
Please don’t let us live
This way any longer.

Support me, Support all of us,
Please support the DREAM Act,
Please help all our dreams
Get back in track.