How did you discover your status?

How did you discover your status? Did you always know you were visiting or did you find out when you were applying for government aid/id's etc?

I always knew I was visiting because back in '92 my mom said we were going to visit a beautiful beach and I would get to play in the sand and swim in the ocean. I remember loving the plane ride and every time my ears pop it takes me back to that day. We also ate pizza and the scent and slightly sweet taste of pizza and fermenting dough is still so vivid and special to this day.... Do any of you guys remember your first day in the USA vividly too?

Funny thing it was never a shock to me.. I kinda always new, but I never new it was a bad thing until high school.. It didn't really sink in until I was in college..

Since I was 5 my mother always told me "No semos de aqui" translation "We are not from here" how is a 5 year old supposed to process that....

I've been here all my life and I've never been in fear of deportation more so now that I consider my self an intelligent individual..

That's why I hate stories or movies about Dreamers living in constant fear of deportation..

My family was pretty blunt about our status but, like LifeDreamer, I had no idea what it truly meant until High School/College. I always wanted to go to those school trips to Italy and France but couldn't because I was afraid I wouldn't be able to return. lol.

I don't remember coming to the U.S. I was 3, I was not going to process the idea of coming to a country that was not my own. Also, I was asleep apparently.

i honestly don't remember, but when i was brought here i didn't think anything bad about it... i didn't know my parents were breaking the law by bring me here without inspection... i was only 8 year old and my brother 7. I think when i was in junior high it hit me that i was in a bad spot... but buy the end of high school that's when i realized i was gonna get nerf'd on my life... instead of going to a 4 year college i went to community college... and the brakes on my career got pushed when I had to move forward but could not any longer...

I was never worried about getting deported... in fact even to this day most people that know me don't even know my real status... on my wife's side only her parents know... but not her brothers or other family members.

Its the best kept secret... then again I'm sure they wonder why I don't fly to NJ when i go visit my parents... why drive 8 hrs when i can fly for 2 and save money.

I do remember when I was little that kids would make fun of illegals... It would hurt me even it wasn't being address to me.

I always knew I was different from the other kids in the class room.

option 1 for me.

since elementary school.

... you need to add the option of other.

I did not know until my parents told me. They always listened to immigration programs so I got used to the language of immigration law from elementary school, and started essentially counting down the days till we had been here 5 years which according to my understanding my parents would be able to apply for citizenship. I also knew my grandfather was American, and at the time did not know my mother was adopted and the immigration process was not completed.

So, I got into gifted in elementary school and apparently they thought it was a good time to tell me and it shattered my world, or they thought I was starting to ask too many questions and worried that I would let something slip to the wrong people and get us deported.

I mean, back then they could get a driver's license, there was absolutely no way of me knowing we were undocumented. I have known since I was in 5th grade.

Yeah!!! I just figured that out. oh wells too late. Like having status but then not.

I discovered my status when I was a freshmen in High School. At the time when I found out I didn't think it meant much but when I found out my senior year that it really effected my chance to go to Uconn really left me depressed. Even though I got in there was no way I could pay 7k a year without any help from Financial Aid. This really pissed me off because I honestly thought I was going to be there with the rest of my friend but I couldn't. I told them why I couldn't go and they didn't treat me any differently. However, the actions of my father has tainted my future. Each day that went I grew more bitter about it but I learned to move forward. I'm trying my best to get my papers myself because right now I can only depend on myself if I want something done for me.

I've always known, but i didn't realize it was a bad thing until about 2 years ago and this year i realized how hard this could make my life

My parents told me at a young age