
My Life as an Undocumented Immigrant - yarapavan
http://mobile.nytimes.com/2011/06/26/magazine/my-life-as-an-undocumented-immigrant.xml
======
nick-dap
I'm in the same boat. It's been difficult. I cannot express how grateful I am
to Jose Vargas for writing this story.

I was brought here as a kid 13 years ago. I'm 24 now. I also graduated from a
"top" university -- like that matters. I guess my parents weren't smart enough
to get a fake social security card for me back then, I wish they were. I've
also been fighting for the Dream Act for what feels like an eternity. I made a
site and still maintain it, have met with Senators, protested in front of the
White House, several times, other things. I'm loosing hope. I lost hope in
Congress long ago. I lost hope in this President in December, when he failed
to stand by us and the vote. I don't have anything left to wait for.

I'm still "hiding," most of my friends have no idea, but I see less and less
reason to do so every day. I just can't take it anymore. I'm worth
_something_. I'm competent coder, and fuck it all, at least I got that, my
mind, and my family.

Anybody who wants to debate the pros and cons of immigration reform can go to
hell. I'm done reading the hate mail. I'm done debating. I am done listening
to those masked bigots. I know what it is like to live like this having done
nothing wrong. I know that I don't deserve the punishment. If we can't agree
on the fact that I am American and should have basic rights, then we have
nothing to talk about. I'm not asking for anything except recognition.

Btw, people who were brought here on fake documents, as me and Jose, can't get
married for papers. So even if Jose wasn't gay, he wouldn't be able to adjust
based on marriage. It's unfortunate that people who come here on student visas
get married -- assuming they have enough money -- and have a green card in six
months. People like me and Jose, homebred Americans if ya will, are forever
tarnished with this inherited title. Hello, my name is "illegal immigrant."
That's what I feel like every single day. Every morning in the shower, I utter
the words "I am so fucking tired." And I am.

~~~
freshfunk
The story was a moving one and I hope Vargas gets to stay.

With that said, I think illegal immigration creates all kinds of societal
problems and is unfair to legal immigrants.

The problem it creates is that there's enormous stress on those that are
illegal. They live in the shadows and can be taken advantage of. My own
personal experience was driving in LA and being rear-ended by someone who then
fled the scene (most likely illegal). They work for less than minimum wage and
don't cooperate with law enforcement for fear of deportation.

I'm a child of legal immigrants so I'm naturally biased. There is a legal
system and many people every year try to go through that system like my
parents did. I see illegal immigrants as "cutting in line" and I see nothing
fair about it.

But I'm also human. People like Vargas had no choice (sent here as a kid) and
has made a life here. I also sympathize those that flee poverty, crime and
even wanting a brighter future. I also grew up in LA and know that many
illegal immigrants live decent lives.. heck some of my friends are probably
undocumented.

But completely opening the borders is not feasible. Creating systems that
encourage illegal immigration only make the problem worse (and exacerbate the
problems mentioned above).

~~~
ido

        There is a legal system and many people every year try 
        to go through that system like my parents did. I see
        illegal immigrants as "cutting in line" and I see 
        nothing fair about it.
    

The problem is that if you are not a student there is basically no way to
legally immigrate except:

1\. Marrying an american

2\. Indentured servitude via H1-B (hard to get, and if you leave your job/get
fired you have to find a new job in two weeks or leave)

It used to be a lot easier in the past.

~~~
freshfunk
If you think the privilege of an H1B is "indentured servitude", it seems that
immigration is not for you. I don't expect to enter a foreign country and
immediately have all the same worker rights as a citizen of that country.

~~~
ido

        If you think the privilege of an H1B is 
        "indentured servitude", it seems that 
        immigration is not for you.
    

Funny that you say that, I have been an immigrant for almost 7 years now in
the European Union (where it's significantly easier than in the US).

I am educated, healthy, young, have no criminal record and as a programmer I
earn a significantly higher than average salary (and therefor pay
significantly higher than average taxes).

I can say with a straight face that probably any country I choose to live in
will benefit from me being there, so why would you want to keep skilled people
like me out?

~~~
freshfunk
Do they? Just the other day I met an entrepreneur who was not American (either
Canadian or European) who's able to work here on a "extraordinary ability"
visa. He wasn't under an H1B and he's starting his own company.

My original point is that H1B is not a right, it's a privilege. Even though
you're awesome (by your own account), I fail to see why you're owed anything.

~~~
ido
I'm not owed anything, I'm arguing that it's in the country's interest to
attract skilled labor (which many other western countries like Australia,
Canada & New Zealand do with their vastly easier immigration policies).

------
haberman
I have no beef with this guy who was basically forced into breaking the law
before he could have responsibility for his actions.

But overall I just feel that the compassion about immigration is misplaced. I
don't understand why all the pro-immigration people say "look at these poor
undocumented immigrants -- we should make life better for them." I think the
people we should have compassion for are the people who are trying to do
things the right way but running into headaches. _Those_ are the people we
should make things easier for, not the people who are willing to break the law
to get what they want.

I really don't think we want a situation where breaking the law is the best
way to get ahead. If I was waiting to get into the US, I would be pretty upset
to see all the benefits going to the people who cut in line.

I don't understand why it's so controversial among the pro-immigration crowd
to say that people shouldn't come here illegally. Naturally more leniency
should be extended to children.

EDIT: It is stories like this that I feel we should be solving with
immigration reform: <http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=2685261>

~~~
tokenadult
Spouse of first-generation immigrant to the United States here. And back in
the 1990s I used to be an immigration lawyer for a small law firm on the west
coast. Yes, the personal story of Jose Antonio Vargas is rough on him
personally, but a better basis for setting the policy of immigration in the
United States would be the stories of the many people who patiently wait in
line to be admitted to the United States through legal channels. Look at their
stories, and figure out what change of rules and incentives would bring in
what subset of those people to become new Americans.

Every country on the planet appears to have restrictions on immigration. Most
of the time we don't discuss the policies of countries other than the United
States in new submissions to HN, even though HN is an international forum,
because most countries are lousy enough to be entrepreneurs in and lousy
enough to live in that no one on HN wants to immigrate to those countries.
(Instead, most people on HN discuss how to get OUT of dozens of other
countries around the world, and in many cases how to immigrate to the United
States.) When we consider that the actual number of legally authorized
immigrants to the United States each year is one of the highest such numbers
in the world (does ANY country have more legal immigrants each year?), it's
hard to make a case that the United States is missing out on immigrants by its
current policies. Perhaps there are some policy changes to be made on the
margins, and on my own part my policy preference would be to make immigration
to the United States legally easier and much more commonplace, but the way to
make the case for policy reform is to show law-abiding Americans that the
policy changes help their lives. The Americans I know, including many law-
abiding first-generation immigrants, want policy reform that makes like better
in general for all people already in America, as well as for people intending
to immigrate here.

~~~
bad_user
In Europe it's a lot easier to immigrate in general. Especially as an EU
citizen. And if your country is also a member of the Schengen space, you can
just move around using only your ID.

My uncle immigrated in Spain for instance; entered and worked illegally at
first (since a Schengen visa was required of him, and he could find illegal
work more easilly anyway), but forward 15 years later, and now he has full
citizenship and a perfectly legal driver's license. And he has had a legal job
for 10 years already.

For me I have the following difficulty - you can't obtain a visa for work in
the US if you don't have a college degree in the domain you want to work in.
And then it's extremely difficult to be a startup founder that way, since with
that kind of visa you can only work as an employee and have a sponsor. Unless
you can obtain a Visa at the lottery or for extraordinary merits.

This is absolutely insane - since I just got out and bought a college degree
in CS, waited 3 years to get it of course, but I got it, and now I can get an
US Visa.

But then again, why should I? Why wouldn't I go work in Zurich or in London or
in Berlin, or just stay where I am, since obviously the US doesn't want me?

~~~
roel_v
"In Europe it's a lot easier to immigrate in general."

 _Within Europe_ , yes. It's _hard_ to immigrate into Europe coming from
outside.

"Especially as an EU citizen."

 _Only_ as an EU citizen. If you're not, it's _hard_ to travel around Europe -
you need a lot of papers, for each country you go to, and it's not a matter of
filling in a form online and they'll send you the papers; it involves
certified translations, several appointments with embassies and the like, etc.

As to the last sentence, there is a reason people flock to the US - because
it's simply a better climate there to start a business. Good luck in Zurich
(of all places! the Swiss are as close-minded and protective of their
nationality and 'independence' as it comes!) or anywhere else in Europe. Of
course it _can be done_ , many companies are founded and are successful; but
nowhere near the same level as in the US.

(European here)

------
sliverstorm
_She understood. So the choir toured Hawaii instead, with me in tow. (Mrs.
Denny and I spoke a couple of months ago, and she told me she hadn’t wanted to
leave any student behind.)_

Sometimes teachers seem to me like the downright best humanity has to offer.

------
Shenglong
Even if I weren't open to letting educated members of society earn a legal
green card, I think this would've changed my mind.

The inability to obtain US citizenship even though I was attending a
consecutively #1 rated program on the continent, at one of the best schools in
the country really dimmed my own hopes. I remember wanting to apply for an
internship at MIT Lincoln labs for anti-ballistic missile defense, and being
crushed when I realized I couldn't.

~~~
phillmv
Have you tried Canada? We're kind of like the US, but better.

~~~
potatolicious
To expand on the point: skilled immigrants in Canada gain permanent residency
(aka the equivalent of the green card) _immediately_ upon entry. You can work
for anyone, in any field, without restriction. You have health care,
education, and all of the benefits of anyone else except the vote.

And that only takes three years of continuous residency.

Compare with the US: must make the H-1B quota, wait years, apply for Green
card, wait even more years (EB-3 is what, 6-7 years at this point?), _then_
get your green card. The entire time you're an indentured slave to your
employer who can take advantage of you every which way knowing you're locked
in. Barbaric.

~~~
jgh
Sounds faster to go to canada and become a canadian citizen and then enter the
U.S. on TN status :P

~~~
potatolicious
You just discovered why Microsoft Vancouver exists. It's a giant waiting room
for a Canadian passport/TN.

------
trustfundbaby
Properly formatted link [http://www.nytimes.com/2011/06/26/magazine/my-life-
as-an-und...](http://www.nytimes.com/2011/06/26/magazine/my-life-as-an-
undocumented-immigrant.html)

The guy came out as gay but wouldn't let people know he wasn't a citizen ...
that's deep.

~~~
freshfunk
I'd keep in mind that this is the bay area which tends to be pretty gay
friendly.

~~~
yardie
The Bay Area has gay friendly "adults". High school and below is a completely
different can of worms. Being unPC is unfortunately a trait. And I don't mean
to rag on all high school students but the most popular, and vocal, ones can
be downright shits. And they are the ones that set the tone.

------
rajdevar
Many people who commented here have never attended an interview in a US
consulate. It is a 3 step process and it is not an easy one.Some times the
process can last more than 5 hours .it was one of the nervous moments of my
life. To get a visa extension every 2 years I need to provide a letter from my
employer ,tax documents and the last 3 pay stubs. Although, I have every
document my visa could be rejected for no reason or sent for an audit or
RFI(Request for more Info).This process can take around 2-3 months with re-
submissions and RFIs.The Visa extension process became more rigorous in
Obama's administration. The bar has been set really high which is good.some of
my friends did not get an extension and so they had to leave the country .The
petition fee has been hiked to $5000 from $1800 with an extra $1500 for the
attorney's fee.Very few employers are willing to sponsor a work permit ,Hardly
any one is willing sponsor a GC in this economy.Even if they are willing ,the
backlog is almost 6 years.so if I apply now there is a chance I might get a GC
in 2017.The bottom line is, I don't support illegal immigration of any
kind.Immigration should be based on qualification .Although,what kind
qualification is debatable .Thats a different story.If you guys are empathetic
to illegal immigrants go look at the US consulates across the world where
thousands of people stand every day to get an "Approved" stamp on their
passports.

------
joelhaasnoot
Good to hear this issue raised. In The Netherlands where I live this has been
an issue several times: the immigration process is so long (can take 8-10
years) that kids grow up here, and for instance girls would be rejected by
everyone if returned to their native Afghanistan. Several high profile cases
were handled and several have been allowed to stay, or atleast finish high
school / college.

The issue is just getting bigger however: I find it scary that policies have
gone so far that a Dutch citizen has to go live in Belgium or Spain once
married so that their spouse can get a work permit and eventually gain EU
citizenship...

------
lurchpop
He's the main story on Huffpo right now:
[http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/06/22/jose-antonio-
vargas...](http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/06/22/jose-antonio-vargas-
undocumented-immigrant_n_882012.html)

I doubt this will change many people's minds about immigration though. The
"what part of illegal don't you understand" crowd is also the "fuck you, i've
got mine" crowd, and they've already got theirs.

------
adolph
_I convinced myself that if I worked enough, if I achieved enough, I would be
rewarded with citizenship. I felt I could earn it._

Has that ever happened? Reading this gives me a sense of cognitive dissonance
between the US as a place 'where anyone can make it' and the US as a
legalistic bureaucracy.

[Edit to clarify]

~~~
anonymous246
The "anyone can make it" part is true: lots of _LEGAL_ immigrants and their
children have done far better than their peers in their home countries
(facetious example: Obama, but there are many many unknown people like that).

For all it faults, America remains the most meritocratic country in the world.
Discouraging _ILLEGAL_ immigration should not lower America's standing in that
respect.

~~~
lutorm
_America remains the most meritocratic country in the world_

This needs a citation. America-is-great chest pounding aside, the only
reputable reference I remember seeing about this was from the Economist, who
claimed that the correlation between your wealth and that of your parents is
stronger in the US than in many European countries. So it seems that, at least
measured in that way, the US is not a particularly good meritocracy but rather
a class society.

~~~
ellyagg
That would not be strong refuting evidence. Given both genetics and
environment factors (smart successful parents have more to teach, perhaps), I
would expect successful children from successful parents. On the other hand,
in a society where success were arbitrary, I would expect high incoherence
between parent and child success.

I suppose by "anyone can make it" we could literally mean, "irrespective of
your abilities anyone can make it", but I don't think that's the sense most
people mean and that's not the meaning of meritocracy. Talent and/or a hard
working mien are not bestowed randomly at birth.

~~~
lutorm
_Given both genetics and environment factors ... I would expect successful
children from successful parents._

This is an assertion which, conveniently enough for those on the top, is
entirely indistinguishable from a class society. It _could be_ that you are
right and that all the low-wage workers in the U.S. are low-wage because they
are just plain dumb and not at all because they never had any of the
opportunities growing up that children of well-off parents do. Personally, I
don't put nearly so much power in genetic determinism.

~~~
leot
Here's the relevant OECD article
<http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/2/7/45002641.pdf>

tl;dr: there are big differences between countries in the impact of parental
education and earnings on the education and earnings of their kids. Parental
success is a very strong determiner of both in the U.S., but much less so in,
say, Canada and Finland (both of which are among the top four best-scoring
countries on the OECD's Programme for International Student Assessment).

------
patrickgzill
The unmentioned flipside is that other countries love to export people to the
USA in order to get foreign remittances back to the home country up.

The elite , about the top 2-10% in those countries own most of the businesses,
and like things the way they are - no need for political change, as the
remittances take some of the pressure for change off, while they eventually
end up pocketing a large portion of the remittances due to those monies being
spent for products and services (at the businesses they own).

------
zlapper
Single page link: [http://mobile.nytimes.com/2011/06/26/magazine/my-life-as-
an-...](http://mobile.nytimes.com/2011/06/26/magazine/my-life-as-an-
undocumented-immigrant.xml?single=1)

------
mcculley
I'm an employer in Florida. Employers are legally required to verify
eligibility via form I-9. However, I see no real enforcement of this other
than occasional roundups by INS at farms. The reason these roundups occur is
that the farms are not complying with the law.

We need immigration reform. It is unconscionable that people who grew up here
are put in this situation.

I've been thinking the best way to get reform is to force the government to
strictly enforce the I-9 requirement. If every business owner was forced to
adhere to the law and only hire those legally eligible, they would be in favor
of reform as well.

We have a situation where people complain about "illegal immigrants" while
silently profiting from them. If the reality of the situation were exposed, I
think Republicans would suddenly find themselves in agreement with Democrats
about reform.

------
etherael
Simple question, why is it not possible to have unrestricted immigration
between nations period? Please do not give an answer that requires respecting
privilege of native born inhabitants; by doing this you are implicitly stating
that these people are more deserving than someone coming from some other place
by right of birth. You may as well agitate for the divine right of kings and
the reinstatement of the monarchy if you view this as an acceptable path to
tread.

Also, it seems to me that actually making immigration from and to anywhere on
the planet would pretty much _force_ governments to actually compete with each
other, a country in which nobody wants to live is not a country that will
stick around for long if everyone is free to leave at their choosing. Wouldn't
this be a net positive, really?

~~~
phishphood
my prof of econmics used to say: there should be no borders

------
jeffreymcmanus
Terrific story. I can't understand how even the most heartless xenophobe could
possibly support the deportation of a someone who graduated from a US
university. Utterly self-defeating from a social and an economic standpoint.

~~~
ctdonath
Crime has consequences, no matter how nice/good/smart you are. Do the
paperwork, follow the process, come in legally - like my wife did.

~~~
shiven
The point at which law becomes a hinderance and not help is when it gets
changed or broken.

Basically, all you are suggesting is: go find a "citizen" to trap in matrimony
in order to be a legal immigrant?

The matrimony route is especially relevant, since in the US it is the one of
the faster means to obtaining citizenship compared to other methods immigrate
legally.

Here is the reference:

[http://reason.com/assets/db/07cf533ddb1d06350cf1ddb5942ef5ad...](http://reason.com/assets/db/07cf533ddb1d06350cf1ddb5942ef5ad.jpg)

~~~
jeffreymcmanus
One of the fallacies about immigration is that anybody can become a permanent
resident by marrying a citizen. This path to permanent residency was basically
choked off in the 1980s by requiring that the newlywed couple leave the
country for a few years before they're allowed to come back to the US to live,
and even then, it's not certain that the government will let it happen. This
means that if I happen to fall in love and marry someone who happens to not be
a citizen of the US, I'm totally at the mercy of the government.

~~~
lutorm
Huh? "Anybody" (i.e. excluding terrorists, nazis, communists, HIV-positives,
and other comparatively small segments of the population) _can_ become a US
permanent resident by marrying a US citizen _unless_ they are present in the
US illegally. Then the case is more complicated, but in many cases you are
still eligible.

~~~
jeffreymcmanus
Please reread, I said "this path to permanent residency," not "the only path".

You can become a permanent resident by getting married, but the process isn't
straightforward. The draconian requirement that the newly-married couple leave
the US reduces some fraud, I'm sure, but it also causes an enormous amount of
disruption for the 99% of legitimately married couples who have families and
livelihoods within the US.

~~~
anigbrowl
Jeffrey, there is no such requirement. Someone who marries an American cannot
immediately adjust to permanent resident status, but is (typically) granted
conditional residence, which is in practice the same thing except that it can
be easily revoked if it looks like the marriage is a sham. After 2 years the
not-so-newlyweds can (in fact, must) apply to have the conditional status
removed, at which point the foreign spouse becomes a permanent resident. This
is almost always a formality except in cases of marriage fraud or involvement
in criminal activity. There is no requirement to leave the country. In fact,
for people who have been married longer than 2 years or living together a long
time, USCIS will sometimes waive the conditional status (and thus the fee to
have lifted later) because they have _prima facie_ evidence of a _bona fide_
relationship. It's only in cases where they have serious doubts about the
honesty of the applicant that they require the couple to leave the US and wait
several years to reapply.

IANAL but you are definitely misinformed about this, and should not allow it
to interfere with your love life.

------
gnosis
_"My only solution, the lawyer said, was to go back to the Philippines and
accept a 10-year ban before I could apply to return legally."_

I am all for letting Vargas stay, and for liberalizing this country's
immigration policies.

But would going abroad for 10 years really be so bad?

Vargas has proven himself to be an accomplished professional writer and should
have no problem finding work pretty much anywhere he goes.

As a writer and a reporter he would gain valuable international experience by
living and writing abroad. He could see the world. reunite with his mother and
brother, learn something about his country of origin.. and, who knows, he
might find he prefers the Philippines (or some other country) even more than
the US.

He does have a life in America and that's the country he's most used to, so
leaving won't be easy; but he said he hasn't let himself get too close to
anyone here, so that should make it somewhat easier to move somewhere else.

When you're young 10 years might seem like a long time, but it's really not
that long in the scheme of things. If he's in his 20's now, he'll be in his
30's when he gets back -- plenty of time left to rebuild his life here, should
he wish to.

Unfortunately, there is no guarantee he would be allowed back in, and it would
be stressful or even dangerous not to be able to come back in in the meantime,
should he need to for some reason. So it's certainly not an enviable position
to be in; but it's not necessarily the worst thing in the world to go abroad
for 10 years -- many people do so gladly and willingly.

------
anigbrowl
If anyone is interested in investing in a project to _legally_ provide work
opportunities for undocumented immigrants who were brought to the US as
children like this journalist, you can send me a message via gmail and I'll
pass it on to a law professor I know who is working on this issue with various
legal and business leaders in the Bay Area.

Serious inquiries only please, this project is likely to require a significant
commitment of financial and/or political capital.

~~~
ktsmith
Working on this issue how? Trying to find/provide work for these people or
simply trying to change the law. There's a big difference between the two and
knowingly employing an undocumented worker (illegal alien) is a felony.

~~~
jeffreymcmanus
It's illegal, but it's not a felony. Huge difference. Hiring undocumented
workers, when detected (which rarely happens, particularly for small
businesses), is usually punished by a civil penalty (i.e., a cash fine).

~~~
hugh4life
Doing what the anigbrowl is referring to is certainly a felony...

------
WettowelReactor
The immigration laws in the US are completely and utterly broken. My parents
immigrated here (legally) a few decades ago and eventually decide to become
citizens through naturalization. As I was still a kid at the time I acquired
citizenship by derivation. I have held and maintained a US passport since that
date. However later in life when I enlisted in the U.S. Army my passport was
not considered proof of citizenship (although Executive order 610 states it
should be). Instead I was asked to apply for a Certificate of Citizenship as
proof. I started the process only to find out it would take 4 years (due to
backlog) before I should expect the certificate to be issues. If it takes 4
years for an existing citizen with a passport to get through the process what
hope do actual immigrants have?

------
exit
RandyHelzerman, everything you contribute to this site is quietly being made
"dead". no one can see what you're saying unless they have the "show dead"
feature enabled. in any case no one can vote on your contributions any more.

RandyHelzerman 7 hours ago | link [dead]

What really has to sink in is that there are at least 11 million people in
this guy's situation. I can't think of a single example in history of 11
million people being forcibly removed from a country, and any analogous
parallels are quite ominous. Fact:(1) they are staying here Fact:(2) there are
real, tangible costs to them, you, and society as a whole for them to remain
undocumented. Conclusion: There should be a path to citizenship for them.

~~~
wnight
Thank you for pointing this out.

I find the secret ban system to be odious.

------
VladRussian
quick google on statute of limitations:

<http://codes.ohio.gov/orc/2901.13>

6 or 20 years for most crimes, except murders.

Immigration violations seems to not have the statute of limitations, just like
the most heinous crimes.

~~~
brown9-2
Wouldn't that be because immigration violations are ongoing events?

~~~
lutorm
Well, even if you leave, if you've been present illegally in the US for more
than a year, you're subject to the lifetime bar. So, no, they really don't
have a statute of limitations.

~~~
anigbrowl
That's inaccurate. Illegal presence greater than 6 months and less than a year
subjects a departing alien to a 3 year bar on re-entry absent a waiver.
Illegal presence for longer than a year ups that to a 10 year bar. There are
also lifetime bars on re-entry but they are reserved for much narrower and
more egregious violations, like election fraud, aiding terrorism and so on.

~~~
lutorm
You are correct, my recollection was faulty. However, the lifetime bar is not
that narrow. It applies if you are present illegally for more than a year (or
are ordered deported regardless of length of stay) and then _leave and
(attempt to) re-enter illegally again_. So anyone long-term present in the
country illegally who has ever left and come back would in principle be
subject to this. That is at least my impression, but I'm only an immigrant,
not an immigration lawyer...

------
Aloisius
How difficult is it really to have a green card wedding? The only knowledge I
have of it is from TV, but surely in a country where a good chunk of the
population doesn't take marriage seriously, finding someone to marry you for
citizenship wouldn't be difficult.

You could even build a startup out of it... USMailOrderSpouses.com.

~~~
sdrinf
Might wanna have a look at the list of questions asked during a marriage fraud
interview here:

[http://www.immihelp.com/greencard/familybasedimmigration/mar...](http://www.immihelp.com/greencard/familybasedimmigration/marriage-
based-greencard-fraud-interview.html)

~~~
Aloisius
Hmm. Well I suppose you'd have to live together in order to pass that kind of
exam, but you should be able to answer most of those questions after a few
weeks. Odd though that a lot of those questions assume quite a bit of time has
gone by.

------
sandipagr
It's really courageous of him to come ahead with his story. I really hope he
gets to stay in the country.

~~~
ktsmith
I think it is great that he wrote about his story. The way the law is written
he'll have to leave the country unless someone pulls some major strings for
him. I'm a little more surprised about everything that is included in the
article however. Specifically the following bit:

 _By this time, Peter, who still works at The Post, had become part of
management as the paper's director of newsroom training and professional
development. One afternoon in late October, we walked a couple of blocks to
Lafayette Square, across from the White House. Over some 20 minutes, sitting
on a bench, I told him everything: the Social Security card, the driver's
license, Pat and Rich, my family._

This indicates that Peter Perl was a manager at the Post and knowingly
continued to employee an undocumented worker opening the Post and himself to
liability including possible criminal penalties.

~~~
jeffreymcmanus
You assume that the employer is responsible for instantly firing any employee
who is found to be undocumented. This isn't actually the case. When this
happens, a legal process is set in motion -- even foreigners are permitted due
process under US law.

I'd also be willing to bet that his employer will continue to employ the
writer even if he's deported to the Philippines, and that may have been one of
the things that informed his decision to write this piece.

~~~
ktsmith
The employee would have three days to bring in documents showing work
eligibility. If after three days the employee couldn't do so the employer
would no longer be able to offer any benefits (employment, health insurance
etc). You can call USCIS if you want confirmation on that process.

------
rdl
In this case, the minimum patch to fix his situation (and that of those very
similar to him) is probably to remove the 10 year ban requirement. Let him
leave, reapply immediately as an O-1, etc., without prejudice, based on having
come here as a minor, and/or having graduated from a US university.

While I'd like to see comprehensive immigration reform, I am always afraid of
the perfect being the enemy of the good. There should be immediate incremental
fixes to solve as many things as possible, vs. blocking everything on one
perfect fix (which probably doesn't exist).

I think it's fairly widely accepted that the cost/benefit ratio of bringing in
educated entrepreneurs freely is far better than unrestricted immigration.
There may be non-economic reasons to support family reunification, asylum, or
diversity, but the economic argument for letting entrepreneurs relocate to the
US freely is slam-dunk; the argument for highly skilled workers being fast
tracked to green cards and citizenship is comparatively strong too.

~~~
yardie
Can't he already do this?

I've heard of quite a few speakers and musicians that were technically banned,
Nelson Mandela comes to mind, but had so much overwhelming support from
businesses and congress that ICE had no option but to overturn it. He's got a
Pulitzer and a few bestselling books, I'm sure he can spin that into a proper
visa.

~~~
rdl
Yeah, I think you can always get a waiver.

------
exit
wunderfool, everything you contribute to this site is being quietly made
"dead".

here's your perfectly insightful and worthwhile comment which no one else can
see unless they enable "show dead":

wunderfool 7 hours ago | link [dead]

legal immigrant (now citizen) here immigration is a pain in the ass. we stood
in line at the INS at 3am (back before they instituted appointments), and i'm
not just talking tech people...i mean everyone, from all over the world and
all walks of life. it sucked but we all did it. we stood in lines and paid the
fees and waited and followed the rules. if you don't, adios. i have zero, ZERO
pity for everyone who has tried to come across as a charity case when they
really just wanted to jump the line or not deal at all. to even get back in
line i would assess a $10k fine on all of you, regardless of income or
background. \-----

------
gopi
I am a legal immigrant and waited years to get my Greencard. The situation is
so worse now for a new immigrant (h1b) from india (or china) it takes 7-10
years to get greencard and 5 more years to get citizenship.

The immigration system needs reform. We need a point based system like Canada
and work permit for low skill farm jobs like that in the middle
east/singapore. But this does not mean giving general amnesty to llegals. That
will just encourage more to cross the border illegally.

I agree with the republicans - We need a strong border and a legal immigration
reform.

------
maxwin
Like His facebook page. Show some support.

<http://www.facebook.com/JoseAJournalist?sk=wall>

------
gdilla
Go wait in line, Vargas. You ain't special. You think because we should feel
sorry for you, that you deserve a greencard or legalization or whatever? Do
you know the shit LEGAL immigrants have to go through to get and stay here?
What makes you so damn special to skip the fucking line? I waited 7 fucking
years for my greencard - all the while working and paying more taxes than you
and any goddamn teabagger alive. I was stuck in h1B hell as a modern day
indentured servant. I actually gave up and decided to go back home. I decided
that America wasn't a place where hardworkers who followed the rules could
make it. I told myself that as soon as I finished grad school, which I was
putting myself through part time, I was out of here. Fuck this. Then it
happened. Some fucked up debacle in 2007 at immigration where the waiting
lists all became "current" for a month. I yelled at the company lawyer to get
my shit done and ran around getting all my docs. 90 days later, I had a
greencard. Things changed. I could do shit. I applied to techstars in Boulder
in 2008 with my idea for syncing browsing sessions between desktop and mobile
(I got rejected - David Cohen told me it was too easy to knock off and too
hard to make money. He was right. I couldn't execute anyway, and then
instapaper showed up like a month later anyway).

You think I have sympathy for you, Vargas? I married my wife, who was on H1B
while I was on Greencard. She got laid off. Were we permitted to live together
as a family in the USA? Nope. Even though she'd been here close to 10 years
herself - doing grad school and then working. Yes, legally, and paying taxes
all the long. You would think America would try to make it easy for english
speaking, educated (in the US, no less), LEGAL immigrants who waited in line.
Nope. Our son was even born in America. Proof to all the stupid republicans
and teabaggers that there's no such thing as "anchor babies", not like we gave
a fuck about that. Kids can't sponsor their parents till 21 years of age. So
my wife and son had to go to Canada, to live with my parents, while I sorted
shit out. I'm sponsoring her - but the waiting list is fucking what, 4 years
long?!! Ya, the short wait times for sponsoring a spouse only applied to
citizens. I have to wait till sept 2012 before I can apply for that. Jesus
christ. America rocks. So now my wife visits on a vistor visa, with our
American son, good for only 3 months at a time. Each time she's interrogated
for an hour when she crosses the border because of this fucked up situation
(US immigration are supposed to keep out visitors who they think are trying to
live in america). She's been warned to not push it and not to come back too
often. This is fucked up. I'm ready to fucking give up if it wasn't for all
the shit we've been through to get here. I've always got my eye on potential
opportunities back in Canada or abroad. I've got a good gig here that I
actually like, but fuck, is it worth all the hurdles and bool shit of being
separated from family and crossing borders every other weekend? Just to be
LEGAL? My wife could have stayed here illegally. But we're not like that. We
followed the fucking law and basically got fucked. So screw off vargas. No
tears for you.

~~~
geezer
So you want Vargas to suffer due to unjust and unfair laws because you have
been suffering from the same unjust laws. I guess misery loves company!

~~~
gdilla
Did I say I wanted him to suffer? No. I told him he has to wait his turn and
that he ain't special. I think he should get a greencard. But after my wife
does. And after everyone who's waited years legally for one - especially if
they're paying taxes like us.

------
Torn
Easier to read / navigate print view:
[http://www.nytimes.com/2011/06/26/magazine/my-life-as-an-
und...](http://www.nytimes.com/2011/06/26/magazine/my-life-as-an-undocumented-
immigrant.html?_r=1&pagewanted=print)

------
davidw
Much as this is a fascinating story about a hot political subject... well,
it's about a hot political subject. This is not the place for politics.

------
voxmatt
This is a prime illustration of how absurd our immigration policy has begun.
To steal Kottke's sentiment: We need people like this on our team!

------
emiranda
Video about the story: <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TJH1IKqF8PA>

------
sigzero
He is not "undocumented", he is "illegal". Stop using the PC term.

~~~
nawa
people aren't illegal. They exist.

------
NY_USA_Hacker
Organized left-wing drum beat for more in immigration. So, here we have a tear
jerking story in the NYT. A few days ago we had Mayor Bloomberg touting
immigration in DC. Then we had Fred Wilson giving support on his blog.
Yesterday we had a finance guy in DC supporting immigration.

------
lupatus
It's really courageous of him to come ahead with his story. I really hope he
gets shipped back to the Philippines.

Go ahead and call me a xenophobe now. Whatev.

I think it is in poor form for the NYT to print this manipulative article that
tries to make me feel bad for the gay, minority, do-gooder author and excuse
his years of criminally fraudulent behavior.

Sure, call me heartless. But, this guy is cheating you, and not in the "Oh
cool hack" kind of way. He is cheating you in a Bernie-Madoff-conned-me-out-
of-my-money-for-ponzi-investments-so-that-he-could-live-a-cushy-life kind of
way.

~~~
lupatus
He has knowingly used fraud for years to get work, educational, and lifesytle
opportunities that would have otherwise gone to people legally allowed to
work, study, and reside here. Paying taxes or writing keen articles does not
excuse this fact.

Hence, he is cheating[1].

[1] Wikipedia defines cheating as, "... the breaking of rules to gain
advantage in a competitive situation." That seems to be a accurate summary of
the author's activities. See <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cheating>.

~~~
fastfinner
Exactly. Paying taxes does not make the situation fair. All his life he has
"filled a spot" of an opportunity that would have otherwise been available to
someone else. His achievements ("the end") do not justify the means.

~~~
tfs
fastfinner- you are assuming there is someone else who is totally
interchangeable with him? Things he did does not sound fungible to me.

