CHANGER.
CHANGER. >> I ALSO WANT TO SHARE WHO I
THINK IS A GAME CHANGER.
HE'S KNOWN AS THE MOST FAMOUS
UNDOCUMENTED IMMIGRANT AND
RECENTLY SPENT TIME IN SEATTLE
THAT'S JOSE VARGAS A PULITZER
PRIZE-WINNING JOURNALIST AND NO
AND AUTHOR OF THE NEW BOOK DEAR
AMERICA.
AMERICA.
AMERICA. HE WANTS PEOPLE TO KNOW WHAT
IT'S LIKE LIVING IN THE U.S.
WITHOUT CONSENT, WHICH IS A
CHALLENGE THAT PLAGUES MANY
NEIGHBORS RIGHT HERE AT HOME.>>
I AM JOSI ANTONIO VARGAS THE
AUTHOR OF DEAR AMERICA.
I WROTE THE BOOK TO HUMANIZE
AND PERSONALIZE WHAT IT MEANS
TO BE IN THIS COUNTRY
ILLEGALLY.
ILLEGALLY. I WAS LIVING A LIE.
CAN WE TALK ABOUT US?
PEOPLE LIKE ME?
LIKE WE ARE HUMAN BEINGS.
I'M IN UNDOCUMENTED IMMIGRANT I
WAS BORN IN THE PHILIPPINES MY
MOTHER SENT ME HERE WHEN I WAS
12.
12.
12. I
12. I THOUGHT IT WAS FINE AND WHEN
I WAS 16 I WENT TO GET A
DRIVERS PERMIT I FOUND OUT THAT
THE GREEN CARD I HAD TO GET MY
ID WAS FAKE.
THIS WAS 1997.
I COULDN'T GOOGLE ANYTHING.
I THOUGHT I WAS THE ONLY NON-
MEXICAN ILLEGAL ALIEN IN
AMERICA.>> JOSI ANTONIO VARGAS.
>> I BECAME A JOURNALIST AND I
DID THAT TO BE ON A PIECE OF
PAPER I FIGURED IF I COULDN'T
BE HERE I DON'T HAVE TO WRITE
PAPERS MY NAME WILL BE ON
PAPER.
PAPER.
PAPER. I
PAPER. I DID THAT UNTIL I WAS 30 AND
THEN I GOT TIRED OF LYING TO
EVERYBODY INCLUDING MY
EMPLOYERS AT THE WASHINGTON
POST AND MY FRIENDS.
I DIDN'T REALIZE HIDING FROM
THE GOVERNMENT ALL THOSE YEARS
MADE ME HIDE FROM PEOPLE THAT I
LOVED AND EVEN FROM MYSELF.
TO ME, THIS ISSUE AS FAR AS I
KNOW IS THE MOST MISUNDERSTOOD
ISSUE IN AMERICA.
PEOPLE HAVE NO IDEA THAT PEOPLE
LIKE ME CAN'T JUST MAKE THEIR
SELVES LEGAL THERE IS NO
PROCESS FOR US TO FOLLOW.
PART OF THE PROBLEM IS WE HAVE
STEREOTYPED LATINOS WHEN THE
REALITY IS THE FASTEST GROWING
UNDOCUMENTED POPULATION ARE
ASIAN, KOREANS, CHINESE,
FILIPINOS AND FOR THE MOST PART
WE ARE INVISIBLE FROM THE
CONVERSATION.
CONVERSATION. I LIVED MY LIFE BEING AFRAID OF
THIS GOVERNMENT.
THIS GOVERNMENT. THEY DETAINED ME AND ARRESTED
ME, THEY'VE DONE THAT ALREADY.
THE ONLY FEAR I HAVE IS NOT
LIVING LIFE AS FULLY AND
HONESTLY AS I CAN.
I THINK THE BIGGEST TAKE AWAY
IS THAT PEOPLE LIKE ME, PEOPLE
WHO ARE ILLEGAL HERE WITHOUT
PROPER DOCUMENTS, WE ARE THE
SAME AS YOU ARE AND WE WANT THE
SAME THING.
SAME THING. IMMIGRATION HAS ALWAYS BEEN
ABOUT FAMILY AND WHAT FAMILIES
DO FOR EACH OTHER.
I HOPE THE TAKE AWAY IS THAT
YOU ASK YOURSELF, HOW DID YOU
GET HERE, WHO PAID, WHAT WAS
THE COST?
THE COST?
THE COST? THAT'S WHAT THE BOOK ANSWERS.>>
I LOVE THAT HOW DID YOU GET
HERE.
HERE.
HERE. YOU
HERE. YOU PAID THE COST.
>> JOSI ANTONIO VARGAS SAID HE
KNOWS THERE IS SHAMAN BEING AND
DOCUMENTED BUT HE BELIEVES
PEOPLE NEED TO TALK ABOUT IT IN
ORDER TO MAKE CHANGES THAT ARE
NECESSARY AND HE'S COLLECTED
STORIES ANONYMOUSLY THROUGH A
NONPROFIT CALLED DEFINE
AMERICAN WHICH YOU CAN FIND OUT
MORE ABOUT BY TEXTING AMERICAN
TO 206-448-4545 . THE VIDEO WE
SAW IN THE INTERVIEW THAT WE
PLACED OVER HIM WAS FROM HIS
DOCUMENTARY CALLED DOCUMENTED
WHICH WAS FASCINATING.>> HIS
BOOK IS CALLED DEAR AMERICA.
IT'S JUST RIVETING.
WE'VE HAD PEOPLE TELL US WHO
ARE UNDER DEMENTED, THEY WANT
TO BE LEGAL.
THERE IS NO PROCESS.
I'VE NOT KNOWN WHAT THAT'S LIKE
THAT TO CURE HIM SAY, PLEASE
GIVE ME A STRAIGHTFORWARD
PROCESS.
PROCESS.
PROCESS. YEAH, IT'S GOOD TO HEAR ANOTHER
PERSPECTIVE DIFFERENT THAN YOUR
OWN.
OWN.
OWN. >>
OWN. >> AND BECAUSE HE CAME FROM THE
PHILIPPINES, HE'S BRINGING UP
ANOTHER ISSUE.
ANOTHER ISSUE. WE ARE TALKING ABOUT BUILDING A
WALL BUT THERE IS NO WALL
BETWEEN THE PHILIPPINES AND THE
UNITED STATES.
UNITED STATES. HE SAYS, WHO IS AFFECTED BY
IMMIGRATION, UNDOCUMENTED FOLKS
AND EVEN IN SEATTLE THE FASTEST
GROWING UNDOCUMENTED GROUP ARE
ASIAN.>> WAS IT LAST WEEK WE
TALKED ABOUT FELIX?
AND NO WE ARE TALKING ABOUT
THIS.
THIS.
THIS. THERE ARE PROCESSES AND WE
DON'T KNOW.
DON'T KNOW. >> IT'S NOT A ONE-SIZE-FITS-ALL
SOLUTION.