Statue of Liberty seen from the Circle Line ferry, Manhattan, New York

I would be willing to guess that most people born in the United States have at least one immigrant in their family. Immigrants are people who settle in a country other than the one in which they were born. This can be said of most of our ancestors. Unless you identify as “Native American,” a member of an indigenous tribe here in the United States, you are likely the descendant of immigrants. Immigration is a permanent and important part of our shared history in the United States. Despite this shared history, every day in my newsfeed, I witness a heated debate about immigration. 

One important piece of that debate is terminology. I see people use the terms, “immigrant,” “documented immigrant,” “undocumented immigrant,” and “refugee” interchangeably. I also see some use other terms, more derogatory terms that seek to dehumanize others, which only work to divide us. Since this post focuses on creating a shared understanding, I will not share those here. 

When we use “immigrant,” “documented immigrant,” “undocumented immigrant,” and “refugee” interchangeably, we are confusing the conversation. It is essential when discussing people coming to our nation seeking refuge that we use the appropriate terminology, otherwise, we have the tendency to group all people and “other” anyone not born in the United States. This leads to fear and isolation, neither of which connects our communities or makes them stronger. 

Here are the basic definitions of the three terms:

Immigrant: A person who comes to live permanently in a foreign country.

Documented Immigrant: A person who comes to live in a foreign country, either permanently or temporarily, having the appropriate legal documentation. 

Undocumented Immigrant: A person who comes to live in a foreign country, either permanently or temporarily, not having the appropriate legal documentation.

Refugee: A person who has been forced to leave their country in order to escape war, persecution, or natural disaster and has been granted legal refuge in a foreign country.  

More importantly, behind each of these terms, is a person – a man, woman or child – with a story. As the teacher at the Newcomer Center at Joel E. Ferris High School in Spokane, Washington, I have the honor of being the first teacher for some of the immigrant and refugee children in our country. In the United States, public schools are responsible for educating all students and cannot check a student’s immigration status or otherwise discriminate on the basis of a students national origin. As a public school teacher, I get to know these students and their families as people, hear their stories and understand their cultures. It’s incredible. These stories are what is missing from the debate I read about each and every day. Here are just a few: 

Sara is a refugee. She came to the United States from Kenya. She was originally from Sudan, but war and persecution in her home country forced her family to flee their nation in order to find hope and life in a foreign country. During their journey to refuge, they walked on foot for hundreds of miles and spent several months hiding in caves. When they finally arrived at the refugee camp in Kenya, they struggled to provide enough food for the family and lacked sufficient water. Due to this upheaval, Sara had severely interrupted formal education. They applied for refuge as a family. After seven years of waiting, they were granted legal entrance into the United States. Sara came as an eighth grader. Despite her limited formal education prior to coming to the U.S., Sara graduated from high school only five years after coming to our country. She entered University and is studying to be a nurse. She applied for and took the exam to become a U.S. citizen as a freshman in college. She is now a U.S. citizen and productive member of our community. 

Jesus was a documented immigrant who became undocumented. Jesus came to the U.S. with his mother, brother, and sister. His mother was working in a law firm in Mexico, but after she discovered corruption in her office, she feared for her family’s safety and decided to move to the U.S. She applied for and was granted a six-month work visa. After moving to the U.S., she had some difficulty finding work that matched her skills, but found a job on an orchard. She attempted to extend her work visa, but was denied. Back in Mexico, her former boss had been arrested, and feared returning home until she knew it was safe for her children. She overstayed her visa, and the family became undocumented. Jesus, the oldest son, wants to attend university to work with computers. He is an excellent student, but is not sure there is a path for him to attend college. He hopes one day he can a U.S. citizen. 

Linda was an undocumented immigrant from El Salvador who became documented. She came to the United States because of extreme violence due to civil war in her nation. Her life and the lives of her family members were in danger, and they had to flee their home. They fled on foot, crossed rivers, road on busses and trains to get to the border. They crossed the border at the southern end of our nation and took refuge with a church, who fed their family, clothed them, and gave them a safe place to stay as they attempted to navigate the immigration process. After countless more Salvadorians entered our nation due to the civil war, the U.S. finally granted them temporary protected status, opening a way to citizenship. After a lengthy and difficult process, Linda received her Green Card, became a permanent resident, and after fifteen years became a U.S. citizen. She works as a Paraeducator, helping to instruct students who are going through similar traumatic experiences.

It is important as we address immigration in our nation that we understand the difference between documented and undocumented immigrants, and refugees. It also is important that we be compassionate and empathetic to the circumstances under which most people leave their home countries in search of refuge in the United States. While refugees are granted entry to the U.S. due to violence and persecution in their home countries, it is clear that many documented and undocumented immigrants also seek entry into the U.S. for equally dire reasons that are not yet recognized for refugee status. No one wants to leave their home. It is not easy and takes a toll on themselves and their families. But what would you do if your children’s lives were in danger? Moreover, what I have come to learn the most as the Newcomer Center teacher is that immigrants and refugees who come to this nation are dedicated, focused, and determined to give back to this country. They are committed to becoming productive and successful members of our communities and they succeed in doing so. 

*Names and minor details such as locations in each story were changed to ensure identify protection.