Teresa is a migrant from Mexico who came to KBI after threats from organized crime made it impossible for her to work and support her children. In this interview, she shares part of her story and describes what Las Posadas means to her as a mother in migration.
“My name is Teresa. I come from the state of Guerrero. We had to look for a better life. It became really hard for me as a single mother. I need to work, but there were so many different mafias who would come to where I was working and interrupt me. As a mother, it became really hard.
We [migrants] don’t leave our homes just for fun. We leave because we have to, due to problems like violent threats. We leave our homes to come to a strange land, one where I’ve found many things. I’ve found violence, discrimination, assault, and not just me. I’ve spoken with many people, and many trustworthy people have told me ‘you need to look out for yourself and protect yourself. Watch out because this person was assaulted. Another person and her children were put in danger.’
It’s also really tough to find a job because they expect you to have a lot of papers. When you go out of your house, you don’t bring all of those papers. All you can do is leave the house with the hope that your children will be okay. That’s the most important thing in the world: your children.
We do this posada every year and it’s very beautiful. As a mom, I’m migrating, and it makes me identify a lot with Mary. I have to migrate, I’m not stable. I am suffering with my children. That makes me feel a lot like Mary.
When we dress up during the posada, we do it to cover our identity because we’re persecuted. Everything we’re doing isn’t just for the media or to get attention, we’re doing it because we all identify with the Holy Family. We all know what it’s like to migrate with our families. As families, we leave from one land to the next. We all do it for our kids.
What gives me hope is God. I have put my life, my family’s life, in God’s hands. The fact that we made it this far gives me hope. The fact that I came here on my own two feet and that I’m here, okay, with my children, gives me hope.
[If I could speak with President Biden] I would tell him a lot of things, but most of all I would remind him that he had a mother. I would tell him that he looks back fondly on his mother because she did everything for him. I would tell him that as I father, I know he wants what’s best for his own children.We had material things back home, but it didn’t matter to us to leave them behind, because our children are more important. I would ask Biden to give me the chance to establish myself and create a life for them. I would ask for the opportunity to take away the fear that hangs over them. I would ask for the chance to give them a dignified, stable life. More than anything, I want a place where my children don’t feel afraid. I’ve searched for a home like that in many places, including here in Nogales, and unfortunately we haven’t found any support. The justice system is mixed up with the mafias, too.
We want the opportunity to provide the best for our children. If we are migrating, we do it like the Holy Family.”
Shortly after we spoke with her, Teresa was able to cross into the United States to begin the asylum process. She is happy to say her children are safe, and aren’t afraid anymore.
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