Source for news and comments from Eritrea and beyond
| Yemen's Interior Ministry charges Eritrea of torturing 42 fishermen |
| 10/08/2008 |
Sahwa Net- The ministry further explained that the Eritrean authorities seized four Yemeni boats, confiscated their contents and then returned the fishermen on one of the four boats to Hodaida port. According to |
Posted by
Eritrean
at
11:25
Arriving at Love Field last week, I hooked a taxi ride home to Richardson. The driver, of course, wasn't from around here. I asked him where he hailed from, and he pointed to a flag decal on his windshield and told me, in impossibly accented English, that he's from Eritrea. (It's a tiny African nation that broke away from Ethiopia after years of warfare.)
What's striking about this immigrant's story:
He and his family -- wife and three of his five kids -- came over here seven years ago. Trained as an accountant, he has not found that kind of work in the U.S. Now, he said, he works and lives for his children. So does his wife, who is a school cafeteria worker.
The man's daughter graduated from high school in Arlington within a year and a half of the family's arrival. A counselor told her to continue her education at Tarrant College and bone up on her English. She did, and got her associates degree, with distinction, two years later. She went on to get her BS from UT-Arlington, where she is working on her master's. The daughter's plans are to seek a doctorate in bio-engineering at UT-Southwestern Medical Center. Wow.
A son, meantime, is studying economics at UT-A. Two other offspring are back in Eritrea, in the military.
Then comes the youngest, a daughter now in junior high. She wants to be a designer and pop singer. Sounds like this one is fully Americanized.
The driver, his wife and three children who live here are all citizens now.
Overall, it was an inspiring cab ride. These are the type of immigrants who rejuvenate the country.
Posted by Judy Goodhope @ 3:43 PM Tue, May 13, 2008
Thank you Rodger,Wow indeed, this is the sort of example about immigrants people should see. I wish some one can connect them to a chat show host.
Thanks again for a good and inspiring news.
Posted by billh @ 3:48 PM Tue, May 13, 2008
It's unfortunate that Immigration stories tend to neglect the panoply of experiences that are all around us. I once had a Chinese Translator for an Asylum client. I asked him how he got here to the U.S. He told me that he had been a protester at Tiannamin Square. This quiet man was a very brave man.Thanks for that. I've had a lot of great experiences like that in cabs, like the time a man from Ghana and I shared our favorite Psalms with each other.
Posted by Chip @ 3:52 PM Tue, May 13, 2008
Inspiring story about an Immigrant!Let's hope that your readers don't get this confused with Illegal Aliens.
They aren't the same thing.
Posted by Donna Diorio @ 4:26 PM Tue, May 13, 2008
Here is another inspiring thing:
Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed, to me:
I lift my lamp beside the golden door.
It takes a little time to get poverty and defeat mindsets renewed to see opportunity really does exist for them.
Posted by Donna Diorio @ 5:56 PM Tue, May 13, 2008
Why would a Mexican enter from New York, Chip?
The words on the Statue of Liberty is not limited to that port of entry, and you miss the point entirely because of the current politic climate.
When Jews were desperately fleeing Nazi Germany and Europe, there was also a hardhearted sentiment in the public opinion about immigration. We turned ships back to a death sentence and we bear the shame for not finding a compassionate compromise to deal with their situation.
We need to do something on a federal level to deal with the immigration from desperate Latino nations - something between the heartless anti-immigrant stance and the foolish sanctuary city position.
Posted by Chip @ 6:18 PM Tue, May 13, 2008
Donna...perhaps I overreacted...or misinterpreted.
"We need to do something on a federal level to deal with the immigration from desperate Latino nations - something between the heartless anti-immigrant (anti-illegal alien) stance and the foolish sanctuary city position."
With that (and my edit), I agree with you 100%.
Posted by Peterk @ 6:47 PM Tue, May 13, 2008
"We need to do something on a federal level to deal with the immigration from desperate Latino nations - something between the heartless anti-immigrant stance and the foolish sanctuary city position."there is no heartless "anti-immigrant stance" what people are opposed to is people illegally entering this country.
Most if not all the protests are against illegal aliens and in favor of legal immigration. Now if you want federal action they could do so by bringing pressure to bear on Mexico to change their laws concerning foreign investments and ownership.
Why is it okay for Mexico to vigorously enforce their immigration laws, but not for the United States
Posted by Joseph Kony @ 6:51 PM Tue, May 13, 2008
Donna - Mexicans are not fleeing from Nazi-style repression and genocide. If anything, they are fleeing from other Mexicans and from typical Mexican cultural incompetence and corruption (that's being generous of me).
Don't make yourself look dumb by comparing the issues of Mexican illegal aliens coming to the US to steal identities in order to work illegally with Jews fleeing Nazi genocide.
Posted by Bob @ 10:30 PM Tue, May 13, 2008
It is the Mexican government and the elitist oligarchy that is the root cause of this problem. Mexico is rich, when you consider their petroleum reserves and their rich natural resources. The problem is that they prevent the free flow of capital and do not invest in their own country. They are as bad as the Myanmar Military government, because they deliberately starve and deprive their own people. Their corrupt abandonment of their country in order to enrich their Swiss bank accounts has allowed the drug lords and others to fill the gap.I do not condone illegal immigration. My nurses aide is half deaf and has scars on her back from what she endured from the Muslims before she escaped Nigeria and got here. She waited 7 years for citizenship and followed all the rules. It is upsetting to see people who do not appreciate this country and don't bother its rules and standards.
Posted by Tom Sullivan @ 11:14 PM Tue, May 13, 2008
So from what I gather, he and his wife aren't raising gang-bangers.It also sounds like their kids have been inspired to get professional degrees, instead of adding to the teen pregnancy rate while flipping burgers.
What great legal immigrants! Their kids will actually add to the quality of the gene pool, and not the cesspool. If we could only have more like them. Specifically them...
Posted by James @ 9:43 PM Wed, May 14, 2008
There are many immigrants contributing in this country in a positive way, many people overlook at immigrants and consider them all the same. But some of the immigrants are extremely smart and do odd jobs to survive. Mr. Jone's experience is only one in a million, there are several people who sold their dreams to give the opportunities to their children so their children can live of that dream. I know a cab driver, another store owner and a student, all of these individuals are Eritreans. They are very hard working group. Very inspiring indeed. Thanks for sharing that,
Posted by Ruth @ 7:09 AM Thu, May 15, 2008
May God bless those who give a second chance to live to immigrants. Lots of people are suffering in their own countries and I am glad to read a story about immigrants who were lucky enough to escape from the misery in their countries one way or the other and who made a difference. Other immigrants should learn from this story that they don't have to give up but rather to work hard and achieve their dreams. My self as an eritrean I am very touched by this story. May God Bless us all abundantly.
Posted by Rahwa @ 12:08 PM Thu, May 15, 2008
Thanks for posting this story...a quite inspiring one it is. I am a young Eritrean-American living in the Dallas-Fort Worth area. I am actually aware of many immigrants from Eritrea that lead similar lives. It is common for the parents to work as taxi drivers, cafeteria workers, housekeepers, etc to make ends meet while indeed, their children go on to excel in their academics. Eritreans, and other immigrant groups, understand what it means to take advantage of unlimited opportunities in the US. Let us celebrate together in knowing that immigration is a phenomenon in which both immigrants and hosting country benefit greatly! It is a mutualistic gain. Keep in mind that immigration is not just merely those who come illegally...we should challenge our biases and look beyond media hype.
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