As a Latino daughter of immigrants, this is why I am voting

I remember when I first learned that Donald Trump had been elected the 45th President of the United States. I was 17 years old and it was November 9, 2016. I had just returned from my first trip to Europe. As we landed at John F. Kennedy International Airport, the flight attendant informed us that Trump was officially the president-elect. The tears came quickly. The drive back home to New Jersey with my family, unable to travel abroad and looking to see the world through me, should have been full of interesting vacation stories. Instead, it turned into a conversation about the new fear.

As the daughter of two immigrants, who is the first from each side of her family to be born in the US; I never ignored the privileges that a blue passport pocket engraved with the words “United States of America” ​​afforded me. Raised among mostly Latino and Middle Eastern immigrants in a diverse working-class community in Paterson, NJ, I became familiar early on with the challenges that came with migration—especially for those who arrived in the US without documents.

Trump has relied on fear-mongering dehumanizing tactics from the start

The terror I felt that day in 2016 dates back to that day Trump announced his presidency on June 16, 2015, at his namesake tower in New York.

“The US has become a dumping ground for everybody’s problems,” Trump said, striking fear into the American people by demonizing immigrants from Latin America and the Middle East. “When Mexico sends its people, they don’t send their best. They don’t send you. They don’t send you . They send people who have problems with us. They bring crimes. And some are good people.” Unfortunately, it didn’t end there, because he continued: “It’s coming from more than just Mexico. It’s coming from all over South America and Latin America, and it’s probably — probably — the Middle East.”

The words Trump chose to use during this speech didn’t feel like he was addressing immigration as a societal problem in America, but rather smack of xenophobia. As the daughter of two Colombian immigrants, raised by and around other first- and second-generation Latinos, I never thought of the people who raised me or my friends as a “burden.” I admired the stories of my parents and the community they chose, and the ones my friends shared about their own families.

Those migrating to the US without documents are aware of the basic resources they will lack and the challenges they will face. From housing insecurity and lack of access to affordable healthcare to language barriers and other cultural phenomena that expose them to xenophobia. Far from the burden Trump claims millions of loved ones are, immigrants are some of the most independent and powerful people in our communities. As a man who comes from generational wealth and has been handed the resources to create more, referring to the US as a dumping ground for immigrant issues highlights ignorance rooted in privilege.

Since Trump’s presidential speech announcing his 2016 campaign, his strategy has remained: to instill fear in Americans at the expense of its immigrants. The reality is that undocumented immigrants do not have the same access to resources as Americans. Immigrants don’t dump their problems on a nation that barely recognizes them. How can someone who can’t even qualify for the same jobs as an American citizen take a job from that citizen? Why would anyone avoid being reprimanded by the law at the cost of their existence and committing crimes? Trump’s privilege is proof that he is too distant to properly address or acknowledge a community of millions of immigrants who, for the most part, are simply trying to survive.

The harms of criminalizing immigration

In 2018, Trump’s persistence in criminalizing undocumented immigrants led to the adoption of a dangerous “zero tolerance” policy that left over 2,000 children were separated from their parents. The images of children in cages were horrific, but so was the fact that two years later, in 2020, there were reports of 545 migrant children who have not yet been reunited with their parents. This policy of separating families at the US-Mexico border has criminalized even the youngest of immigrants, and Latino families have been at the forefront of this monstrosity.

During this time, the administration not only forcibly separated children from their families at the border, but the children of US-born immigrants were also affected. In the first year of his presidency, immigration arrests increased 41 percent from 2016. In fiscal year 2017, ICE data saw a 171% increase in non-criminal arrests. According to data from the Pew Research Center as of 2022, approximately 4.4 million US-born children under the age of 18 live with an undocumented parent and represent approximately 84% of all minor children living with an undocumented immigrant parent.

Another term for Trump is four more years in which migrant families will be forced to fear or be separated. “On day one, I will launch the largest deportation program in American history,” he said at a rally in Madison Square Garden. Adding, “I will save every town and city that has been invaded and conquered, and we will put these vicious, bloodthirsty criminals in prison, and we will kick the hell out of them from our country. as soon as possible.”

Trump is racist and xenophobic, and his nationalist agenda is an easy disguise to pull off while his dehumanizing rhetoric continues to empower white supremacy. I saw this with one of his allies, comedian Tony Hinchcliffe, who spoke at his rally at MSG and referred to Puerto Rico as a “floating garbage island.” These are the kinds of comments that those given a platform by the former president feel comfortable making in an environment run by him.

Harris’ Endeavors: From Vice President to Candidate

In 2021, as vice president, Harris led the Biden administration’s root cause strategy, implementing efforts to address root causes of migration from Central America. During this time, Harris did tangible efforts that focused on Latino communities working alongside Partnership for Central America on a Call to action which challenged US corporations to invest and create economic opportunities in El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras. In March 2024, this partnership was reported to have generated more than 5.2 billion in private sector commitments for North Central America.
As Vice President, Harris had a positive impact on Latino communities through his diplomatic efforts. Now, as a presidential candidate, she has expressed the need for Congress to pass legislation that would create a viable path to citizenship as part of comprehensive immigration reform.

Harris’ policy agenda prioritizes a path to citizenship for Dreamers and Temporary Protected Status. She recognizes the contributions of U.S. immigrants and addresses DACA recipients as motivation during a Las Vegas town hall hosted by Univision in early October. “One of the biggest problems with the failure to have a comprehensive plan for immigration is that we have not given them the path to earn their right to citizenship,” she said.

Beyond being the daughter of two immigrants, I was a classmate and friend of DACA beneficiaries. I studied and worked alongside DREAMers who worked twice as hard and had less than half the opportunities that I do as an American. Not because I’m brighter, harder working, or more deserving, but because of my blatant privilege. As an American, any candidate who does not recognize or have a plan for immigrants does not reflect my values.

The power of Gen Z’s vote

According to data from CIRCLE, the Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement, I am one of nearly 41 million Gen Z members eligible to vote in 2024, representing one of the 8.8 million Gen Z members of Latino heritage. My hopes for Gen Z’s turnout at the polls are high this election.

Beyond exercising my right as an American to vote for my undocumented loved ones who can’t and against Trump’s anti-immigrant, anti-women agenda, I’m voting for Harris to preserve my bodily autonomy. Harris promised to restore the freedom taken from American women under the Trump administration through the abortion bans that her handpicked Supreme Court justices took away from us during her closing speech in DC.

As a Gen Z woman who is excited to one day bond with her friend’s kids and helps raise a 16-year-old sister, I trust that Gen Z will vote for the fundamental freedom to make decisions about our own body. Under the Trump administration, one in three women in America currently lives in a state where Trump bans abortion. Many without exception, even for rape and incest.

I believe that my generation, which will raise a future generation of Americans, deserves to do so on its own terms, and so does Harris. The Democratic nominee has expressed her desire to proudly sign the congressional bill to restore reproductive freedom nationwide if she is elected president.

While my belief system largely aligns with the Democratic agenda, especially when it comes to immigration and reproductive rights, I am not affiliated with any political party and do not intend to ever be. My decision to vote for Harris in this election is not based on political party or gender. After all, the United States was founded on colonization and continues to promote it overseas by funding Israel’s occupation of Palestine. Just like the US provided Israel with over $130 billion in bilateral aidthis war, similar to mass deportation, has historically been supported by both sides.

From his 2015 presidential announcement speech, when the hateful rhetoric began, to the September presidential debate, during which he falsely accused Haitian immigrants of eating Americans’ pets and then he started calling himself Israel’s “Protector” less than ten days later, when he addressed the Israeli-American Council, Trump’s fear-mongering tactics and anti-immigration rhetoric make him the wrong candidate to represent a nation as diverse as ours.

I am voting for Harris because I am a woman with reproductive organs who loves and respects the immigrants she was raised with and around. Harris’ plans to protect our reproductive freedom and bring a sense of hope to millions of immigrants and their children (like me) – just don’t make it the right choice. She is the only choice.

Ashley Garcia Lezcano is an audience strategist, writer and producer with a passion for highlighting Latino culture and stories. In addition to PS, her work has appeared in People en Español and Teen Vogue. As a first-generation Colombian American, Ashley is committed to authentically amplifying Latinx voices and narratives.