Born in Bogota, Colombia, Laura Jimenez and her family moved to the United States in search of better opportunities. She found those opportunities at GSMST. Even though she decided to attend GSMST because of the challenges, the welcoming and accepting environment is what she truly loves. Although Laura has built a wonderful life at GSMST, the dark days of reality still invade that welcoming environment.
When Donald Trump was elected president, Laura was living in the U.S. as an undocumented immigrant. Even though she rectified her legal status before he took office, the new administration has made it near impossible to see her family in Colombia and Canada. Early September, Trump called to end Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals which protected children who were brought to the U.S. illegally from deportation. This creates obstacles for Laura’s friends and cousin who depend on DACA to attend college. Without DACA, her family will not be able to afford to pay for her cousin’s college education.
Laura, like many others, agree that ending DACA is far worse than anything Trump has attempted since getting into office. “The push to end DACA is the cruelest decision President Trump has come to… the one solution that offered even a little bit of tranquility to the beneficiaries is being taken right from under them. It’s merciless.” Even with the consistent negativity that is being spread surrounding the topic of immigration, Laura continues to persevere. “I’m not fighting for me. I’m fighting for something infinitely bigger than myself; the prosperity of immigrants in the United States.” No matter how dark the days may get, Laura always manages to speak her truth.
