My name is Georgina E. Monge Burgos. I am a non-traditional student, who transferred from Holyoke Community College (HCC) in 2020 to Smith College. In May 2023, I will obtain my bachelor’s degree, double majoring in Political Science and Latin American Studies.
My studies on immigration began in 2018, and since then, I have been taking courses related to the history of the United States Immigration and Immigration Policies.
My position as a Salvadoran immigrant and my educational background in Immigration Policies, and my Political Science major have helped me to understand the immigration political discourse in the United States. As well as understanding the diverse reasons for which immigrants are fleeing their native countries. Also that when we arrive in the United States, we cannot afford to pay for an attorney, and without an attorney, our opportunities of getting asylum are low to none.
Moreover, The immigrant Handbook provides information about legal resources since asylum seekers must have free access to legal information and attorney representation when applying for asylum in the United States.
Thus, acknowledging that immigrating to another country is a decision that takes different phases and experiences until it feels settled down, and it is a decision that changes our life and the lives of those around us. From first-hand experience, the American dream does not look like some people say when we arrive. There are many questions to deal with, such as, where am I going to sleep, eat, and work? What would happen if I got sick? Who will care for my children, and how will I be able to communicate and understand others? Thus, The Immigrant’s Handbook, a compilation of essential human resources, can help alleviate those basic needs to create a foundation, to build a new life that will allow them to integrate into American society.
For this reason, at the top of my undergraduate projects from Latin American Studies 310-01 Seminar: Senior Capstone, I decided to make The Immigrants Handbook. Which contains local information acquired from various non-profit Communities Centers and Communities in Action to help the needs of immigrants such as refugees, documented, and undocumented people, plus everyone who intends to settle in the areas of Amherst, MA., Northampton, MA., Holyoke, MA., West Springfield, MA., and Springfield, MA.
