My Family’s Journey to the United States
- Endi Magana
- ESTADOS UNIDOS
- This personal story was submited in English
My parents came to the United States in the mid 80’s to escape the civil war in their home country, El Salvador. Their Journey to the “Land of opportunities” was not only long but dangerous as well. They traveled through battle zones, harsh deserts and several different prisons, all to escape the atrocities that were being committed by both the socialist rebels and the corrupt Salvadorian army.
My father’s brother was one of the leaders of the political party in El Salvador called the FDR. This political party supported the socialist rebels. This made my uncle a marked man. In the early 80’s he was captured by the notorious “Death Squads” and was brutally tortured then murdered. My father knew that the Death Squads weren’t only after his brother, but they were after his family too. This made my father a marked man as well. He had no choice but to flee his home country in order to save not only himself but his new wife, my mother, as well.
So my father and mother gathered all the money they could and met with a family friend who agreed to help them cross the border. And so began their journey to the United States. Their first task was to get out of El Salvador undetected. They devised a plan which included my parents taking a bus to Honduras then meeting up with the family friend, who will then take them across the border. Everything seemed to be going according to plan until they reached the U.S. border where they were stopped by the border patrol. Both of my parents were taken into custody and thrown in prison. When I asked my mother how many prisons has she been to, she replied “I have been to 14 prisons by the age of 16”. After being released from prison, both of my parents were deported and sent to Mexico.
The thought of giving up never crossed neither my mother’s mind nor my father’s. They were determined to make it across the border. As soon as they were set free, they set off on foot and alone across the hot desert. They kept each other warm when it was cold and they kept each other going when they felt they couldn’t walk much longer. Finally, after days of starvation and nights without sleep, they made it across the border where they met up with one of my dad’s friends who had recently gone through a similar experience as my parents. He provided them with a ride to Los Angeles where one of my dad’s cousins was awaiting his arrival.
Soon after arriving and getting enough rest both of my parents began working and saving up to get their own apartment which they eventually did. And so began their new life in the United States of America. When I asked my parents if they regret ever leaving their country and their families behind to come to America they replied “Never! If we hadn’t come, you or your brother and sister probably wouldn’t be alive. So it was the best decision we ever made”. In conclusion, my parents left everything behind for me and my siblings and it is up to us to take advantage of all the opportunities given to us by our parents.