Immigration with Nicole Lopez-Alvar

Immigration with Nicole Lopez-Alvar

Although the election is (mostly) behind us, many Gen Z, the most diverse generation to date, voted for the first time this November. Immigration was top of mind in the weeks before heading to the polls. According to a report, 43% of Gen Z respondents believe that immigration is a critical issue to them personally, compared to  41% of non-Gen Z respondents who said immigration was among many critical political topics.

On September 15, only 50 days ahead of the 2020 election The Conversationalist Founder and CEO Sophie Beren spoke with Nicole Lopez-Alvar and a group of Gen Z panelists about their personal and political experiences with immigration. The conversation confirmed that immigration was at the forefront for Gen Z when they went out to vote and that empathy and personal understanding play an essential role in their thoughts around it. 

Will you accept this rose?

Our host Nicole is best known for her appearances on Season 23 of The Bachelor and Season 6 of Bachelor in Paradise. She’s the co-host of Black Beans and Rice Podcast, where she covers all things life and Bachelor Nation with fellow series alum Sydney Lotuaco. But before we watched her accept roses every Monday night, she worked as a journalist and content creator in Miami. In addition to creating a supportive and thoughtful environment for the panelists to share their stories, Lopez-Alvar brought her own experience to the conversation. Her mother immigrated from Havana, Cuba, in the 1960s. 

Why do people choose to immigrate in the first place?

Laura Zhang said people immigrate for several different reasons, including financial hardship, family, or even climate change. “The immigration experience is personal to each person who chooses to go through it,” she said. “Navigating that immigrant identity is unique and personal to everyone.”

“In my region of the world, it is job availability,” Marshall Rankin, from the Rio Grande area, said. He said that attending school and working in that region of the country has given him a unique perspective.

Why is it harder to immigrate to certain countries over others?

Roshni Lalchandani, who immigrated from India when she was young, said that Laura’s point that everyone’s immigration experience is different resonated with her. “I’ve seen my parents work firsthand at building a business,” she said. “There are certain levels of social stratification that intersect with the immigrant identity that can make the experience more difficult or less difficult.” She added that immigration is not as simple as moving from one country to another,  and immigrants should show themselves grace as they navigate the process. 

Nicole said she could relate since various social and personal factors impacted her mother’s immigration experience in 1960s Miami at the time.

Salma Alejo, whose mother immigrated from Mexico, said that different push and pull factors drive someone’s immigration experience. Her mom immigrated from Mexico upon getting married, but many of her relatives did so to pursue the American Dream. “That’s always something that’s been perpetuated here in the United States,” she said but added that it’s not as simple as it seems. 

How has the citizenship process impacted your life?

“There are a lot of people in my community that are becoming citizens,” Victor Ye said. He lives in the San Gabriel Valley area of Los Angeles, home to many first-generation Latino and Chinese communities. He mentioned that many of the citizenship test questions are difficult for even people who are already citizens. 

Metzli Nieves, who was born in Mexico and grew up in the Bronx, brought up her own family's experience coming to the United States and said that immigration is not always a choice but is sometimes a means of survival. She believes the citizenship application process is flawed because of how long it takes. “Our financial situation back home was not the best, and me coming here was the best choice to survive,” she said. 

‍

Do you know of anyone who has successfully received a green card in the US?

Jesse Lamba said he recently spoke with a friend going through the immigration process. “Even applying and going from a visa to a green card is a long and arduous process,” he said, noting that on top of being lengthy and bureaucratic, it’s also expensive and can be altered on a whim due to policy changes. 

Why is the immigration process so complicated?

Sophia Houdagui is the daughter of Morrocan immigrants and the Founder of Hyphenated America. Her mother is also an immigration attorney, and she says this is an interesting dichotomy. “I’ve seen individuals go through this process my entire life,” she said. She brought up the current administration's demonization of international students and how this keeps people from working in the United States after graduation. 

Do you know of any undocumented or documented immigrants in your community?

Laura spoke to her extensive experience working with the undocumented community and refugees, where she seeks to portray their perspectives in a more realistic light. “Seeing how they can shift so dramatically and grapple with the challenges of immigration on top of their education and balancing their mental health, those are important considerations when talking about immigration,” she said.

‍

Marshall said he knows many people who are undocumented in his community. “People are not always in the States legally, and that’s sort of a fact of life where I’m from. You don’t demonize someone because they aren’t here legally,” he said. “We all have to live our lives in a way that respects the rule of law that simultaneously recognizes the realities of where we are.” 

Salma said she wanted to lean the conversation toward xenophobia and racism that the Trump administration perpetuates immigrants of color experience, some of which she said.

Will the topic of immigration impact the way you vote in the election?

Metzli, who said that she couldn’t vote due to being undocumented, notes that she prefers to use the vocabulary undocumented over illegal and believes that language has a critical impact on humanizing immigrants. “I’m very grateful for the opportunities I’ve had, but it’s still not enough,” she said.

Jesse said yes. “There’s a lot of kids out there who came here legally but had parents waiting in a backlog. Kids have lived here their whole lives but age out of the system and are unable to get a green card, and either have to self-deport or have to start the immigration process all over again,” he said. “They sort of lose their place in line. I hope this gets addressed.” 

What have you all learned tonight?

Roshni said that she learned so much from her fellow panelists’ perspectives and encouraged everyone to think critically about some of the narratives around immigration. “Take a look at some of the myths,” she said. “So many of the arguments that are for immigration are just myths. The rhetoric that immigrants steal American jobs or they are bringing crime to our countries.” 

“The power of immigrants and immigration can be encapsulated by the stories we tell and how we utilize our voices to share the stories of real human beings going through the process,” Laura said. She emphasized that by shedding light on experience, we can impact policy.

Nicole agreed and noted that it’s essential not to have blinders up when discussing immigration.

“I’m thinking about the ways America is strengthened based on the contributions of immigrants,” Sophia said. “Our immigration has to be modernized and adapted to the current situation, and we have to vote with this goal. We are a nation of immigrants, her fellow panelists’ perspectives, and we will survive as a nation of immigrants.” 

Metzli said she wants to break down the myth of the good versus bad immigrants. “With DACA, we highlight college-bound students, but you don’t need to have certain accomplishments to have human rights,” she said. 

Speaking from his own experience as a child of immigrants, Jesse spoke to the optimism, spirit, and gratitude he sees among immigrant communities.

Salma referenced the 9th U.S. Circuit Court decision that gave Trump the green light to deport Nicaraguan students and strip away their protected status. “It shows how important it is to vote so that these people can be safe,” she said. 

With that, Nicole said goodbye to the brilliant panelists and settled in for a recap and Q&A session with Sophie. She spoke about her days in the Bachelor franchise (which the live chat community was super psyched about), her advice to up-and-coming journalists, and her final thoughts on the panel. 

“I’m more excited about voting than ever before,” she told Sophie about the impact that the conversation had on her. “I want to change the world for them.”

We’d accept her rose anytime.

Join The Conversationalist for plenty more panels in the weeks ahead, featuring important conversations about topics that impact Gen Z’ers. Follow The Conversationalist on Twitter,Instagram, and TikTok to learn about how you can enter to be featured on a future panel and text UNIFY to 1 (877) 222-1119 to join our community and connect with members.