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New U.S. citizen to discuss DACA Oct. 1
by Gregory R. Norfleet · News · September 21, 2017
After escaping poverty in Mexico to nearly seeing her children kidnapped in America, Elizabeth Bernal will speak Oct. 1 to discuss the current and proposed deportation process in the United States.
Bernal and El Trueque Editor Manuel Galvez, both of Iowa City, will give a public presentation noon Sunday, Oct. 1, at the West Branch Friends Meetinghouse, 317 North Sixth Street. El Trueque is a magazine that writes about topics from social issues to local activities that are of interest to Latinos. The two will provide an overview of deportations for adults and proposed deportations of those who had been approved under Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, a program established by President Obama.
Bernal and daughter Blanca Apolonio took part in Friday’s naturalization ceremony at the Herbert Hoover National Historic Site, both earning U.S. citizenship for the first time since coming to America 19 years ago.
She said she tried emigrating legally, but, without a job, could not afford to pay the fees. Bernal said she did not have an education, so she could not get a job that pays well enough.
She had already been pregnant once, but said she lost the baby because she could not afford to see a doctor who could properly deliver the child.
“Poverty is really bad in Mexico,” she said. “They don’t have the jobs, and without money, there’s no opportunity for a life or to put food on the table.”
With some jobs paying only a dollar a day, earning passage legally “is not possible.”
Another option to entering the United States is finding a U.S. citizen willing to sponsor her. Bernal said “that takes a long time.”
When she became pregnant with Blanca, the father traveled to the United States, got a job and sent money back to Mexico so Bernal could see a doctor. The first money came back when Bernal was eight months pregnant, and Blanca was born in Mexico City.
“I feared another baby would die,” Bernal said.
The father planned to work for two years, then return to Mexico, but he never did, she said.
So Bernal took it upon herself to get her and Blanca to the United States. It took until Blanca was 3 years old, but Bernal found help. She said she had to send Blanca ahead of her, and had to entrust her baby to others for three weeks until she could catch up; Bernal and 25 others illegally entered the United States under the cover of darkness in 1999.
When she found Blanca’s father in Los Angeles, Bernal discovered he “got into drugs and alcohol.”
“He worked hard, but became isolated,” she said.
He also had become violent, and she said that because of her illegal status, there was only so much the police could do to protect her unless she wanted to risk deportation.
In 2003, with the help of a neighbor who gave her $280, Bernal and her now three children fled California, taking a bus to Iowa City. For three days they wandered, homeless, in search of friends and family. With the help of someone who spoke Spanish, they connected with the local Domestic Violence Intervention Program and found a place to live. Because she was trying to break away from an abusive relationship, she was able to file for a U-Visa — for victims of crimes — that helped her also find work as a temporary resident.
The father, however, tracked them down to Iowa City and showed up where Blanca and younger sister Alma attended school.
“The school called (me) to say someone tried to pick up the girls,” Bernal said. “They called police.”
With the help of the courts, Bernal was able to prove the domestic violence and retain custody of her children.
“Iowa City did not ask us about crossing the border and made me feel safe,” she said.
A family from Solon and a Methodist Church in Iowa City also helped care for Bernal’s children while she worked. Today, she works at the Iowa City School District in food service and she helps clean the DVIP woman’s shelter. Before applying for citizenship, she said she could not get food stamps or other benefits.
“I’ve gotten a lot of support in the Iowa City area,” she said.
In 2005, Bernal began the naturalization process.
She first had to find and prove permanent work status, then wait five years to apply for residency — her first job had her working 12 hours a day, seven days a week.
Again with the help of the family in Solon, she found a mobile home for her family. She also then acquired a driver’s license.
After earning residency, she had to wait five more years to apply for citizenship.
Bernal met with this reporter about two hours before the naturalization ceremony. Asked how she felt to have finally arrive at this moment, Bernal became emotional, looked away and paused before answering.
“It’s come true,” she said in a halting voice. “It’s been a long time. I’ve been insecure, I’ve been in the shadows all the time without papers. I’ve been afraid of people, the police. I was afraid most of the time. These (citizenship) papers make me feel safe.”
Bernal took her family to Mexico a couple years ago, wanting to show her children the country from which she had come and only of which Blanca could possibly have the smallest memories.
She said she did not feel safe there and her children had no connections to anyone. Bernal said she felt returning to Mexico would mean her children growing up as poor as she did.
“With DACA, you can dream and work hard,” she said. “There is a future in the United States.”
She said she wants to explain how youth, like Blanca, can benefit from DACA. Blanca, now 21, is married Derek Brownmiller and they live in North Carolina. Derek is active duty U.S. Army and Blana has for two years served with the National Guard. As Blanca is not a natural-born citizen, she by law must only serve in a non-combatant role in the military.
“People who live in the shadows have dreams, too,” Bernal said.
She hopes those who listen to her full story and learn about the immigration process will understand more about why she hopes DACA will remain.
Getting involved
West Branch Friends Meetinghouse, 317 North Sixth Street, will host a presentation noon Sunday, Oct. 1, regarding the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program.
The featured speakers are Elizabeth Bernal and El Trueque Editor Manuel Galvez.
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