Immigration in the Eyes of My Family

My family, on my dad's side, immigrated here on December 18th, 1964. They came here on a ship named the Anna Marie and  did not know what to expect of this country.  They left because of the lack of any opportunity for advancement in Greece and essentially my grandparents wanted their family to be someone, to be important. They first lived in Brooklyn with a family that helped them come over; a family who we are now very close with.  After their few months there, they moved to Perth Amboy due to the massive Greek population there. My grandparents struggles to get by, my grandfather working as a cook and in a copper refinery and my grandmother in a sweater factory. As time progressed,college was in the horizon for my Aunt Aphrodite but the money needed was in an entirely different atmosphere. To support his siblings, my dad began to work as a busboy at a restaurant when he was 12 years old.  This work did help my aunt attend college but it had a heavy price. My father never went to college because his academics suffered because of his decision to work towards a college educational for his older sister and younger brother. Looking back, my grandparents tell me that they ultimately achieved what they wanted by having one successful, happy, Greek family in The United States.


Concerning others immigrating to the United States my grandfather has a very strong opinion.  Frequently he explains to everyone how our family came over legally and it was not difficult.  One must be patient however which, when an opportunity is looming in front, is very hard for some.  The United States needs immigration reform because not only is illegal immigration a problem, but so is the government stomping on illegals.  The government has no moral right to force anyone to leave the country that they now call home.  Many come here as refugees, looking for a safe haven from the persecution of their countries, but our government does not take that into account.  Overall, any immigrant can come here legally if they tried, however, if they come illegally the United States just cannot deport them to a country that they no longer refer to as home.