Students gain insight studying U.S.-Mexico border on immersion trip
Seven Gettysburg College students traveled to the United States-Mexico border in order to gain a deeper understanding of the hardships faced by immigrants and those living along the border. Photo Credit: Wikipedia.org
By Marianelly Rios, Staff Writer
Seven Gettysburg College students kicked off their spring semester by traveling to El Paso, Texas and Las Cruces, New Mexico to learn about immigration issues near the U.S./Mexico Border.
This immersion project was hosted by Casa de la Cultura through the Center for Public Service on campus. Casa de la Cultura is a Gettysburg-based organization that provides local Latino immigrants with learning opportunities and promotes cultural rights in the community.
The trip aimed to identify the actualities of immigration and to closely examine immigrants’ experiences living along the border.
During their time in Texas, the students met with a pastor involved in the Lutheran Border Awareness Project who educated them on the oftentimes difficult living conditions that many El Paso immigrants face.
The students were able to see the immigrants’ colonias, which is a Spanish term for a community and is characterized by its close proximity to the border, and then recounted their experience on a live blog featured in “The Evening Sun.” They even had the opportunity to meet with health workers and immigrants in the area, gathering a better understanding of what life looks like along the U.S./ Mexico border.
“Many of us were shocked by the conditions in the colonias and by how little we knew about them,” senior Melanie Meisenheimer wrote in the blog.
Vasiljon Cobo, also a senior, similarly commented on how the students “were all struck by an anecdote of [a] teacher telling her daughter that she shouldn’t bother doing well in state tests because she didn’t have [immigration] papers so it was all pointless. Luckily, her children turned out to be great students after an initial struggle and are now seeking higher education.”
Jorge Perez-Rico, the director of Casa de la Cultura, hoped that the trip would give Gettysburg College students a hands-on opportunity to learn about social justice and immigration issues and through the students’ reflections on the blog; it appears as though the trip did just that.
The trip’s participants are expected to facilitate an immigration rights information session for migrant youth in Gettysburg. In order to spread awareness about the migrant community and U.S. immigration policy, they will also host on-campus sessions for other Gettysburg College students to become involved in the issue.
Through their exploration on the immersion trip as well as their planned projects to educate and inform the Gettysburg campus and local community, it is clear that these students gained an immense amount of insight and knowledge from their time studying the U.S./Mexico border.
Gettysburg College students, faculty, and members of the administration will be performing “The Vagina Monologues” on Thursday, Feb. 21 and Friday, Feb. 22 at 7 p.m. in CUB Ballroom. Proceeds will go to local organizations that support individuals affected by domestic violence and sexual assault, so be sure to come out and show your support.
