Tiger News Issue 1, 2019-2020

Oct. 2019
Lifestyle
•21
Children of immigrants face challenges,
obstacles beyond language barriers
by PHOEBE RABORN
staff writer
Many immigrants go through experiences that
no one else would think or have to worry about.
There are infinite numbers of cultural differences
between societies. Senior Kassandra Torres Sanchez
assimilated into U.S. culture as the child of
first-generation immigrants.
Though she was born in the United States,
Torres Sanchez grew up in a household with Mexican
culture where only Spanish was spoken, because
her parents moved from Mexico to America.
It was a difficult journey for her, especially in the
beginning, to get used to the cultural norms. Torres
Sanchez developed more courage and strength
than others her age at her school.
“To me, speaking Spanish and eating certain
foods was normal,” Torres Sanchez said. “Starting
school not speaking Spanish was a big challenge.
I couldn’t communicate with the teachers or any
of my peers. I couldn’t understand the rules,
so I never understood why the teacher would
always yell at me whenever I’d walk out to use
the bathroom.”
Fortunately, Torres Sanchez began slowly
picking up on different phrases and making
friends. This was an enormous turning point in
her life, because it was proof that she was up for
the challenge, many that non-immigrants may not
even realize.
One feat in Torres Sanchez’s early life was
memorizing things that other children knew
without giving it any thought. After hearing it over
and over again, Torres Sanchez, piece by piece,
learned how to recite the pledge of allegiance and
the school motto.
“I learned how to play ‘tag’ and ‘hide and
seek,’” Torres Sanchez said.
“Starting school not speaking Spanish
was a big challenge. I couldn’t
communicate with the teachers or any of
my peers”
- senior Kassandra Torres Sanchez
The difference in the food, especially how certain
foods are prepared or eaten, was also a shock
and another challenge to overcome.
“I learned to eat pizza, hamburgers, fries,
mozzarellas sticks, chicken pot pie… I also
learned to eat pancakes with syrup. At home, I
would eat pancakes with jam. I remember going
to the store and begging my mom to buy syrup for
pancakes,” Torres Sanchez said.
Though her culture made Torres Sanchez
who she was and is today, it could also be hard
to embrace, because this meant embracing that
she was different from those around her, a very
difficult thing to do at an age where all you want
to do is fit in.
“Sometimes, I would bring a lunch to school,
and people would either make fun of my food or
beg to try some. I wished my parents would bring
me Subway or McDonald’s for lunch. I hated how
people would always question the snacks that I
would bring,” Torres Sanchez said.
These worries came home with her too as she
would struggle to explain to her mom what school
life expected. Being able to include these ideas
into her personal life was seemingly impossible. In
addition to the common pressure of getting good
grades and being socially accepted in school, Torres
Sanchez dealt with additional challenges.
As time went on, Torres Sanchez learned the
norms and expectations of U.S. culture at school.
Even as Torres Sanchez got older, and things became
easier, not everything was perfect.
“Learning grammar was also very hard. My
English was still limited, so I had difficulty learning
the difference between nouns, verbs, adjectives,
etcetera,” Torres Sanchez said.
Styles, fashion, and appearance was another
change Torres Sanchez faced.
“I was always surrounded by girls with blonde
hair and blue eyes, so I started hating the way I
looked. I wanted blonde hair and blue eyes too,”
Torres Sanchez said. “I wanted to change my
name to Abigail or Olivia,” Torres Sanchez added.
graph by OLIVE SHUFFIELD
courtesy of KASSANDRA TORRES SANCHEZ
Senior Kassandra Torres Sanchez celebrated her nationality
during her Quinceañera. A Quinceañera is a tradition in
Mexican culture to recognize the transition from childhood
to adulthood. According to Torres Sanchez, this was a
moment of joy and beauty, and will be remembered by her
and her loved ones as a day Torres Sanchez fully embraces
her culture.
With so many different countries of origin among our students, each gets to experience
and learn about new traditions in the United States in different ways. When
conducting this poll, various classes around the school and all types of groups at lunch
were visited to see what people had to say.