Long Walk Home
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Long Walk Home

A Dreamer’s Journey

Written By Katherine Narvaez Mena • Illustrated by Koren Shadmi
In August 2019, I walked into to the U.S. Capitol to meet with Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro. I advocated passionately for vaccinating undocumented immigrants in detention facilities after 6 had children died. Most Americans can’t understand the suffering that so many face in their journey to America. I can.
My journey began in Guatemala. My mom was a struggling, single mother of 3. Some nights, we only had an egg to eat. Motivated by love, she made a decision.
We decided to leave for America in 2000. I was 6. All we had were the clothes on our backs and money to last us a week. Thought bubble from Katherine: “America = hope”
We took a bus from Guatemala City to Palenque, Mexico. Then we walked from town to town and church to church. Quote from mother: “My children are hungry.” Priest: “Come inside!”
Poor people opened their doors to us. Sometimes they would give us their kids’ bed so we would have a warm place to sleep. Visual: Katherine, mother and brother all huddled on a child’s bed. Quote from mother: “Go to sleep. We have to leave early tomorrow.”
We stayed for 3 months in one town when we ran out of money. My brother Josue and I went to school. My oldest brother Pablo, 15, went to work. Quote from mom to kids: ““These are all we can afford.”
It took us 18 months to cross Mexico. In the final miles to the border, we walked through forests and across deserts. Quote Katherine: “When will we get to America.” Quote brother: “Soon.”
At last, we were in the Rio Grande. Josue and I rode an inflatable ring. Pablo and mom pushed us. Katherine (with a bag of clothes and shoes) thought bubble : “I have to keep these dry.”
In Brownsville, Texas, mom and Pablo worked at a shrimp processing plant. They earned a dollar for every gallon of heads-off shrimp. Pablo thought bubble: “This is only temporary!”
In 2002, we left on a bus, but ICE pulled us off at a checkpoint. They had a “catch and release” program then. My mom said we would apply for asylum. Quote from Mom: “We will be OK!”
We finally reached Atlanta. My mom found work but had to spend days fighting for asylum in a process she didn’t understand. Quote from Lawyer: “Sign here.”
Pablo and mom were deported. Josue and I stayed with our stepdad. 8 months later, they came back.
As an immigrant, I didn’t have the same privileges as my peers. But I studied hard and became the top cadet in Navy Junior ROTC.
I wanted to be a trauma surgeon. But without U.S. citizenship, I couldn’t get the Navy scholarship I’d been promised. So that dream ended.
At Mary Baldwin University, I led the only all-female cadet corps in the U.S. I was an undocumented person leading the colors. My mom loved it.
I then did grassroots organizing in California. After Trump’s election in 2016, I feared for my family’s safety and returned to Atlanta.
In 2018, my stepdad was stopped by police while driving. He didn’t have a license and was deported after several months in a detention facility. Quote: “It’s my turn to sleep next to the toilet.”
As a DACA recipient, I’m protected but my family isn’t. Quote from Katherine to Mom: “It will be okay, Mom.”
So I’ve met with countless Congress members to advocate for comprehensive immigration reform. Quote from Katherine: “We can’t thrive if we live in fear.”
In 2017, I co-launched a nonprofit in Atlanta to teach my community about immigrant and tenant rights, civic participation, and college. It’s called Los Vecinos de Buford Hwy—neighbors. My story is not an anomaly. As immigrants, we represent our parents’ legacy and their dreams for us. Home is here.