Delaware's immigrants deserve our support.

As a child of an undocumented immigrant, I am afraid of what this means for our family. Since we have a mixed-status family, I am nervous that if my parent lost his job, we wouldn’t be able to receive benefits or afford food since my mother cannot work. I’m also nervous about my mother being unable to receive healthcare because if one of us somehow caught it, she would be the only one without insurance, and in the past, has refused to go to the doctors until she was very sick, out of fear.

My parents have stopped working because the work is very limited. They used to work cutting mushrooms but the company stopped receiving as many mushroom orders. It’s also difficult finding new jobs. I’m asked to look online for my dad but most places won’t accept him. Thankfully we have some savings but we’re afraid that we’ll run out if the job opportunities continue to be this low. My biggest fear is that they’ll make up their mind to return to Mexico. I’ll most likely have to go with them, giving up on my dreams of pursuing higher education and even risking my closest relationships.

I am worried about being able to receive testing and healthcare if I do get sick. There have not been resources made available saying that undocumented immigrants can get tested without repercussions, and I would drown in hospital bills if I got sick since I am uninsured. I’m also worried about inaccessibility regarding vaccines. This year, I had to go to Pennsylvania to get a flu shot, because Delaware clinics refused to give me one without an ID. I am scared the same will happen with the coronavirus vaccine when it comes out.