There are the things that immigrants bring to our communities, as far as food, as far as culture, as far as intelligence, ideas, everything. If we’re constantly going to be with the same type of people all the time, if there’s no variation or diversity, even evolution proves this, you’re not going to survive. You need that creativity, you need the melting pot, you need multiple types of people. We need to figure out a way to personalize immigrants and not try to just identify them with the word immigrant, as if there are immigrants and there’s us. We’re all human.  When I came to the teen center [on the LES], it was like they were tearing down all these walls I had built up for so long. They felt that my voice was important, and it took me a long time to really understand that and have my confidence. 

– Mariano

Relationship:  Im/migrant Im/migrant