Darwin Valesquez, a student at Skyline College, gave a powerful speech this week for the Latino Community Foundation, describing his emigration experience as an unaccompanied child. Valesquez emigrated from El Salvador at age 12, where he grew up in an impoverished community. He was born with cataracts, leaving him with limited vision. At his school in El Salvador, he learned only through listening and talking. However, after coming to the United States, he eventually learned to read and write through hard work and determination. He was a leader both in and out of the classroom.
Excited to continue his education after graduating from Washington High School, Darwin applied and was accepted to one of his dream schools. Unfortunately, upon finding out about his undocumented status, the college rescinded his acceptance. To Darwin, this felt like the end of his academic journey. However, he used this moment as motivation and decided to enroll at Skyline College, where he is now pursuing a degree in International Relations. Through programs like DACA and the SMCCD Office of Education Abroad, Darwin will become one of the first DREAMERS to study abroad in France this Fall.
The City of San Francisco’s Youth Commission named Darwin as one of their eight “Youth of Year,” an award given to those who display exceptional leadership and service to the community. Darwin also serves as an Outreach Ambassador for Educators for Fair Consideration (E4FC), a role through which he provided hope, inspiration, and valuable information to the undocumented community. Eventually, Darwin plans to go to law school to study International Law.
You can read Darwin’s powerful and inspirational speech at:
http://latinocf.org/blog/2014/08/an-unaccompanied-journey/
Article by Lezra Chenportillo
