I often say that my favorite thing about being a classroom writing teacher was my access to stories. It was enriching to me as a teacher and as a human being to learn about my students' lives through their stories. And I learned a lot about issues in society by hearing the same kind of stories over and over again.

One issue that came through to me via my students’ stories is the challenge people face when their citizenship — or the citizenship of their loved ones — was unsettled. I became aware of how anxiety-provoking it is to grow up worrying that a traffic ticket could lead to deportation. I watched the best and brightest high school seniors defer college dreams because they couldn’t figure out how to navigate the educational system without a U.S. birth certificate.

Because this particular kind of anxiety is something I’ve heard so many times, I was deeply grateful when my colleague, Yakquelin Garduño, agreed to tell her story. As director of Mighty Writers in Kennett Square, Yakquelin works with children who are facing many of the same issues she faced as a DACA recipient (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals).

In this candid interview, Yakquelin shares her family’s immigration story and what her life has been like as someone who crossed the southern border before she was able to walk. Even though she’s never known life outside of the U.S., and even though she has lived a life of exemplary citizenship, she still cannot claim to be a U.S. citizen. Yakquelin agreed to this interview because she knows she speaks for countless others who live with the daily consequences of a broken immigration system.

The Mighty Writers Podcast with Maureen Boland is produced by Mighty Writers in partnership with Rowhome Productions. The executive producer is Tim Whitaker. Lead producer is Danya AbdelHameid. Rowhome’s executive producers are Alex Lewis and John Myers.

Our theme song was composed by Jim Morgan.

This episode also includes music from Blue Dot Sessions.