For Legal Migrants Many Obstacles Little Reward

Having covered the hardships that many immigrants face as they cross into the United States illegally yesterday, Chris Hawley of the Arizona Republic  has written up a story today, about Yudi an Immigrant woman who attempted to enter the country legally.

If she could get a visitor's visa, she reasoned, she could at least get over the border and look for a job. Then the receptionist began to list the documents needed for a visitor's visa: A bank statement showing thousands of dollars in savings. Property deeds. Car titles. Five years of pay stubs from a good-paying job.

From the same article, not only are the requirements for legal immigrants high, the wait time is equally prohibitive:

Waiting lists for visas are often decades-long because of strict immigration limits. Employers are loathe to sponsor employees for residency, and diversity visa programs aimed at increasing the United States' cultural mix are skewed against Latin America and other regions that already have many citizens living in the United States.

For many however, the lure of jobs and a better life proves too strong:

Yudi, 23, went back to her job at a potato-chip factory, but she couldn't stop thinking about her meager salary and the opportunities in America. Her brother had crossed the border illegally several years before and was working in Colorado.

In March, she struck out alone for the United States.

These journeys are often dangerous:

The trip took her six months. On the Guatemala-Mexico border, she says, she was robbed and gang-raped by four men.

Near Mexico City, she saw a freight train slice off the leg of a fellow traveler after he fell onto the tracks.

On the Arizona border, she hiked through the desert for three days with no food.In Phoenix, she was held captive and raped by six smugglers several times a day for two weeks, until escaping on Sept. 18.

Yudi, is still living in the United States, and has a message for Anti-Immigrant activists who demonize migrants who come to the United States to find a better life:

"All I can tell those people is that if we immigrate illegally, we're not doing it for fun," she said, her voice cracking. "If they really want people to stop immigrating illegally, then give us an opportunity. Give us a chance."