Article about Aiti Rai

Today I had the opportunity to sit down and have lunch with Aiti Rai, a Wesleyan student and refugee. Aiti was born in Nepal at a Bhutanese refugee camp and spent the first sixteen years of her life there.

She spent most of her time there barefoot and her family could only purchase clothes once every year. She explained to us that many people would go even days with no food in their stomach. In the camp the children would tape plastic together and use it as a ball to play soccer. The girls would gather rocks and play with them as if they were dolls. Aiti said they didn’t really have anyone to look up to or any technology so they thought this was normal.

When they had the opportunity to go to America, they didn’t have very high expectations on what it was going to be like when they arrived. When they did, Aiti told us it was very hard for her and her family to adapt to this culture. She admits she is still doing so.

Aiti wants to become a lawyer and she believes she can really achieve this goal now that she is here. “Coming here gave me hope” says Aiti. Aiti was extremely lucky to be where she is today and she told us to be super grateful for everything we have because not everyone has the opportunity we have.

Jayda Johnson HHTV News

Today I interviewed Krystelle. She was born in America about 21 years ago. Her father came over in the seventies. Both of Krystelle’s parents were born in Lebanon, in eastern Europe.

When Krystelle’s father originally came over to America he didn’t know a word of English. Krystelle was born in America. But she never lost her Lebanon roots because she goes back every summer. Her father initially came to America on a visa, America, and once her father came over then her mother was granted access to America. Krystelle was born in America so she was automatically granted American citizenship. Krystelle grew up speaking a different language at home then when she was at school. She didn’t quite understand what was going on as she was being taken to lawyers offices to get her dual citizenship.

She explained to me that the immigration process is very different now than it was forty-five years ago. But now Krystelle’s Aunts are trying to come to America in 2018 and that the process is very difficult. It is even far more difficult for the refugees and immigrants to come to America that do not have family already here.

Krystelle’s father always imagined coming to America, raising a family, and becoming a doctor. They moved mostly because Lebanon was not very safe and war torn in the seventies. America was so appealing to Krystelle’s family because of : opportunity, Medical School, safety, jobs and America was exactly where her family wanted to raise their children. Krystelle was very fortunate and grateful that her family was allowed to come to America.

Krystelle knows that her life would have been very different if her family wasn’t granted to come in to America. The process is very different now because of all of the changes the government has made. In probing questions, she admitted that she believes that there should be limits to the amount of people coming in, but not as strict as they are currently. Krystelle was born in America which made her life different in a positive way. Her family was new to America and came with hopes and dreams of raising a family and they succeeded in watching their daughter grow up here and have access to American amenities and lifestyles. It seems they were able to achieve the American dream!

Krystelle is a student at Fairfield University, she is 21 years old now.

Lorraine Hillgen-Santa HHTV News

Today at our assembly, we had five panelists who came in to to talk about the topic of immigration: Mike Freda, Gary Winfield, Ahmed Badr, Chris George, and Aiti Rai. Aiti Rai was the panelist who I remember the most. She was the only one who actually lived in a refugee camp. She asked all of us if we worried whether we were going to have something to eat, none of us raised our hand.

After she asked us if we worried whether we would get something to eat, she said that she did. She had to worry if she was going to eat every single night, and even the next morning. She said that’s how life was like in the refugee camp, they would have to worry about meals, temperature, etc. Eleven years later, she moved to the United States. Once she was there, she learned English and tried to get used to life in the US. She became very successful and now can live peacefully and in a good environment. Ahmed Badr is also someone I vividly remember. He was an Iraq refugee and he said that writing is something that really makes him happy. He is the founder of Narratio, which is a platform that lets people tell their stories. He made this platform to inspire people to write stories. It is definitely a platform that inspires people.

Caleb Geary HHTV News

Today our group aka HHTV News had an interview with staffs of the IRIS to talk about refugees. IRIS is an organization that provides service to refugees who are suffered from persecution of race, nationality, social group and political opinions.

Something really stood out was how determined,passionate and energetic the IRIS are to help the refugees, They believe helping refugees are a way of making the world a better place, you don’t see that a lot today, especially with the misconception/discrimination of Refugees. Many people believed that refugees are a threat to US, according to Dennis, staff of the IRIS, says that “seeking refugee status as a cover for terrorist activity within the United States just doesn’t make sense, there are easier ways to get there.” It’s really ironic how we proclaimed to hold human rights in such high “regards” while sees refugees/immigrants as threats, although our own family and nation was actually “build” on immigration.

Keep in mind that refugees has no reason to go to other countries other than trying to staying alive because of wars and issues that occurred in their own countries. They had no choice but to deport themselves out. As citizens of a great country, we can contribute and help them.

Boyuan Su HHTV News

Being a refugee is a challenging task, one morning you could wake up and have no breakfast. One morning you could wake up and have to go to a different location hundreds of miles away. It’s important to know what a refugee’s life is like, because then, we know how effortless our lives are compared to theirs. Something to take away from visiting the IRIS is that some of the adults need help to get jobs, and it’s not easy to do when you know a little or no english at all. Same with children, children can’t get as good grades in school or they can’t make friends because they can’t comprehend or even understand what the teachers are saying. People in America should be grateful for what they have, others aren’t as fortunate as we are.

Noah Pakutka HHTV News

What is immigration. Immigration is a person coming to live permanently in a foreign country. This week we talked to a lot of immigrants and also have a lot of people who know a lot about immigration. What Is a refugee. The refugee is someone who has been forced to leave their country in order to escape war, persecution, or natural disaster. This week I learned the difference between immigrants and refugees. I thought there was no difference but I soon learned that immigrants are people who decided to come to a different country and refugees is someone who is forced to leave their country or was too dangerous to live in their country. This week my group went to a place where they help refugees and immigrants find homes and jobs so they can have a better life in New Haven is all over the country. the place was called IRIS. We also talked to and immigrant who traveled from Nepal to America to have better and safer life. she was in the camp for 16 years. look amazing it that someone how do you stay in a camp for that long. this week I learned a lot and all of the stories that were told to me were amazing.

Frances Gustafson HHTV News

Immigration has changed a lot since when it began. Today we have new immigration laws that in some people see as wrong, and un-American. The former mayor of new haven says that they are indeed wrong, and thinks there should be a preference system. Meaning the U.S. should let people in if they fall into a certain category. He thinks people should be let in if they are political refugee, and if the U.S. needs to fill jobs. The U.S. has a few immigration systems at the moment. There is the Family system, where you can bring over family members of a U.S. citizen, such as husbands or wives, unmarried minors under 21, and the parents of said U.S. citizen. Another system is the Employment based system, which has to different ways of relocating skilled immigrants. There is temporary immigration, where immigrants can be hired for a limited amount of time, and there is permanent immigration, where immigrants can get permanently employed based on their eligibility. These are only some of the ways to get into America

Owen Baker HHTV News

During the Media Project I have learned a lot about immigration. I learned part of the process of becoming a US citizen. I learned about Congresswoman Rosa Delarosa. Plus so much more the project we a fantastic opportunity to get out of the classroom and do some hands on learning. My favorite part of the project was going to New Haven. My job for the project was being a camera person and with that I learned how to use a tv camera. As you can see the Media was a great way to do some hands on learning.

Sofia Ierardi HHTV News

On Monday, I enjoy listening to Colin Caplan talk about immigration pizza. I also found it helpful to that Joseline Thrift taught us about photojournalism and how to capture the moment.

On Tuesday, We sat in the theater and listen to the panel discussion. I enjoyed the powerful answers from Aiti Rai and Ahmed Bar, whom are refugees. Chris George, is the Executive Director from IRIS. Gary Winfield is the Democratic State Senator representing New Haven and West Haven. Mike Ferda is the is the Town of North Haven First Selectman.

On Wednesday, we headed out to New Haven to explore IRIS and Rosa DeLauro's office. We interviewed IRIS’s Head Educator, Denis Wilson and we also interviewed the Head Employer, Will Kineram. They had a lot to say about their experiences with immigration.

Evelyn Mollow HHTV News