How to Prove You’re Undocumented

applying for Lamnistia. They're nervous, they're also scared. They have to prove to the government that they've been living in this country illegally, and this goes against everything they've done to survive in this country, keeping a low profile, living in the shadows, dodging lamgra But today all that changes. To everyone's surprise, the process is pretty easy. They get there at eight am and three hours later they walk out with temporary residency cards. Just ask Someone snaps a picture.

In the photo, they're holding up their cards like they got a winning lottery ticket. In celebration, in defiance with pride. Everyone's dressed in their Sunday's best. There's a man sporting a bushy mustache, hands in his pockets. He's got a real eighties swagger. Wrapped around his arm is his wife, who has a small smile on her face. Next to them is a woman who looks all shocked, clutching her purse, standing there frozen, like she's going to wake up any

moment and this will all have been a dream. Right above her are more men with mustaches holding up their cards, some smiling, some look baffled, some with stoic faces, and one guy looks like he's daydreaming, his eyes darting up as the shutter clicks. And in the middle of all of that, it's a kid digging through his mom's purse. And it's such a small moment, but it touches my heart because even in the midst of history being made, kids are still kids. This beautiful mosaic of brown faces

just got a shot at their American dream. And the thing about this photo is that, even though it was shot thirty five years ago, I can feel the weight lifting off their shoulders as they step out of the shadows. I'm Patti Rodriguez and I'm ur Glendo, and this is out of the shadows. Children of eighty six Immigrants and their children have long lived in the shadows of America. Their destinies aren't just shaped by where they come from,

but by their particular place in history. In the lives of millions of immigrants and their children were changed by one lucky stroke of a pen by an unlikely allen President Ronald Reagan. This podcast will examine the ripple effects the bill had on first generation kids of immigrants, who are navigating intergenerational mobility and transforming the cultural landscape. This is an untold story of luck, timing, triumph, opportunity, survival,

and of course hope. Imagine going from never having a chance at being an American, then suddenly, with one signature, you got a shot at living in this country illegally. Going from being invisible, in constant fear of deportation and getting paid less than everyone else, to suddenly being able to do small things like getting alone, buying a car or a house, to finally have the opportunity to plant roots.

It was really a path to a new life. But this is still America, so of course it wasn't easy for everyone to apply for URCA, especially because it was hard to prove that they had been living here illegally, even though most people like Garcia had been here for decades. Sentos Julio Hesters came to this country from Ol Salvador in the late seventies. He had heard so much about America that it was paradise, a land of opportunities, and

he wanted to find out for himself. When he arrived in l A. One of the first things he did, let's go to the movies and me who went through no lessons? Yeah, al Senna a momentor I no Sandy. It's the summer of nineteen seventy eight and his Who's got two tickets to watch this all American musical about teenagers falling in love starring two superstars, John Travolta and

Olivia Newton. John, you haven't guessed it yet. The movie was called Crazy Sandy Sandy, and as soon as he walked out of the theater, has Who swore he would name his first daughter Sandy. And the funny thing is that Sandy is actually an immigrant from Australia. My dream came true, he says. When his was heard amnesty finally passed, he was excited, but he was also scared mad. Has

Sous wasn't alone. Many people were afraid, confused, conflicted about Mark reaching into Lama's office and telling them that they had been here undocumented and with reason ever since the United States invaded Mexico. Robbing them of half its territory in eighteen. The U. S has done everything in its power to keep Mexicans and Central Americans from planting roots

in this country. How can you begin to trust that this country actually wants you hear from one day to the next when it has spent the last one hundred and seventy six years showing you otherwise. Looking at the front page of the l A Times or New York Times the day after URCA was passed, you would think

it would be dominating the headlines. We're talking about the biggest piece of immigration reform of all time, and all the attention had got was a brief mention on section A, page twelve of the New York Times and the l A Times. As it has always been very Mexican, I mean it was literally Mexico before it was America. That paper didn't put it on the front page either. Instead, they highlighted another bill that went to the President's desk, Reagan Beto wing a Clean Water Act because of costs,

but an Erica nothing crickets. One of the things to consider is that even though URCA passed, immigration wasn't covered by media outlets the way it is now using tragedy for clicks and making it a political issue instead of a human rights one. Journalist Marie Lena Sealina says, it wasn't like that back then. It was like we we didn't exist, We were invisible. But what's wild is that even the press got the irony of what the new

law was asking immigrants to do. This is from a New York Times article published three days before Erica was signed. For years, illegal aliens have done everything possible to avoid document unting their American existence and jobs. Now the government says that for them to remain here, they must prove

they did everything they were not supposed to do. Basically, Irka wanted people like my mom to prove that they were living in this country undocumented before you had to go to the I n s Lamigera and say hey, I've been living here illegally for years, and here's proof of that. They of course went home and told all their friends. This is farm worker advocate Larry Kleinman, who we're saying to them, Oh, man, you know, hey, can I have your Can I have your car in case,

you know, you get arrested and don't come back. You know that kind of like kidding, kidding on the square as they say, you know right, you know, like you ain't coming back. You know, you're a damn fool to do that, to take that risk. So with all this lack of mainstream media coverage and very little outreach by the government, it left a vacuum for misinformation out of the shadows. Will be right back now, back to the show.

Our parents didn't have social media back then, but they did have chiefs men, even some conspiracy theories and you know it's the ms is qualified for amnesty for casey you are septo is there? Or applico for lost control to me. But he kept hearing so many rumors. One of them was that the government was using Urga like a microchip to track undocumented people. And it kind of makes sense because Erka does sound too good to be true.

It's like when the police do gun buybacks, no questions asked, just bring us those guns and we'll give you a Costco gift card. ORCA was asking immigrants to go into the lions, then hope for the best and maybe, just maybe you'll get the chance to be American. Demotteo's dad eventually convinced him to apply well, taso Papa, you may see plicas was and what made him change his mind, the reason why many immigrants come to this country in the first place, his daughter and the dream of attaining

an education beyond the elementary school teachings. He received responsio alien mass alien mass respond eo simple or Indian familiar import la with you're not away. It took a lot of bravery to be among the first to apply, and it was a messy process. URCO applications open on May five. That's right, single the mayo. No, I'm not kidding, and you only had a year to apply. Larry Kleinman was

living in Oregon when the applications opened. So applications opened on May five, and the legalization office in Portland was deserted. Nobody was there, and it was pretty much deserted for the whole month of May. Folks were like, I'm not I'm not going to be the first. I'm not going to be the person to experiment on. It took a lot of trust and reassurance from people like Kleinman to

convince these early applicants. We had a team of ten people all together, working in different fashions in a one thousand square foot house, and that was our office at the time, bursting at the seams. Those first group of people were nervous beyond you know, beyond belief right going in there that day. But they trusted us. That was the important thing, and we said to them, whatever happens, you're gonna be okay. Applying for amnesty was like an infomercial.

Initial fees are only one simple payment of But if you act now, you can add one family member under eighteen years of age for just fifty dollars. That's right. If you act fast, you can bring the whole family. The cap per family was set at four and twenty dollars. That's not including seventy five dollars for legal fees, twenty five dollars for fingerprints and medical examinations. Let's say you got the fees covered. Now you have to go apply

on an I n S. Office. Now, the first obstacle is proven that you've been in this country since before January one. Then you had to prove that you were self supporting or had a job. So if you were a quote public charge or receiving government assistance, you were disqualified. If you were a felon disqualified. It felt like the goal post was constantly shifting. It was like the government opened the gates for people to come in, but they kept moving the entryway every time you got near it.

The application period was a year. That's Charles Kalbasaki, author of immigration reform, the Corps that Will Not Die, And we were requesting an extension of another year, and the rules about who was eligible and who wasn't changed like fifteen times during the course of that year. Even though it was the first immigration reform of its size, they weren't exactly hiring Tom Cruise to announce lumness DA. The U. S.

Government only invested ten million dollars in outreach. That's a third of the estimated cost of the Iran Contra deal, which traded American hostages for thirty million dollars. Coincidentally, right after Reagan signed URGA, I mean, the inc hadn't even dry ya and the only question from the press wasn't about amnesty, it was about the Iran hostages, and Reagan

gave no comment. And the other problem with that ten million dollar budget was that in turn had to be used not just to inform the undocumented about their requirements, but was also designed to inform the millions of businesses in the country that they would also now be facing these new potential penalties if they hired unauthorized workers. So someone would say, oh, ten million dollars, that seems like

it's a lot of money, but that's a pittance. That's nothing in terms of what people put into social marketing. It was up to people like journalists Lopez, who covered Urka at the time. For Lapion, he actually created a Spanish language pamphlet for immigrant communities spreading the news of amnesty SOLM programs. Community effort played a huge role. When the government, realizing the community wasn't trusting the i S office, they set up centers all across local churches, and those

centers accounted for sixty of all amnesty applications. For some families, the responsibility of translation fell on their children who spoke English. I feel like Latinos have this like sense of community, and especially my mom and my grandma and my aunt have always kind of been like helpful to other folks, you know what I mean. That is rain Solis. She was about six or seven years old at that time.

Her mom and a Willa would go up and down the amnesty applicants line asking if anyone needed a bilingual interpreter. I do remember that vividly, that it was cold and dark, and we were outside and there was just a line of people and I was just asked to come to the front of the line and translate for somebody who did not speak English. There's something you should know about Mexicans.

They're resourceful as fun. Even before Erica passed, Mexican immigrants have been using fake documents to cross the border and get work. It was a common thing to buy a fake social Security number or amica, the street name of a green card. My pops actually used to sell them back in the early eighties. Indeed I had Oh well that's but now Urka was asking for documents proving that you lived in the US for five years, so naturally

the black market for forged documents exploded. The vast majority of that fraud was people really who had worked in agriculture but just couldn't prove it. But Kamasaki says there were people who straight up line, there were examples of folks who claimed that they were agricultural workers, and you know, they would be questioned and would say, well, what did you do? And they said, well, you know, I harvested

tomatoes off tomato trees or gave answers. They clearly demonstrated that they had never actually harvested a single tomato before. But again, most of those documents were because the system, the very idea of proof was so complicated. And think of it even more, if you're in a situation where you might have two or three families in a house and so only the utility bill would only be in

one person's name. Think about if you had you were like a migrant worker and you were moving from town to town, so even things like school records, you would have to go back and pull records from you know, five six seven schools or something like that. Employers were

also accepting fake documents. In a study by C. S U. L A. In the late eighties, they interviewed sixties service based businesses and found that most accepted fake documents they weren't required to check authenticity, especially in jobs like construction and landscaping. Also, employers could take advantage of a provision that exempted checking paperwork if you only hire for a few days, So unless it was quote blatant, employers accepted

fake documents. Erica led to an increase in the quality of those fake documents, and the demand made the costs go up as well. It's simple economics, baby. I admire the folks who use fake documents to build a new life in the States. It is almost downright patriotic. They did what they had to to secure a future for their families, and scamming it's one of America's great pastimes. We're a country built on new beginnings. Out of the shadows,

will be right back now, back to the show. Adriana Venegas was one of those people who used fake documents. Her father came first to this country in two and would come back from Mexico to work seasonally. Once Urka passed and he got amnesty, he made arrangements for his wife and children to cross. Once my dad found out that he was able to sponsor his kids after legalizing himself in seven, he and my mom started planning the move.

Her mom and dad came up with the plan. Most of my my cousins had been born here, legalized, etcetera, So we essentially took borrowed cousins birth certificates to help my siblings cross. Adriana and her siblings were about to

cross the border using their cousin's birth certificates. They memorized every detail perfectly, and so, for example, I talked to my brother the other day and he remembers practicing his lines and saying that you know, my uncle was his dad, my aunt was his mom, and that he was my cousin. Adriana remembers the day vividly. She remembers what she was wearing, what she was doing, and even the way the sun felled on her face in it was a summer day

in July. I remember putting on my dress because I knew it was coming to the States, so I had to look nice, and so as a five year old, I put on this little blue dress. I had blue flowers and it had like this little bib. And remember very vividly seeing my grandfather waved goodbye as the truck took off, and then I never saw my grandfather again. I have the last the last time I saw them, because once we moved here, we were able to go back. Her great aunt had to reassure her as he crossed.

She's my grandmother's sister and her son took me in their car, and so they told me, you don't have to do anything. You just have to sit here on my lab and fall asleep, and then once you wake up, you're you're going to be in the States. And I said, okay, that's easy enough. I actually did end up falling asleep, and it took us all day, I think, to cross the line. And at this point it was already dark, it was night. So I just ended up falling asleep.

And so once I woke up, I was in the States, and we went to my aunt's place, of my uncle's place in Santa Ana. While we waited for my other siblings, and one of my siblings, actually my my youngest brother, who seven at the time, he ended up getting sent to second revision. So you do the first revision. If they see that something's a little suspicious, they'll send you to the second. So while Adrenna slept, her brother was sent to a second checkpoint. The immigration officer took it

upon himself too to question my brother. Remember he ran in. Her siblings all practiced their lines over and over, and the whole time my brother did not break from his script the entire time. He said, I am my cousin, my cousin's name, and I am my uncle's son and I am my aunt's son. So the immigration officer was interviewing is seven year old, and the seven year old understood assignment. The assignment don't deviate from the plant. No matter what the mega says or does, he never broke

what was unbelievable? Who was that? If he hadn't practiced as much, and if he hadn't like stuck to his script, we'd all have to go back. So the entire thing is almost on a seven year old shoulders, and that he crossed, we all crossed. The bravery of these kids is so inspiring. Both Adriana and her brother had to grow up so fast in just minutes. A seven year old child was the hero that day, and hearing all

that makes me think of my own mom. I never asked her what her experience applying for amnesty was like until now, and she says, it all goes back to that backpack I told you about in the first episode, the one she was carrying as it were chased by the Megata through the desert. I had a lot of proofs in my backpack, like you know, doctors papers, when my appointments, when I was pregnant with Patty and John, and uh, also my work is tabs missed alone is

a chicken? And uh, that's it. Did you also have my dad's paperwork? I had also his papers, so you had saved them? Yeah, because you know, I am a very nice person of everything. So before you left in Mexico, you didn't know anything about this. I didn't know anything,

and I didn't care. But at that time, I don't know what I say, but I just said, well, maybe just like to remember that I was here, and I put in you know, and inside books, you know, because I used to read a lot, so I had a lot of books and I and I took the books with me, and I put all the papers you know in there, and and others and envelopes and yellow envelopes and I and I do those papers with me. But me, it wasn't me. It was God that put in my in my mind, you know, to say these papers, call

it luck or destiny. But thanks to that bag, she didn't have as hard a time applying for amnesty as others. She was able to apply to church and have plenty of letters of recommendation, but getting amnesty that changed everything for her. I feel free, like in this country, I can't describe, you know, but it was very happy. I write a letter to my my parents right away. Mama, I got my green car. After I I got my green card, you are like an eagle. Now, eagle, you

are free. You have the same rights as the president. They say you are free. You are free. So I started like shaking my body and crying and and always give in my mind. I have the same rights as the president, the same rights. So nobody's going to stop me. I have the same rights as the president. Those are some of the most powerful words my mom's ever spoken.

Even back then, she could feel how monumental it was to come out of the shadows, all the struggle that she went through, crossing the border twice just to secure my family's future. And I don't know if I could ever pay her back. But one thing I know is that I want people to know this story. I want to make sure that these voices are heard, because even today there are people still living in the shadows, millions

of people. Good is the story of multiple realities. These people that we talked to were just some of the few who were able to get amnesty. They were the lucky ones. It was life changing for Patty's mom my parents, Adrianna and Timith, Theo and all the people in the photo we told you about at the top of the show. Those people in the photo were only there because of Larry Kinman. He felt like he was part of something bigger and the smiles were palpable ft away. People can

imagine raising families. People would imagine establishing themselves permanently. People could imagine themselves going to work and not being afraid of not coming home at the end of the day. But at the same time, Erica was a reminder to folks living in this country, being American as can be, that they still were and wanted and given how difficult it was to apply, I don't know imagine how many more people could have got an amnesty. Most analysts believe

at least of the eligible population never got legalized. Remember, this is still a story of luck. Like as who's got to see yuh the big grease fan. He wasn't so lucky. Has Sus never even got to apply for amnesty. He was too afraid because he had a criminal record. The cops arrested him in a group of salvador Anios because they thought he was associated with them. As thirteen. But in order to understand how that went down, we have to go back tell Salvador in the late nineties seventies.

You'll hear that story next episode, next time on Out of the Shadows, Children of eighty six. The story it's even more complicated in pain for us. We take a look at what it was like for people like Cassus, people who weren't Mexican, and to talk about that, we have to look at Reagan's other legacy, his destruction of Central America. If you love this podcast, please help us get the word out by following, rating, reviewing, and sharing it with your friends. Out of the Shadows is written

by Caesar Hernandez. It's also written, edited, hosted, an executive produced by Patti Rodriguez and Eric Galindo. It's produced by Bett Cardanas, Karen Lopez and Gabby Watts. It's sound design mixed and mastered by Jesse nice Longer. Our studio engineer is Clay Hillenburg. Karen Garcia That's Me is our announcer. Out of the Shadows is the production of Seeing Me Other Productions and School of he Men's in partnership with

I Hearts Michael Tura podcast Network. The podcast is also executive produced by Giselle Banzes, Virginia Prescott, Brandon Barr, and Chad Crowley. Our marketing and our team is led by Jasmine Mehia. Original music by a Arenas and if you loved his cover of Los Caminos la vida this podcast theme song, you can listen to it on all music platforms. Historical audio for Out of the Shadows comes from the

Reagan Presidential Library and the National Archives. Special thanks to Ian Vargas, Alex and Ali, Caitlin Becker, gob Chabran, Daisy Church, Angel Lopez Glendo, Julianna Gamis, Ryan Gordon, Brian Matheson, Claudia Marty Corena, Oscar Ramidz, John Rodriguez, Juan Rodrie Guess, Joshua Sandoval, Eric Sclar, Tony Sorrentino, and Megan tan with the other me