What is 'America'?

Whatever your opinion on immigration policy, it is essential to know – behind the headlines and the politics – exactly whom you are talking about: Kids like Yves Gomes, 17, of Maryland, who has been in this country since he was 1 ½ years old and is scheduled to be deported to India on Friday; or Gladys Martinez, from Mexico, who says that high school in this country changed her world.

“I always listened and believed what my teachers told me,” Martinez writes on the web site We Are America. “That if I did well in school, doors and opportunities would open up for me.”

But that was not exactly so. Despite Gladys’ 4.1 grade point average, she is unable to continue her studies at college because of her status – undocumented.

Yves and Gladys (who is now fighting for passage of the Dream Act), are among dozens of immigrants whose stories are featured on the “We Are America,” a web site that aims to educate people about the human side of this complex issue through simple, powerful stories.

“Before you believe what you hear, do your own research. Get to know what you’re against,” says Rene, a Marine who served four years despite his lack of citizenship. “Immigrants are people.”