When I was 4 years old, I walked into a K1 classroom at the American School Foundation in Mexico City. Unbeknownst to me, this was the first step in preparing myself to become an American Citizen.

Steps to easily becoming a citizen:

1. Lifelong experience speaking English. My parents spoke English, fostering a positive learning environment at home. My parents were able to send me to private schools growing up that immersed the English language in the majority of my learning.
2. Move to the United States – legally. Only possible after my dad was able to prove that he was unique in his skills and abilities, becoming elligible for a work Visa that included us as his dependents.
3. Learn American Civics. This topic infiltrated my K-12 learning, regardless of what school I attended and what country I lived in. Not only was I taught all about colonial America, the Industrial Revolution, all of the wars, and all of the civil movements, but I excelled at learning, truly integrating this information in my brain as knowledge, or at least tucking it in somewhere to later recall.
4. Get a green card. Only possible with my dad having a lawyer, a permanent job that assists in the acquiring of a green card, and the ability to make the financial investment. Convenient transportation was helpful, too, given that there were strictly scheduled appearances at Immigration Services.
5. Live in the US for 5 years. Again, this made possible by my dad’s full-time, well-paid job. I graduated from free, public education at one of the top rated high schools in the country. I was Yearbook Editor in Chief, and learned French. I took AP classes. Thanks to these, I walked into college with 20 credits on day one. I went to college fully paid by merit scholarships and my parents. I had time to be involved in Greek Life. I was Panhellenic President. I collaborated with resource centers and organizations on campus to improve the cultural climate. I had three internships. I got to pick between studying abroad in France or in South Africa. I picked South Africa. My parents paid for that, too. I graduated, and thanks to my experience and education I started a job a month later. A few months in, I quit. I was able to do that because I had a green card. I was able to survive because I built savings. I built these because my parents paid for my living expenses until I graduated. I had a quarter life crisis. I worked many jobs, many hours, drank too much, and slept too little. I got a new job. This job changed my life. I rented houses and apartments, I bought a car, I had credit cards, I adopted cats. I moved in with my boyfriend. I broke his car but was able to help fix it because I developed a credit. Because I had a green card.
6. Begin application for citizenship. My dad organized the process, streamlined the paperwork we filled out, and paid a lot of money.
7. Get an interview. Because I have no criminal record. Because I am privileged not to.
8. Interview. I drove to Detroit. With the car I paid with my credit. Paying for gas with money I have because I have a job because I have a green card. I still got paid from work because I get time off along with a salary. I regurgitated information that I had memorized for the past month, but already knew because I’ve grown up learning it (refer to step 3). I read and wrote a simple phrase (refer to step 1). I was calm and confident during the process (refer to steps 1-7). I passed.
9. Attend ceremony. Where hundreds of people swear their loyalty to a country that promises a lot but makes you give up your blood, sweat, and tears for it — quite literally. We are now free of the fear of being deported under a weary administration. We are now capable of being heard through our voice and vote. We are now stripped of the stigma of being aliens. We let our spaceships leave without us, leaving us at the hands of this capitalist, beautiful, complex monster full of opportunities and pain.
10. Realize that this is not normal. I will keep my privilege on the forefront of my mind. I will understand that I glossed over experiences that very few have access to. My ducks lined up in just the right row so that I could stride into that office and answer six questions that determined my future. I will acknowledge the work and pain that people put in to have access to opportunity and freedom. I will be aware of the work my parents put in to get me here. I will be aware of the pain that my success has caused. The systems I have benefitted from have only helped me because they hurt someone else. And now we face the shit. And we celebrate, because, by golly, I’m a US citizen.