TV Guide
THE HOPES AND FEARS OF ILLEGAL ALIENS
A sympathetic report on how the American dream can become a nightmare for illegal aliens from Mexico. Especially those with deep roots in the United States.
The hour finds that for such immigrants and their children, routine things like driving a car can never be done with complete ease. Victor Gamez and his family, who live near Escondido, confronted their worst fears when they were detected on a beach trip and faced deportation. Among those who have intervened in the family's behalf are a State senator and neighbors.
Others who have faced deportation include La Jolla maid Benita Vasoun and her husband
Ignacio who works as a cook and has found the fear of being uprooted to be a constant one.
Ignacio adds: "Without papers, you have to tolerate everything at a job." Many of the children shown have experienced a typical middle-class American childhood and would find life in Mexico to be foreign to their upbringing.
With the new immigration law now in effect, many aliens have a chance to receive amnesty, but the application process is complicated and may deter many from applying.