Hwanhee (Hilary) Yoon opened her iPhone and scrolled to the Notes section where her 2-minute-long graduation speech as Evergreen High School’s student body president awaits the Class of 2022 in a few weeks.
“Do you want me to read it?” the Evergreen High senior asked.
Yoon’s speech doesn’t focus on COVID-19’s impact on the Class of 2022 or high school experiences, but rather, the importance of relationships. She’s been a varsity basketball and golf standout since her freshman year, is heavily involved in student government and clubs, and will soon be class valedictorian.
None would be possible, she said, without the relationship that means the world to her: her parents, Byung and Kim Yoon, who emigrated from South Korea in 2004 when their daughter was an infant.
“Every little thing I think of,” said Yoon, 18, “it all falls back to them.”
Yoon’s had a typical American upbringing, yet grew up knowing she isn’t a United States citizen. Now, she’s fighting for her legal future as a Documented Dreamer and navigating how to remain in a country she considers home.
According to Improve the Dream, a national organization that raises awareness and advocates for young immigrants in the United States, more than 200,000 young immigrants live legally in the country. Called Documented Dreamers, they’ve grown up in the U.S. as dependents of long-time visa holders, yet don’t have clear paths toward citizenship. When Dreamers age out of their dependent status at age 21, they lose their legal status and face the threat of self-deportation.
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