Category: Piece of the Week

-Batman, Santa Cruz I’m not too sure what’s better. In a sense, as a leader I would assume if people love you, they will follow you no matter what. But even if someone loves you, they still can betray you.  As for being feared, if someone is scared of you, they will follow. As a leader, you have to be able to guide people. If you’re loved, they will willingly listen to your advice. If you’re feared, people will listen no matter what.  To me, if you don’t have both, you’re not a good leader. Being feared will keep people

-Kamron, San Francisco A lesson learned? Well, one is that we all can change, so don’t never think it’s too late or that we can’t change, because we can. It’s just you have to really want to, and you want to need to. Not only for yourself, but for the people you hurt while making your own mistakes, or when you’re punishing yourself.  Sometimes we have to love ourselves for our mistakes because that’s what makes us better people, and no one is perfect.

-Nicholas, Sonoma  Born in Veracruz, Mexico, my dad was the youngest of eight. His family was very poor, and in search of a better life he moved to the United States in 2000 when he was twenty-seven. After hearing about a high paying job, my dad moved to Aberdeen, Washington. That is where my father met my mother. A couple of years of dating and my brother was born. One year later, I was born.  Times were tough for my family. Money was a big struggle for them. We ended up moving down to Sonoma after my father’s sister offered

-Uz, San Francisco Left behind, behind these walls, nowhere to go with a lot to leave behind. Family, kids, opportunities. You see there’s a lot you don’t appreciate when you are free.  Actually, let me rephrase. Value the things around you, like your freedom and the people who care for you and the things you enjoy until you don’t got it anymore. Think before you act. Think before you move because then you can end up just like everyone else who can’t because it was too late.  Then you’ll be left behind. Missed, forgotten, and a place that can break

-Jason, San Francisco  I think that if I was living in a different era, it would be one thousand years in the future. I would choose that time period because we would be able to live after all the wars have gone down. We would get a better understanding of where we stand in the universe.  I feel like it’s important to get that what is holding us back is our thought process as well as the moral compass. I feel like in the future, we would surpass all the diseases such as cancer and learn more about how powerful

-Hopeful, Yolo  I miss being free and just being in control of my life. Being locked up in this facility is really difficult. I have a journal I write in so that when I’m free, I’ll read it and remember how hard it was not being in control of anything.  I miss being with my parents and just being able to drive my car. I’ve been locked up five times already, and this time being the hardest. I hate not being able to be on my phone and eat fast food. I miss driving around and jamming my music.  It’s

-IR, Albuquerque I miss my family. I miss my sister. I wish I could just see her and talk to her just one more time. I want a relationship with my mother. Oh, why can’t you just put some effort and see me? I miss my dad. He needs to get out so he can visit me, and I can call him.  I miss my brothers. I want to understand why they can’t give you guys a second chance. I want to see that woman who knows how to calm me down and make me happy and makes me laugh,

-JJ, San Diego  “A broken immigration system means broken families and broken lives.” -Jose Antonio Vargas  Yes, a broken immigration system does break families. If a woman’s husband is deported and they have children, she often has to work and cannot take care of her kids because she relies on her husband to provide for the family.  The immigration system fails to recognize that many of these families are hardworking and just trying to live right. They allow people with criminal backgrounds in but don’t give hardworking individuals a second chance. They also don’t seem to acknowledge that Hispanics work

-JSM, Sonoma  What I would tell my younger self is to enjoy school, be involved in the community, and to be yourself. I would tell myself to not be scared to choose a path in life as long as it’s a good, successful path. Go on forward, and don’t be scared to face your fears and challenges.  One last thing I would tell my younger self is to make wise choices, and don’t be afraid to ask for help or take another step forward to better yourself in any way. Don’t be scared to spread your wings. 

-A, San Francisco One thing that makes me feel good about helping is when I help my friends while we are locked up. If I’m able to get something from the staff, I’m doing what I’m supposed to do. I like to give something to my friends.  Even if I’m not very close with someone, I still like to share what I got because at the end of the day, even though some people are going through more than others, we are all in a similar situation while we are locked up. Everyone is going through something. Whether it’s some