Written By : Jhaylin Saquicaray
A woman of fifty- three years old , Zchened Pauta migrated to the United States at the age of twenty - four. There is a story behind every decision to migrate . So what was Zcheneds story behind this vast decision ?
Zchened is originally from Quito , Ecuador . She was born into a poverty stricken family , being the oldest of seven she carried the weight of the big sister role. At the age of fourteen a bigger role was put on her when her mother passed away from breast cancer , leaving behind six other siblings for her to take care of ; the youngest being two years old. Continuing her education past the eighth grade was not an option being that her father was unable to provide schooling for all seven of his children. He decided that if he cannot provide schooling for all seven , then none of the siblings would be continuing their education . This left Zchened to focus on being a big sister / mother to her younger siblings and work around the small farm the family had. Their youth was taken away from them and was a very difficult upbringing , food and clothes were very limited . “ I had no childhood , I didn't know what going to the park was, or watching my favorite cartoons on TV , I was always on survival mode I knew each morning to wake up at four in the morning to start the chores of the house , I had to take care of six of my siblings and work in the family farm at the same time “ - Zchened.
At the age of eighteen she was a married woman , from this marriage two kids were conceived. It was hard for Zchened to let go of her awful childhood and life struggles , and this is exactly what she did not want her children to go through. She had often seen how a lot of people around her kept migrating to the United States , in hopes that another well known country could provide better working paying jobs to provide for their family back in their home land. This left hope for Zchened to provide a better life for her kids , all she could think about was how horrible her childhood was. She wanted to be able to provide education for her kids most importantly. It was a devastating decision she had to come to a conclusion with when she realized in order for her to migrate to the United States her kids would have to be left behind.
And so Zchened journey to the United States began. It was 1992 , she was only twenty- two years old . She was unable to come to the United States with legal status because she came from poverty , her visa would never get approved. This left Zchened to migrate to the United States illegally . In order to do this she would have to pay a coyote to guide her in the right route to the United States. Zchened had to borrow ten thousand dollars in order to pay the coyote. This left even more motivation to work as soon as she got to the United States to pay this debt back. What is a coyote ? A coyote for migrants are people that have helped other migrants many times to come to the United States , they've done this many times so they are very knowledgeable in what routes to take. The very dangerous aspect of this is that often these coyotes are associated with cartels and other criminal organizations.
Who did you come with and who did you leave behind?” “ I came alone , none of my family members came with me unfortunately i had to leave my two kids behind , I have heard of other parents taking their child with them but It is extremely dangerous” Untilt this day , Zchened vividly remembers saying her goodbyes to her children and family members , she often still tears up speaking about it . It had been the hardest decision she had to make. She left behind a two year old and a three year old , in hopes to give them a better life .
Zchened left from Quito , Ecuador to Guatemala on a plane and stayed there for eight days with a total of one hundred and ten immigrants . For the eight days she stayed at some of the coyotes' properties . One hundred and ten people were divided into two homes. She remembers how crowded and uncomfortable this experience alone was , sharing a home with strangers and living in fear ; her only slight comfort was a woman she met. They had developed a friendship and spoke about their family back home. After these eight days , the group of one hundred and ten people were all put into a semi large truck headed to Mexico . Zchened describes how uncomfortable this was , they were told to sit almost on top of each other with their legs opened in order to have all of them fit into this truck . Whoever did not fit were told to get in between other passengers , technically all squished . She remembers the cries from men and women, some from pain , some from deprivation , anxiety etc . One of the first scary encounters was when the semi large truck almost flipped over a mountain “ by the grace of god “ Zchened’s exact words , the truck stayed stuck , with one wheel hanging out of the road . They were instructed to slowly come out of the truck one by one , any slight mistake could have been the end of each passenger. Each one of them pushed the truck into the right position onto the road and so they all quickly got back on the truck , getting screamed at, tossed around and disrespected , the coyotes could not risk getting caught trying to smuggle immigrants. Their destination was a small house in which they only slept for one night , they had to rest for what was coming the next day . Early in the morning they were woken up at five in the morning to continue their travel to the United States . This might have been the most brutal part of her journey , they walked day and night for eight days from Mexico to Los Angeles. They were allowed to rest ten to twenty minutes at a time , they all could not afford to get caught . When she finally arrived in Los Angeles she took a flight to New York , Queens .
“ What was it like when you first arrived in the United States ? “ Zcehened Answered “ When I finally arrived in the United States , I was awfully surprised that I wasn't as content as I thought I’d be , grateful of course but inside I felt sad , alone and lost . Besides on how i felt emotionally I was highly surprised of how many people there were , organized roads tall buildings something i've never seen at the time since all I’ve known was Ecuador “ Thankfully , Zchened had a couple of friends who were living in the same home , they too had migrated from Ecuador , they were the only sense of relief and support. “ So was there ever a time where you felt unwelcomed ? “ I asked , “ I remember this specific time leaving a doctor's office in tears , I had gone in for a annual check up no one spoke spanish but all I could really understand was them telling me to get out and go because they couldn't help me , they didn't seem polite at all either I felt so discriminated “
Zchened landed a job at a clothing factory , where they packed and sewed up clothing. She describes working so much that oftentimes she would have blisters in her thighs from sitting all day long , Zchened would work as much as eighty to ninety hours per week , not getting paid overtime and only earning four dollars per hour. Regardless of such a low pay , Zchened was able to pay off her ten thousand dollar debt within a year.
In2001 , Zchened remarried to her current husband. From this marriage three more kids were conceived. Both Zchened and her husband have even fixed their residency. They both applied in 2012 and by 2015 they received their letter of approval . Three four years later Zchened and her husband were able to purchase their first home in New Jersey , and they both now run a successful printing business.
After all the struggles she went through and sacrifices taken , Zchened was asked “ was it all worth it ? “ It was very obvious that it was a very compelling question to answer , you would think she would answer right away and say yes immediately, especially with her success and completing the “ American Dream “ . And so she answered “ Yes I have a house , a successful business and an amazing husband , but my father passed away while I was here, still illegal. I was unable to travel and say my goodbyes to him ; for that I will forever feel guilty about. My two kids who I had to leave behind , they grew up with everything I never had as a child , clean clothes , the best foods , and education. But I missed out on raising them. We do talk a lot at least with my son, but my daughter holds resentment against me. But I have already started paperwork to get him a visa , I would never allow him to come here illegally and go through everything I went through. In the end I cannot answer that question without feeling guilt , I don't want to say it was not worth it because i certainly am grateful for what I
have today , but I don't want to say it was worth it without feeling guilt and remembering the
consequences it came with“
“ What do you wish more people knew about immigrants, migrants, or others that are new to the community?” “ I wish that this stereotype that we are all criminals would stop , every race has criminals , I came here to work and make something out of myself in order to give my children a better life , and to my people back home I hope they know life isn't easy here either , you need to work yourself up . I think a lot of my people back home have this idea that in the United States money just comes around so easy , when it's nothing like that “
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