Dear America: Notes of an Undocumented Citizen

“I come from a family of gamblers.”

The opening line of the text introduces two key themes: family and risk. The manner in which the author is shaped and molded by his family, how he has taken on board their life lessons, will be essential throughout his journey as an undocumented migrant. At the same time, the inherent risk in any kind of gambling reveals the high stakes that are at play at such a time. The author’s family have gambled everything on his future, willing to risk everything for the chance of a better life. 

“To Lolo, America was something you wear, something you buy, something you eat, and he wanted to spoil his first and only grandson—me.” 

The author’s introduction to American culture is couched in consumerist terms. Lolo, the author’s grandfather who is well-acquainted with America, chooses to interpret American identity through a purely capitalistic lens: American culture is bought, worn, and consumed. To pass as an American and to integrate into the culture, the author must learn to become a consumer. This is juxtaposed against the poorer Filipino culture, in which the author’s family did not have the finances to express themselves in such a manner. 

“Filipinos fit everywhere and nowhere at all.” 

The above quote helps to illustrate one of the central tensions in the book: that people from the Philippines are uniquely placed at an intersection between Asian and Latino identity that precludes them from entry into any one racial demographic.