2012 You S.A.

YOU

S.A.

When street is your home YouSA explores the loneliness of teen homelessness in San Antonio. Pages 6-7

The newspaper of the resurrected Urban Journalism Workshop at San Antonio College June 21, 2012 Vol. 28, No. 1 www.theranger.org

Teacher-student sexual affairs are increasing Madison scandal is latest in disturbing citywide trend

By Amor Flores Lanier High School In the last two years, reports of inappropriate relationships between students and teachers have increased at San Antonio schools, according to Adriana Biggs, chief of the white-collar crime division of the Bexar County District Attorney’s Office.

In the most recent incident, a 34-yearold male teacher is accused of having a relationship with an 18-year-old female senior at Madison High School. The teacher was fired, and Northeast Independent School District police are investigating the allegations. The police are waiting for phone records before forwarding the case to the District Attorney’s Office, said district spokeswoman Aubrey Chancellor.

Technology, from phone records to social media, can make it easier for these cases to be prosecuted, Biggs said.

“The technology is there, it’s not just ‘he said, she said,’ ” Biggs said. “Whereas before, they might have said something inappropriate, now they send you a text or a picture of themselves; it makes the case easier to pursue.”

In the Madison case, the student has photos of the teacher on her Facebook page, and the two have posted comments on each other’s pages, though none of the comments or photos contain sexual content. In one post, the young woman says she attended Shakespeare in the Park at the San Antonio Bo-

tanical Garden to watch “Othello” with the teacher May 31, five days before graduation.

Even though the allegations in the Madison case involve an 18-year-old student, who is legally an adult, the law makes any sexual relationship between a teacher and student illegal. The offense is a second-degree felony, and sentencing can range from two to 20 years, yet first-time offenders can apply for community supervision, Biggs said.

Biggs said the adult still may be prosecut See TEACHER, Page 3

‘I believe in fighting for equal rights. I deserve to be treated like a human being.’

Laura Cortes President, Students United for the DREAM Act

Felipe Vargas, an organizer for the National Immigrant Youth Alliance, discusses how teens are affected by the DREAM Act. Read his story on Page 11.

Katherine Garcia

DREAMUNREALIZED

J

Immigrants rally for a path to citizenship

By Carla Gonzales Lee High School

esus Gomez, 18, plays soccer when he’s not working as a of a society that refuses to embrace them as citizens. bus boy at a local restaurant.

He’s undocumented and the clock is ticking on his He’s as normal as any other teen walking San Antonio’s future. Stories like his are becoming more and more streets, but Gomez is one of an estimated 400,000 young common. people in Texas living on borrowed time in the shadows See DREAM ACT, Page 10

YOU S.A.

2

Workshop saved despite budget cuts High school students learn life lessons with hands-on journalism experience

By Cassandra Anderson Stevens High School For 28 years, the Urban Journalism Workshop at San Antonio College, known as UJW, has served high school students who aspired to make a career in journalism.

After last year’s workshop, the program was on the verge of closing because of budget cuts, but San Antonio College President Robert Zeigler dashed in at the 11th hour, promising to find funding.

“We found a way to make the workshop operational for this summer, and we’ll continue to do that,” Zeigler said. “This is too important not to continue to do it, and I think Dow Jones (News Fund) probably made the same decision.”

The Urban Journalism Workshop, which debuted in 1985 with a seed grant from the Dow Jones News Fund, has worked with hundreds of high school students. Each year, with access to professional journalists, college students and journalism faculty, a small group of high school journalists from San Antonio and the surrounding area have produced a newspaper in the course of the two-week boot camp.

Alma Linda Manzanares, who attended the workshop in 2009, is now editor of the San Antonio College newspaper, The Ranger.

“I don’t think I’d be editor of The Ranger without attending the workshop,” Manzanares said. “You have a newspaper, which you finish in two weeks. It’s a really great experience overall.”

As with most educational and enrichment programs, it takes money to fund activities. The workshop is free to participants, who are housed in area dormitories and fed three meals plus snacks each day for the 11 days of the workshop.

Rented vans transport students to interviews and social activities and Ranger Tricia Buchhorn editors and reporters serve as resident as- Urban Journalism Workshop 2012 participants outside Loftin Student Center at San Antonio College sistants in the dorms and assist in coaching the students through their assignments.

The program also brings newspaper projournalists.

Behind the byline fessionals and university professors in as “Knowledge is essential to one’s success,” faculty.

Unlike many students her age, 17-year-old Cas- Anderson said. “It does not matter what environZeigler said he understands the proment you acquire it from or how you come across sandra Anderson loves school. gram’s funding needs. it. What does matter is how you choose to use it.”

Anderson takes “We feel that it’s important … there’s She would like to attend a college in Texas, tremendous pride in her money, but you’ve got to look to where it’s perhaps San Antonio College, to major in journalstudies. At Stevens High significant and put your money there, and School, she is ranked No. ism and minor in either history or English. that’s what we decided to do,” Zeigler said.

Anderson said her free time usually consists of 27 and will try to move In the case of UJW, money is received studying in the library, reading “Harry Potter” or up the ranks when she from the Dow Jones Newspaper Fund writing for the Stevens High School newspaper. begins her senior year in where, in 1984, Professors W.B. Daugherty She considers herself a studious person who the fall. and Chet Hunt originally submitted a proenjoys some of the more “nerdy” things in life.

She was a member posal for a SAC sponsored workshop. The Over the years, she has taken a keen liking to of her middle school’s SAC UJW is one of 26 high school workcomic books.

National Junior Honor Society and is now in her shops supported by Dow Jones this year.

Some of her favorite superheroes include Elechigh school’s National Honor Society.

Many other organizations, publications She also was inducted into the Quill and Scroll, tra, Wolverine, Batman, Thor and Wonder Woman. and companies also contribute to UJW - Patricia Zaragoza an international honor society for high school and have continued to do so for the past 28 years.

“We’re going to run the workshop,” Zeigler said. “We’re proud of the workshop resident assistant for the first time in 1987 workshop. They considered a variety of opand we’ll keep doing it and I’m delighted and in 1995, upon the death of department tions, including eliminating the residence chair, Daugherty, became director. She has portion and shortening the program’s that we’re finding ways to do that.” length. Ultimately, the staff came to a deciThe Dow Jones rules require each stu- seen a lot of changes in 26 years.

“I feel a sion. dent to write a number of “It was incredibly sad,” Abrego said. bylined story. things have “Support from the college had been cut The highlights c h a n g e d , ” for several years running. We also faced of the proAbrego said. a cut in funding from the San Antonio gram for many “The stories Express-News three years ago. We felt we students were have more were making the right decision in ending a trip to the c o m p l e x i t y the workshop.”

San Antonio and depth to The Dow Jones Newspaper Fund proExpress-News them com- vides the workshop with $4,000 and the to shadow repared to the San Antonio Express-News donates $8,000 porters and Dr. Robert Zeigler stories stu- plus in-kind donations, including the working on San Antonio College president dents were release of reporter Vincent Davis, opentheir stories, writing when I ing the newsroom to allow students to which meant shadow reporters, lunch with editors and driving around the city, interviewing joined in 1987.”

For about four months before the 2011 the participation of numerous personnel members of the community, business leaders, nonprofit volunteers and government workshop, plans for ending the program throughout the course of the program. had been discussed by staff, many of whom Members of the daily newspaper’s phoofficials and taking photographs.

UJW Director Irene Abrego served as a can claim 25 years or 15 years with the tography staff coach students on photo as-

‘We’re proud of the workshop and we’ll keep doing it, and I’m delighted that we’re finding ways to do that.’

June 21, 2012

The staff Cassandra Anderson Amor Flores Katherine Garcia Carla Gonzales Alexandra Gutierrez Richard Hernandez Kristin Martinez Alejandra Salazar Kristina Seavers Emma Yanez Patricia Zaragoza

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Jolene Almendarez n Claire Andres n Jacob Beltran n Billy Calzada n Sheila Rene Chancellor n Jennifer Coronado n Faith Duarte n Dr. Fred & Charlene Blevens n Joshua Fechter n Jordan Gass-Poore n Juan Garcia n Laura Garcia n Jo Hilton n Chet Hunt n Friends of Journalism at San Antonio College n Jamie Karutz n Mark Magavern n Alma Linda Manzanares n Helen Montoya n Rebecca Salinas n San Antonio Association of Black Journalists n San Antonio Association of Hispanic Journalists n San Antonio chapter of Society of Professional Journalists n San Antonio College chapter of SPJ n Mark Sobhani n Riley Stephens n Ingrid Wilgen n Adrian Zamarron n Dr. Robert Zeigler n Leonard Ziegler n San Antonio College Book Store n Book Sale of the San Antonio Express-News n Fiesta Medal Auction of the San Antonio Express-News n Subway n Far East Café n Quality Services International n Central Park Pizza n Fresh Taste Foods n Quiznos n Golden Star Cafe n Pete’s Tako House n San Antonio College Public Relations n Texas A&M University-San Antonio

signments.

“This year, there was a added gift,” Abrego said. “The San Antonio ExpressNews gave us proceeds from its annual Fiesta medal auction.”

Everyone learns from the workshop, and it’s no different for those who are in charge.

“I believe everyone who participates in this workshop can develop a skill or talent that can help them in the future,” Abrego said. “There’s potential for the teens of San Antonio to truly succeed.”

YOU S.A.

June 21, 2012

3

A Madison High School teacher’s photo appears on an 18-year-old female student’s Facebook page in this photo illustration.

Behind the byline Amor Flores is allergic to not playing soccer. At least, that’s what anyone who knows her might think.

Flores, 16 and a senior at Lanier High School, has a flair for the game. At just 4 feet 9 inches, she stands as the captain of the varsity soccer team and plays for a club team as well.

Ever since she was kicking it as a tyke on the field, her biggest dream has been to play for a professional team.

“From the moment I found my team to be my best friends, I knew this was what I wanted to do,” Flores said.

As a player, Flores said she is “aggressive.”

“I’m pretty mean on the field,” she said. “I like a good battle. Plus I can take a bruise and not complain, you know?”

Sometimes Flores’s propensity to throw herself into the game gets the best of her.

Last spring, she had a broken middle finger, a sprained ankle and a black toe — all at the same time.

But despite her competitive nature, Flores said it is not about winning.

“It’s about doing what I love,” she said.

Flores said she hopes she will be able to travel in the future. She wants to find a college that will allow her to express her “outdoorsy” nature and provide opportunities for her to explore the world. In addition, Flores said she might join the Peace Corps.

“I like helping people,” she said. “I’ve been volunteering all my life, and I want to keep doing that.”

— Kristina Seavers

Area cases At least a quarter of school districts in the United States have dealt with a case of sexual abuse in the past 10 years, the American Association of University Women Educational Foundation reports. News accounts for the past 18 months reveal a dozen cases in the San Antonio area.

2012 n June: Rogers Middle School, San Antonio ISD — Benjamin W. Crumley, a 33-year-old coach, is sentenced to 10 years for sexual assault of a child after three eighth-grade girls accuse him of sexual assault. n May: Travis Middle School in San Marcos — A 39-year-old male teacher resigns after officials are

TEACHER: Law aims to protect students Continued from Page 1 ecuted even if the student is 18 and consented to having a relationship with a teacher.

In 2003, Texas legislators passed a law under Penal Code 21.12 to prosecute educators and adult school employees who engage in sexual misconduct.

“The Legislature wants people to know it is taking the issue seriously,” Biggs said.

“Consent is not an issue because the teacher is in a position of authority.”

Biggs hopes that the incidents will decrease as a result of new laws being passed, but said, “You never know though, people never cease to amaze me.”

After a report is made to the school, administrators conduct an investigation. If evidence is discovered, the school will file charges with the police and hand the case over to the district attorney, Biggs said.

Biggs said parents should be more vigilant, review their children’s texts, monitor online activity and check on who they are spending time with.

Indication of a teacher-student relationship could include a child being reclusive or introverted, falling grades and an excessive amount of time spent with a teacher, said Dr. Thomas Matthews, an associate professor of psychiatry at the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio.

These relationships happen when a teacher takes a special interest in the student, Matthews said. Students who face neglect and insecurities tend to cling to a source of power. When a teacher gets involved with a student, they cross that line of authority, and the child enters into a state of dependency for that control.

With not enough research being done on the psychological reason behind these events, Matthews said unless the incident

notified of his improper relationship with a girl. n April: Madison High School, Northeast ISD — A 34-year-old male English teacher is fired based on allegations of a relationship with an 18-year-old female student. n April: Judson High School — A 35-year-old male substitute is accused of sending “suggestive” pictures and texts to a 14-year-old girl. He resigns. n April: Wagner High School, Judson ISD — A teacher resigns after being put on administrative leave after students complain they are uncomfortable with him texting them at night. n April: Pearsall Junior High in Pearsall — Noel Navejas, a 32-year-

Amor Flores Dr. Thomas Matthews, children and adolescent psychiatrist at the UT Health Science Center at San Antonio, stresses the misconduct a person of authority exhibits and the lines that are crossed when student-teacher sexual relationships happen. is big, the case may not be reported to the public, making statistics hard to obtain.

Matthews said in his high school, an acquaintance had sexual relations with a teacher, and the student later committed suicide. Matthews said that situation made him more observant of his surroundings.

He said these relationships should not happen. “The authority in this situation is an adult having the ability to control a person of lower power,” Matthews said.

When charges are dropped and no further investigation is conducted, tracking the accused becomes more difficult. When a case goes unfiled, the school potentially faces a civil liability because these victimizers can offend again, Biggs said.

old assistant band teacher, is arrested on charges of sexual assault involving several female students. n April: Olympia Elementary School, Judson ISD — Cynthia D. Stewart, a 43-year-old female counselor, is sentenced to six years after “sexting” a 15-year-old boy naked photos. n March: Burbank High School, San Antonio ISD — Jason Steitle, a 37-year-old trainer, is sentenced to six months for hiding a video camera in the boys locker room restroom to record the soccer team. n February: Franz Elementary School, Judson ISD — Rogelio Ruiz, a 40-year-old teacher’s aide, sentenced to 18 years for fondling third and fourth graders 2004-2007.

Studies have shown that later in life, the victim will likely have relationships where they are more likely to become victimized again, and to feel the need to be controlled.

The issue is not age, Matthews said, but authority.

As with laws against sexual harassment in the workplace, the prohibition exists to protect subordinates from being victimized by those in power.

Educating teachers, students and parents about this crime will potentially help in the awareness of appropriate and inappropriate behavior, he said.

“Whether you are black, white, poor or rich, any child can be subject to abuse without the proper guidance,” Matthews said.

2011 n June: Stevenson Middle School, Northside ISD — Nora Lynn Martinez, a 30-year-old math teacher, is sentenced to 10 years for inappropriate touching and engaging in phone sex with a 14-year-old girl. n March: Jefferson High School, San Antonio ISD — Destini Michelle Muñoz, a 25-year-old dance coach, is arrested on allegations of an improper relationship with an 18-yearold male student. She resigns. n February: Carrillo Elementary School, South San Antonio ISD — Michael Alcoser, a 44-year-old principal, is sentenced to 18 years for molesting two boys in his office.

YOU S.A.

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CAUGHT

June 21, 2012

in sex traffic Authorities say perpetrators lure victims with money and false promises of love

Kristin Martinez Lanier High School Human trafficking, once a sporadic crime, has become a global phenomenon that reaches into local communities and connects with the worst elements of society.

In San Antonio and other communities, law enforcement officials are devoting increasing attention to these crimes of exploitation, often focusing on the perpetrators and victims of pervasive sex-trade operations.

“The community sees sex trafficking as prostitution; however, it is not,” said vice Detective George Segura, who works with a joint federal taskforce on sex trafficking.

“Prostitution is a choice, but trafficking is forced on the person,” he said.

Segura, a 20-year veteran of law enforcement, said much of the trafficking crosses national borders, with predators from the United States going to foreign countries to recruit, blackmail or otherwise coerce their victims into slave-like situations.

San Antonio’s location — almost the midpoint on the cross-country trek between the coasts — puts it in prime position for sex-trade perpetrators, he said.

In a 2011 report, the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights identified Interstate 10 as a major human trafficking route.

Roney Ochanna, a detective in the Bexar County Sheriff ’s Office, said traffickers often keep their victims on drugs to keep them from fighting back.

Ochanna said young victims often are vulnerable because they tend to trust adults who befriend them for the wrong reasons.

Data compiled by the federal government show a predictable profile of victims.

Most are the age of 24; a large majority are female; and a majority are of ethnic or racial minority groups.

The data also show that most perpetrators are under 35, male and also come from ethnic or racial minority groups.

According to the Texas Human Trafficking Prevention Task Force’s report to the Texas Legislature in January 2011, 323 identified sex trafficking victims in Texas were younger than 18 years old.

In response to the findings of that report, state Rep. Senfronia Thompson, D-Houston, and state Sen. Leticia Van De Putte, DSan Antonio, introduced legislation in each house that would sentence those guilty of human trafficking offenses to life in prison, would allow courts to treat underage sex trafficking victims similarly to sexual assault victims and allow parents and guardians of victims to file a protective order against their child’s trafficker.

In addition, legislators successfully proposed bills that established two or more acts of human trafficking in a period of 30 days or more as a felony and exempted human trafficking from the statute of limitations.

In San Antonio, victims of sex trafficking have some alternatives once they are rescued from their perpetrators. One of those is the Rape Crisis Center, which has established a new program to help teens caught

Illustration by Patricia Zaragoza

Identified Sex Trafficking Victims by Gender

Identifying sex trafficking victims ...

By age

n 24 or younger n 25-34 n 35 or older n Unidentified

Female

By race

13% 5%

35%

4% 21%

n African-American n White n Hispanic/Latino n Asian n Other n Unknown

Male

By gender

6%

n Male n Female

94%

22%

U.S. Department of Justice, “Characteristics of Suspected Human Trafficking Incidents, 2008-2010,” published April 2011.

Identified Sex Trafficking Victims by Age

up in sex trafficking. of schools and offer them something that years old or younger 25-34 years old 35 of years old develops or older Unidentified Carmen 24Vasquez, associate director a connection between the preda2% very the center, said predators are tor and the youth.

3% smart.

“They’re looking for girls coming from broOnce youths have become victimized, ken homes, or who have financial needs,” they require sustained counseling, which 10% she said. “They target them and start up a is difficult after placement in foster home relationship with them.” environments or being returned to their In many cases, Vasquez said, the youth families. targeted have little parental supervision be“We start off with one counselor so they 85% cause of work situations. This allows predacan trust at least one to work out difficult tors to seek out youth at malls or outside things,” she said. During counseling, the

Behind the byline

Kristin Martinez said she is the sweetest person she can be.

Martinez, a Lanier High School incoming junior, said her hobbies include boxing.

She said she was thoroughly upset when boxer Manny Pacquio lost in his most recent fight against Timothy Bradley.

Martinez said she believed the fight was “fixed.”

One of her dreams is to become a freelance photographer specializing in military photography. She said her sister is a

freelance photographer and has inspired her to pursue her dream.

Martinez is a vegetarian, and her favorite rapper is Mac Miller, so it is no coincidence that “Wear My Hat” is her favorite song.

Martinez’s brother plays guitar in the San Antonio-based band Wisdom of the Fallen.

She said she believes newspapers are a way to showcase the right of freedom of speech and that journalism is an expression of oneself.

victims try to recover the control in their lives, the control of their bodies, decisions and emotions.”

Vasquez said that without the provisions in place for victimized youth to stay safe, the chances of them becoming perpetual victims is high. “When people have been in an abusive situation for so many years,” she said. “They don’t know who to trust and can trust the very people who have control over you.”

Martinez is also someone who gets flustered when it comes to big groups of people.

She said she is more a “behind-the-scenes” type of person.

Martinez said she was selected to join the Urban Journalism Workshop at San Antonio College the day before the program started and has made the most out of her lastminute opportunity.

— Richard Hernandez

June 22, 2012

YOU S.A.

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Multiple families live under one roof Teen tries to overcome past trouble after immediate family loses house

By Patricia Zaragoza MacArthur High School When 17-year-old Gabriel Gomez’s family lost their house to foreclosure in the winter of 2010, he was unaware of the struggles he would face. But Gomez was fortunate. He and his family were saved from being homeless by his grandmother.

Three generations — nine family members — living in a three-bedroom house near Southwest Military Drive during the winter with only two space heaters only seemed to pile on the stress for Gabriel.

“The foreclosure had a pretty big impact to my lifestyle and thought process,” Gabriel said. “Everyday life was a new thing, something to adjust to.”

Gabriel’s father, a construction worker, struggling to find jobs, wasn’t making enough money to provide for his family of six. Their financial problems worsened as months passed. Over time, they lost their home and Gabriel’s parents whisked him and his siblings off to live with his grandmother until they could find a way to get back on their feet.

He didn’t have his own room and was constantly moving around to accommodate for the lack of space. Sharing a cramped space with his grandmother, mother, father, older brother, younger brother, two younger sisters and an aunt, privacy was nonexistent. The walls were paper thin, the space crowded with family members, including his older sister and her two kids who came by everyday, and as the months passed, he slowly spiraled downward.

“I just broke down,” Gabriel said. “I felt trapped.”

He became depressed and developed insomnia. He experimented with drugs like marijuana and speed because friends said it would help him focus, but it only made him feel bad about resorting to using drugs to ease his stress.

“There were people everywhere and nowhere to go,” Gabriel said. “I just wanted to get so hammered to where I would lose Gabriel Gomez my stress for a night.”

Victory Learning Center student Not only had his health and home life suffered after he moved in with his grandmother, but his social life and education took a hit as well.

Gabriel said he had no interest in his friends and couldn’t pay attention because he always had something on his mind. When they questioned his behavior, he plastered on a smile and added a fake laugh.

“I would reassure them by saying, ‘no really, that’s awesome’ or ‘that’s funny,’ ” he said. “I would make them feel like I was interested.”

Unable to focus, he fell behind in his classes during his first semester at Harlandale High School and his grades dropped. Gabriel then transferred to private charter school San Antonio Can High School to try to catch up.

He spent another year at San Antonio Can before going back to Harlandale. He was then sent to Frank Tejeda Academy because he was unable to turn in work and pass classes.

After being caught with marijuana at school, he was sent to Harlandale Academy of Continuing Education, another alternative school in the Harlandale School District, from October 2011 to January 2012. It was there that the drug counselor they assigned Gabriel helped him to realize he didn’t need to “solve his problems with another problem.”

In late January, Gabriel was back at Tejeda with 30 hours of community service to complete. One day, his teacher asked him to see a school counselor, who referred Gabriel to Victory Learning Center. There he entered a diploma program, and his older brother helped him pay for it.

The learning center, on Southwest Military Drive, offers students a nontraditional way to gain a high school diploma. The school helps students who have either dropped out of a traditional high school or completed high school, but didn’t pass the TAKS test.

The center is classified as a private school that allows students to work at their own pace with flexible hours and accessibility. The students have a choice of tutors and can work from home to complete a diploma.

Victory Learning Center administrator Aurora Gutierrez said some students earn a diploma for work purposes, others go into vocational or trade programs, and about 40 percent of students go on to community colleges around San Antonio.

Although the impact of losing his house was stressful and led him down a path he never imagined, Gabriel aspires to the 40 percent who enroll in community college.

He hopes to attend San Antonio College to study psychol-

‘I just broke down.

I felt trapped.’

Kristina Seavers Gabriel Gomez, 17, sits in his girlfriend’s house to explain how he turned to drugs like marijuana and speed because his friends said they would help him focus and relieve the stress. Gomez hopes his story will give hope to other teens in similar situations. ogy. He said he wants to move beyond his circumstances.

“I want to put that all behind me,” Gabriel said.

He’s looking for a job with the help of his longtime girlfriend, Melissa Vasquez, who also encouraged him to share his story with others in spite of the discomfort and pain it

Behind the byline Patricia “Patty” Zaragoza’s love of journalism began her first year at MacArthur High School when she took Journalism 1. In her sophomore year, she worked on MacArthur’s yearbook. She served as a yearbook section editor her junior year and hopes to be editor-in-chief in the fall.

Besides yearbook, she is interested in a variety of extracurricular activities, such as softball, writing and photography. Zaragoza considers herself a “Photoshop junkie” because of the amount of time she spends using the software program. She thinks of Photoshop “like her best friend.”

Zaragoza also enjoys reading comic books and says the Green

caused to talk about it.

“I was kind of iffy because it hurt,” Gabriel said. “But then I started thinking: There are other kids out there like me, so if they see there is someone like (them), that would give them hope.”

Lantern, Angel, Nightcrawler, Havoc and Captain America are some of her favorite superheroes. Zaragoza also is a fan of the movie adaptations of the Harry Potter book series by British author J.K. Rowling.

Zaragoza said she received her first camera in the eighth grade and has been hooked on photography ever since.

She plans to attend San Antonio College to begin her education and then will transfer to a university in Texas.

“I feel that if you aren’t passionate about it, then there is no point to get a degree or start a career in that field,” Zaragoza said.

“I want to be someone who can inspire, someone to look up to. All in all, I want to be somebody.”

Zaragoza said she wants to major in visual media and minor in anthropology, with hopes of a career as an anthropologist.

— Cassandra Anderson

6-7

ON THE STREET

Faces of teen homelessness

YOU

By Emma Yanez Harlanda

For these teens, living is day to day and the place has no fixed address

Kristin Martinez Rebecca Durand stands in front of The Bridge, a section of Youth Alternatives that houses children ages 5 to 17.

Kids have some choices when life deals bad card

By Alexandra Gutierrez Madison High School Country radio twangs behind a cracked door. Smiley face-trimmed bulletin boards cover the walls around a large pool table at the center of the room.

At the table sits an impassioned woman speaking about how she works to help a small fraction of San Antonio’s 8,000 homeless teens, many of whom don’t know where they’re going to sleep or eat next.

Youth Alternatives and StandUP for Kids are two organizations set up to assist San Antonio’s homeless youth. While many of the 8,000 return home within a week, the others often need longterm accommodations and care that go far beyond the provision of a Rebecca couch to sleep on for a Durand night or two.

While some of the youth who arrive at Youth Alternatives are runaways, many have been removed from domestically violent circumstances by Child Protective Services. Some arrive by plane in the middle of the night; others are brought in

by San Antonio police.

“Our goal is to give them a safe place to live,” said Rebecca Durand, senior program director at Youth Alternatives. “But it’s also teaching them that they don’t have to go through that same cycle.”

Youth Alternatives is divided into two programs, the Bridge Emergency Shelter, which is geared toward meeting the needs of young people ages 5 to 17, and TurningPoint, which acts as a transitional program for those aged 17 to 21.

“I think the little ones are harder to deal with,” Durand said, adding that some come in with habits like hiding bread away at meals in case there isn’t enough later, and throwing things when they get upset.

“We try not to get attached, but it’s hard,” she said.

All of the kids attend regular classes while at the shelter and participate in activities such as movie nights. Older kids keep themselves busy doing things like playing video games.

Durand said the girls, like most teens, like to do their hair and nails.

Those in the TurningPoint program have

jobs, learn to fill out job applications, attend college, manage their finances, are expected to do chores, and even pay small amounts of living fees in preparation for eventually leaving the program.

Youth Alternatives can house up to 63 youth at a time, but generally it is not full.

“Right before Christmas, we get bombarded with phone calls,” Durand said. “Those students are going to be homeless for the holidays.”

Another program, StandUP for Kids, is designed to help eliminate some of the causes of teen homelessness.

Executive Director Janet Grigsby said teens need identification and an education to build a life for themselves.

By helping teens get forms of identification, they can secure a job and begin studies for a GED or diploma. Grigsby said the group is well-connected with GED programs in the area and helps teens complete the program.

“We keep them moving and keep them going because sometimes they can get frustrated and want to quit,” Grigsby said.

She said StandUP for Kids helps out anyone 17 to 25 and sends minors to different programs because leaving a child helpless isn’t an option for them.

The group has weekly street outreaches to tell people who they are and what they do.

They also open their doors once a month for youth drop-ins so the teens can play games together and not have to worry about that night’s meal. However, StandUP for Kids does not provide shelter.

“We want the youth to make a way to stay off the streets, but we do help them with apartment support,” Grigsby said.

Apartment support is offered to those interested in having a place of their own but who may not be able to afford one. They’re given loans and a little extra funds when money gets tight.

Recipients of the apartment support are able to live and work like average citizens, she said.

“It doesn’t just help the child, it helps the entire community,” Grigsby said. “I would never turn a blind eye when a kid needs my help.”

Grigsby and Durand share a common goal: Don’t let any child be homeless.

For more information on how to help homeless teens, go to standupforkids.org or rmya.org.

After a meal provided by volunteers at the Church Under the Bridge, Angel, also known as “Barbie” a

Angel In a carefully slashed T-shirt that leaves pink bra straps and a sunburned chest exposed, 20-year-old Angel, also known as “Barbie,” pushes back her pink-tinted hair as she speaks of her life as a transgendered homeless person.

Andres Garcia Arms leaning against a rough wood picnic table, Andres Garcia sits across from his friend Angel. A large bruise marks Andres’ neck.

Both are full and subdued after having a meal prepared by volunteers at the Church Under the Bridge, an organization that serves the homeless of San Antonio.

Now 21, Garcia has been on and off the

Magan Nuncio Magan Nuncio seemed to be getting her life back on track. After ending a marriage that resulted in a stay in a domestic violence shelter in Ohio when she was 28, she moved to Texas with her two young sons while her daughter remained with family in Ohio.

In Texas, things began to look up. Nuncio’s self-esteem had been helped with assistance from counselors in Ohio, and she was able to get a job with West Telemarketing and was living in an apartment with her two sons. Then, with a downsizing of the company, Nuncio was fired.

By August 2009, Nuncio was evicted from her apartment and, by February, found herself and her two boys, then 14 and 6, each with one small bag of clothes, sleeping at a bus stop.

“Scary, it was very scary,” Nuncio said with tears in her eyes. “I never dreamt I would be one of them.”

With monthly bus passes, sponge baths in the parks, and the occasional swap of food stamps for enough cash to stay at a cheap hotel for a night, Nuncio was able to make sure her children were clean and attended school, but the emotional aspects were possibly more

Angel, who is taking hormones, a stage in becoming a woman, was confused about her gender since she was young.

“I didn’t choose to be who I am,” she said.

Her parents, who she describes as “very Christian,” did not accept her, and she ended up on the streets in California in October 2011.

There, she slept under bridges while

streets or in shelters since he was 10. After being repeatedly raped by his cousins, Garcia sought help from his parents, but the fact that he is gay did not sit well with their strict Christian values.

“If you’re going to act like a girl, then you deserve to be treated like a girl,” he quoted them as saying.

After being told by his parents that nobody had any use for them, Garcia and younger brother Roger, then 7, took to the streets. difficult to deal with than the physical ones.

“With kids, it’s never easy. Their selfesteem bottoms out as well,” Nuncio said.

“My 14-year-old was very mad at me, very embarrassed, very ashamed.”

Nuncio was able to secure a spot at Haven for Hope where the family stayed until March of this year, but her 14-year-old had problems there.

“He acted out with everybody; he just didn’t want to be here. Six months ago, he finally asked for help,” Nuncio said, tears filling her eyes again.

She said Haven’s counselors diagnosed her son with post-traumatic stress disorder related to physical abuse suffered in Ohio and compounded by the instability and insecurity of homelessness.

Now, Nuncio says, the situation for the entire family has improved. Married now and back in an apartment, Nuncio has completed a full year of college at San Antonio College, and won a Women Everywhere scholarship.

She credits Haven for Hope as being a lifesaver for her family.

“I don’t know what I would have done. I would not be back in school. My son? I just don’t know.”

S.A.

June 21, 2012

Behind the byline

ale High School

‘Nobody came looking for us. They really didn’t care.’

Andres Garcia

21-year-old homeless man

Alexandra Gutierrez Leticia Canamar gains jobs skills working in the Youth Alternatives Thrift Store.

Leticia Canamar

and Andres contemplate what to do with the rest of the evening.

Photos by Emma Yanez

working three part-time jobs and attending high school, a grueling routine that prevented her from finishing school.

Because of a gang misidentifying her as someone else, she was forced to flee to Texas seeking safety.

Since January 2011, she has been staying at Haven for Hope, a local shelter; however,

she said she can’t find a job “because nobody accepts me because of my gender.”

So a typical day consists of “getting up, brushing my teeth, doing my hair, walking around town, digging through garbage and asking for spare change.

At 20, her biggest fear is “being found dead in the street.”

“Nobody came looking for us,” Garcia said. “They didn’t really care.”

They coped as well as could be expected for children — eating from trash cans, occasionally sneaking into abandoned apartments or houses to get cleaned up, and sleeping under bridges with newspapers as blankets to keep out the chill.

“I cried myself to sleep,” said Garcia, who did manage to graduate high school.

The Garcia brothers now stay at a local

shelter, Haven for Hope, though the younger brother had been kicked out the night before for “trying to protect” his older sibling in a fight that drew the neck bruise.

“I’m used to getting my butt kicked around on the streets,” he said, “mostly because I’m poor and gay.

“The worst part of being homeless is that you just have nobody to take care of you.

I wish somebody would save me from the nightmare I’m living right now.”

Magan Nuncio, a former resident at Haven for Hope, now volunteers there two days a week as she balances attending school and raising her young sons.

At 13 years of age, Leticia Canamar began to run away. Sometimes it was to friend’s houses; other times she slept under the bleachers at the school or in an abandoned apartment complex.

“It was hard, especially in the cold, but sometimes you do what you have to do,” Canamar said. “It was better than staying at home.”

She ran away about 10 times a year until, at 16, she was arrested and taken to the Bridge Emergency Shelter.

The shelter houses youths ages 5 to 17 with an extension program, the TurningPoint Transitional Living Program, for those 17 to 21. Unable to cope with living at home, Canamar, who is now 19, lives at the Turning Point and has no plans to leave soon.

“It helps me to be around other people who are like me,” Canamar said.

A graduate with high grades from Holmes High School, Canamar participated in cross-country and dance.

With a quick and easy smile, Canamar seems like a typical recent graduate. But in school, Canamar was teased, called “anorexic” and once assaulted by a group of girls.

Even so, she considered school her “escape” and hated summers when she had to be home all day.

From the age of 4 to 12, Canamar was sexually assaulted.

“I didn’t tell my mom; he threatened me not to,” Canamar said. It wasn’t until after she was placed in the Bridge Shelter that she told her mother what had happened.

Although her abuser is now out of the picture, and Canamar misses seeing her little sister on a daily basis, she doesn’t want to go home to live.

Part of the problem is Canamar’s relationship with her mother, who was only 13 years old when Leticia was born.

“I would like to have a ‘mom figure,’” Canamar said. “But I don’t think we’ll ever have a normal mother-daughter relationship.”

For now, Canamar plans to continue working at the TurningPoint Thrift Store, then apply to San Antonio College.

“I should go somewhere else,” she said.

“But I like this place; it helps.”

Emma Yanez, 17, is an animal lover at heart.

The Harlandale High School graduate is still involved with school organizations, such as PAWS (Protecting Animals Within San Antonio).

Yanez said she dislikes people who abuse animals and works hard to raise awareness about proper pet care and adoptions.

She has been a committed vegetarian since fifth grade.

Her skills in the high school building trades class have taken her to the state competition. She has also made time in class and on weekends to build a house for a family in need as part of a school project.

Yanez said she gets her kind heart and determination from her step grandfather, whom she calls dad.

“He’s a humble man who still gives out to people in need, even when we don’t have enough for ourselves,” she said.

Besides caring for animals, Yanez said her passion is photography, a career path she hopes to pursue in the future. Her favorite photographer is Diane Arbus, known for taking eccentric pictures.

Whether it is a photo or video camera, Yanez said she would rather be calling the shots behind the lens than in front of it. Her favorite part of photography is that her photos can tell a story.

“I like taking pictures,” she said. “It’s what I do best.”

When Yanez is not behind the camera, she is biking with friends, playing with her nine cats or working at Papa Murphy’s making pizza. She also dreams of traveling, preferably by car.

“I would go to Seattle, Wash., or Portland, Ore.,” Yanez said. “I want to be surrounded by fellow music, animal, and Mother Earth lovers.”

— Katherine Garcia

Behind the byline Nothing will stop 5-foot-tall Alexandra Gutierrez. She earned a spot on the basketball team her freshman year at James Madison High School.

Now as a senior, besides being a member of the Peer Assistant Leadership program, Gutierrez has taken photojournalism and journalism classes.

But that was an accident. Gutierrez was placed in a journalism class by mistake and fell in love with writing within weeks. She said she would not be the passionate journalist she is today if it were not for her journalism adviser, Allison Boerger. She cites Boerger as a huge inspiration Last year, Gutierrez became a reporter for her high school’s online and print publications and will be yearbook copy editor and the newspaper co-editor next year.

Gutierrez enjoys listening to country music, especially her favorite artist, Luke Bryan.

Though she qualified for her driver’s license in August 2011, she continues hoping for her dream car, a light blue Mustang GT. Gutierrez has a dog named Coco, a cat named Tom and two little brothers — so four pets in total as she sees it.

Her hopes for the future are to attend Texas State University-San Marcos and become a sports writer for the San Antonio Express-News.

Gutierrez is employed at Pump It Up, which sends her home every night smelling of pizza and children. Chicken Alfredo is her favorite dish.

She passionately expresses her love for sports, superheroes and driving. Gutierrez’s favorite basketball team is the San Antonio Spurs.

If she had the opportunity to have dinner with anyone in this world, she would choose Spurs Coach Gregg Popovich. She feels as if no other coach in the NBA has an eye for choosing players with such integrity.

— Carla Gonzales

YOU S.A.

8

June 21, 2012

Big-hearted gentle giant was surrogate father for siblings Student changed diapers, cooked breakfast for his siblings while their single mother worked three jobs

By Kristina Seavers Reagan High School

F

or years, TimothyLee “Tim” Sarzoza put his brother JoePatrick and sister Diamond to bed early. When his mother came in late, tired and aching from working three jobs, he massaged her feet.

He would ask her about her day, and if she didn’t need anything else, he went to bed.

He would wake up only hours later to cook breakfast for his siblings and walk them to school, sometimes at the expense of being late to his own classes.

Tim, 16, has risen from childhood to father figure in his siblings’ lives. He wears his past like a soldier wears a medal, with a confidence unseen in many young adults.

“I grew up a hard life,” Tim said. “Not harder than anyone else’s, but I’ve been taking care of people for a long time.”

Growing up, Tim’s family was among the 24 percent of families across the country with a single mother. His father left when Tim could hardly walk and his brother was a newborn.

His mother took on three jobs to support her small children. A year later, his sister was born and Tim, at 3 years old, learned to change diapers.

“I would make sure they were OK,” he said.

Anna Rose Aguirre, chief operating officer of SA Youth, said she has met a lot of children and teens in similar situations.

“We see that a lot,” she said. “That’s why we have drop-out prevention (programs).

Young people quit school to support their parents. And in both older teens and in children, we see them taking care of younger siblings.”

As the three Sarzoza children reached the days of elementary school, of crayons, times tables and packed lunches, Tim took on even greater obligations to his siblings.

He saw to it that they showered, did their homework, got to bed early and that JoePatrick stayed out of trouble.

At age 10, Tim discovered football and credits his coaches with keeping him out of trouble.

“They don’t have to be there, but they are,” Tim said of the men who acted as his mentors. “My coaches acted like a father.

Taught me right and wrong.”

Chris Salazar, a former Marine who also raised himself, was Tim’s first coach. Salazar said he treated every kid exactly the same, no matter his background or past.

“I saw broken homes,” he said, “but nobody got any special treatment.”

When Tim first started football at age 10, he was heavy for his age and timid, Salazar said.

“When it came to playing football, he was not so confident,” the coach said.

Salazar said he did his best to inspire Tim and the whole team.

“I told them, ‘hey, don’t give up,’” Salazar said. “Shoot for the stars. I really coached more about life than about football.”

Tim grew close to Salazar and his family, visiting the coach’s house for family barbecues. Salazar would be among many coaches in Tim’s life who became his mentor and filled an unoccupied role in his life.

His dad wasn’t there when he should have been, Tim said, but his coaches provided support.

They provided him with free jerseys and sponsored him so he could play football.

Aguirre advocates for this type of a role in the life of any child, but especially those in San Antonio Youth’s targeted “deepest pockets of poverty.”

“It’s good for these kids to have a consistent adult,” she said.

Tim has stayed in school and will be a junior at Lanier High School in the fall, but it hasn’t been easy. As a sophomore, he

Carla Gonzales Tim Sarzoza, 16, tears up as he tells of his trials and tribulations faced as an adolescent. He hopes to be drafted into the NFL after college.

‘I grew up a hard life.

Not harder than anyone else’s, but I’ve been taking care of of people for a long time.’

Tim Sarzoza

Lanier High School worked part time at a convenience store near his house, sometimes working until midnight or 1 a.m.

The tension in his household became too much for Tim. His mother remarried a few years ago, and he felt out of place.

“Sometimes, I gave my mom a hard time,” Tim said. “I was frustrated. I felt like she was beating me up.”

He moved in with a friend from school

for a few months and was supporting himself. He made phone calls home to his mom, but it was “kind of depressing” to be so displaced.

“I don’t ask for money,” Tim said. “How I grew up, I feel I don’t have to depend on her. I’d rather them be using the money on” his brother, now 14, and his sister, now 13.

Tim plays football at Lanier High School and hopes his skill on the field might translate into a scholarship, but if not, he’s interested in becoming an auto mechanic and doing body work.

He says people tell him to be a politician or a preacher, but his ideas are more homegrown.

“I want to do what I love, and then if I’ve fulfilled my dreams, I want to teach others.

I want to tell them to respect their parents, and ask them: ‘How hard do you want it?’

You’ve got to keep on trying. I have sympathy for everybody and anybody. If you’re making money, your time is going to come to give to someone who needs it.”

Behind the byline Kristina Seavers, 17, a senior at Reagan High School, places a check mark on the city of San Antonio as she makes her way across the map from continent to continent with her 13-year-old brother, mom and dad.

Born in Wichita Falls, Seavers has moved 10 times because her dad is in the Air Force.

Aside from a number of stops in the United States, she has lived in Korea, Iceland and England.

Along the way, she gained a love for traveling and hopes to add Canada to her list of countries visited.

“All the cool people are from Canada,” Seavers insisted. “Like Ryan Gosling.”

She also wants to visit Australia and eat fresh coconut in Hawaii.

On her journey from here-to-there, she learned to water ski, and in Korea earned college credit while learning ballet.

Seavers’ hobbies include yoga, attending concerts, listening to music and going to a museum in San Antonio every weekend with her best friend, Victor.

Since her junior year, Seavers has been editor of her high school newspaper, and she hopes to study journalism at the University of Texas at Austin.

Seavers said she attends gay pride events and expects to start a Gay Straight Alliance (GSA) chapter at her high school next year.

She said she loves to “read, write, go on adventures, listen to stories and music and blog.”

— Amor Flores

Richard Hernandez SA Youth Chief Operating Officer Anna Rose Aguirre and Program Director Sayaunda Casey discuss the cases they encounter while working with struggling teens.

June 21, 2012

YOU S.A.

9

Teachers’ jobs seldom end in class Educators help students using personal income

Behind the byline

By Katherine Garcia Lee High School As a career and technical education counselor, Chris Lewis has helped students at Harlandale High School choose colleges and plot plans for the future.

And for the past 14 years, she has also helped teens when their home life was bleak.

Though not part of her duties, Lewis is one of the many educators across the city who aids students going through tough economic times, in need of clothing and holiday gifts.

About 20 years ago, when Lewis worked at Cambridge Elementary School, she said fellow teachers planned to donate clothes from their lost and found to Any Baby Can. Lewis offered another solution: trade winter wear with another elementary school for students who don’t have coats and have them send their old coats to students at Cambridge.

“It’s a good idea. I think all elementary schools should do that,” Lewis said. “If every school would pass (old clothes) around, no one would be embarrassed. No one has to say, ‘That was my coat last year.’”

When times get tough, pitching in to help students in need is something that teachers and educators take upon themselves.

And to do less, she said, would be wrong.

“I’ve been to other districts who don’t have free lunch or breakfast,” Lewis said. “Kids from every end of the spectrum, from other districts … they’re all over the city.”

According to the National School Supply and Equipment Association, teachers across the nation spend an average of $350 of their personal income per year on school supplies, such as extra paper, books, pens and pencils.

Photos by Alejandra Salazar Some teachers prefer to remain anonymous when helping teens. Philip Reyna, assistant principal for discipline at Harlandale High School, says many teachers help students financially.

It may be a way to save the students from embarrassment, but it don’t have money to eat lunch,” is also a way to provide students them.”

Fortunately for the students, Gonzalez said. with support that extends bethese teachers regularly help stuMatt Houston, a former yond school supplies and equipdents whose families are not able Driscoll Middle School yearbook ment. adviser, recalled an occasion Philip Reyna, a former Marine to afford their utility bills, lunches or school supplies. where a student did not necessarand Harlandale High School’s asAccording to Reyna, the cost ily ask for help but was grateful sistant principal for discipline, when it was offered. works hard to instill morals in of helping students at Harlandale “There was a little boy whose the students he works with, even easily can add up to hundreds of dollars a year for a teacher. family was very, very poor,” though he has a soft spot in his Although the cost of helping Houston said. “I talked to my heart for them. kids and we spent all our ChristNext to Reyna’s neat and clean students runs high, Reyna said mas money on him. We got him desk is a small window bear- he is ready and willing to help students who are in need of asabout eight pairs of pants and ing an Indian statue, Harlandale sistance. five shirts. He was real happy High School’s mascot.

“You can tell that there’s a child with the presents.”

From cards from his students Houston suggested that teachand framed essay, to the pic- in need by the way they speak to you, by little expressions that they ers should constantly be “looking tures of his family, his love for do, ” Reyna said. for an opportunity or chance to both students and family shines “When I see a student that’s make a difference in others’ lives, through. other than giving them a good To be a teacher, you have to acting oddly or is not their norm, then at that point, it’s just like OK, education.” care about students, Reyna said. you know what, there’s something Similarly for Reyna, taking care “I have two kids of my own, of the student is a top priority. but when I’m on campus, I have wrong.”

Pascual Gonzalez, Northside “The safety of the child is your 2,000 of my own,” Reyna said.

Independent School District exfirst priority, is your first concern Reyna said there are teachers at ecutive director of communicaas an educator,” Reyna said. “Once Harlandale who not only provide you’ve secured that, then you’ll students with an education, but tions, said the district couldn’t directly help students, but teachers start seeing the productivity of financial aid as well. often find a way to help. the individual expand.”

Philip Reyna “We have teachers like that; “Our teachers and other Neither the teachers nor their they go above and beyond,” he Assistant principal at families find helping the students said. “That’s their life, that’s their schools, on their own, give monHarlandale High School to be a burden. family, and they take care of ey to children who, for example,

‘I have two kids of my own, but when I’m on campus, I have 2,000 of my own.’

Katherine Garcia, 18, is an avid fan of Pokémon, enjoys ’80s music, recycling and pin collecting.

Garcia said she often goes out with friends to the mall to “window shop and people watch.”

She is happiest with a book in her lap and a pen in her hands.

While Garcia was interested in writing before high school, she said that her love of the art form grew after admittance to the creative writing program at the North East School of the Arts, a magnet school on the Robert E. Lee High School campus.

Before graduating in June, Garcia was a member of her high school’s National Honor Society and participated in UIL journalism competitions. Her participation in UIL, where she won first place on the district level in both editorial and headline writing, gained her recognition as an able and talented aspiring journalist.

Garcia’s love of the written word is not limited to expressing herself on paper. She said she has always appreciated a good book — or rather, good books.

“I don’t have a favorite book,” Garcia said. “I just can’t choose.”

Those on her bookshelf range from “The Time Traveler’s Wife” to “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo” to “The Book Thief.”

Garcia said she hopes to add more books to her list ­— including, maybe someday, her own.

“I want to become a journalist, write a novel, and perhaps become an English teacher,” she said.

Along with being a published author, Garcia said she would like to work at the San Antonio Express-News. She said journalism appealed to her because of her love of writing and the new experiences she would be exposed to as a journalist.

“I want to ride a train because they’re awesome,” Garcia said. “I want to travel outside the state for once in my life. I want to travel to Mexico and Venice and take a gondola ride there, too.

I also want to ride in a plane. I never have and I’m terrified at the thought.”

— Alejandra Salazar “My wife is very understanding,” Reyna said. “I could be doing something else bad, but here I am providing something good for the kids.”

For Reyna, his hard work and dedication to students pays off at graduation.

“Graduation day, I’m sitting there and I look off to my left and I see (a special education student) sitting right next to me,” Reyna said.

“I look off to the right, I see parents, I see moms crying, dad gives me a thumbs-up.

It’s moments like that. Whatever it takes outside of these walls to help students succeed, that’s what we’re going to do.”

YOU S.A.

10

June 21, 2012

Faces behind the DREAM

Alejandra Salazar Alina Cortes, an undocumented 21-year-old, discusses her opinion on the passage of the DREAM Act. Previously a student at San Antonio College, Cortes helped found Students United for the DREAM Act, a group of students who advocate for passage of the act. Her younger sister, Laura, is now president.

By Richard Hernandez Madison High School

Alina Cortes Alina Cortes, 21, is an undocumented student who, like 40 percent of DREAMers, came to the U.S. on a work visa.

“I didn’t turn 5 and say, ‘Hey mom, let’s go to America

illegally,’” Cortes said.

Her parents denied her a drivers license and a job when she came of age and she never understood why.

“I never knew what the deal was. I just lived my life here as an American in the U.S. — my home,” Cortes said.

She graduated in the top 5 percent of her senior class with the dream of attending Yale.

“I actually had full rides to Ivy Leagues, but I was un-

documented.” Cortes said. “I kept thinking, there has to be a way.”

With graduation around the corner her senior year, she was mortified as to where her life was heading. She joined the vast majority of illegal immigrants suffering from depression because of unanswered questions and worries about the future.

Continued on the next page

DREAM ACT: Activists search for proof of existence Continued from Page 1 The Development Relief and Education for Alien Minors (DREAM) Act, however, would pave a way for youth such as Gomez to become citizens of the United States.

It has been stalled in Congress for more than a decade, prompting President Barack Obama last week to issue an executive order that effectively buys more time for Gomez and others until legislators agree on a permanent solution.

“I think it’s disheartening, the (proposed) DREAM Act has been around for years and some of the immigrants don’t qualify for what it offers anymore since it’s a decade old,” said Mariano Aguilar Jr., faculty adviser for Students United for the DREAM Act at San Antonio College.

“If we pass it, there would be thousands of people who wouldn’t qualify; people who want to be good students and contribute to society, but people who don’t want to be a part of society get to be a part of society.”

Eleven years ago, Sens. Dick Durbin, DIll., and Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, introduced the DREAM Act, which would allow immigrants brought into this country illegally before the age of 16 to receive legal status and eventual citizenship upon completion of military service or college. It was voted down in 2010.

But Obama’s recent action, which could be rescinded if he loses re-election this year, halts deportation of young illegal immigrants who would have been eligible for the DREAM Act’s provisions and allows them to apply for work permits.

These young people will be protected from deportation for two years, with the possibility of renewal.

Although DREAMers welcomed the order, it does not provide a path to citizenship, the most desirable outcome.

An estimated 2.1 million young people nationwide would benefit from passage of the bill, and activists are pledging to fight until the legislation is enacted.

Behind the byline Carla Gonzales grew up in San Antonio and never thought of pursuing a career in journalism until her freshman year in high school. Now, it’s all she wants to do.

Gonzales is video editor of the Bugle Call Online at Robert E. Lee High School. Her heart is in entertainment writing, and one day, wants to write for The Current.

Last year, she won a school newspaper award for “Most likely to write for Rolling Stone Magazine.”

“Music is my life and I can’t play an instrument to save my life, but I always thought I was a good writer, so I decided to combine the two,” In November 2010, when the bill was coming to the Senate floor, DREAMers gathered in front of U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison’s office for more than nine hours in the midst of a 20-plus-day hunger strike, refusing to budge and singing, “We shall not be moved.”

Hutchison, a Republican and senior senator from Texas, supported the core of the bill in 2007 but later changed positions claiming the bill is “too broad.”

One of the bill’s chief proponents is San Antonio Mayor Julian Castro, who also serves as one of 30 co-chairs of Obama’s reelection campaign.

“I am an on-record supporter of the DREAM Act,” Castro said. “I am convinced this is a good piece of legislation that supports America’s basic values and innocent people who know the U.S. as their only home.”

Castro’s immigration activism seems to be in his blood. His mother, Rosie Castro, was an advocate and political activist for the Chicana movement.

He said Florida Sen. Marco Rubio’s mod-

she said.

When she isn’t at school editing articles or listening to music, she’s hanging out with her boyfriend or reading what people have to say on Tumblr.

Her favorite color is black, and when people say black isn’t a color, she will argue it until she wins. Her two front teeth are fake and she believes Johnny Depp was sent from heaven.

She owns a red-eared slider turtle named Grinch.

Next year, she’s leaving behind her position as video editor and stepping into bigger shoes as the senior co-editor in chief.

“I’m excited and ready for all of the stress that it’s going to take,” she said.

— Alexandra Gutierrez ified version of the DREAM Act that would not provide a path to citizenship “falls short” and is based only in politics.

“I believe that it makes sense for Latinos to be supportive of the president because you have to look at the entirety of the issues,” Castro said. “You have to look at probably the most important issue, which is investment in education.”

With the DREAM Act as a hot-button issue, student organizations such as SUDA are becoming increasingly involved. For the students who participate, the issue hits close to home.

“It affects them through not only school, but through their personal life,” SUDA’s Kimberly Rendon said. “It not only stops them from being able to drive, but they have to be cautious. They can’t live a wild life.”

SUDA President Laura Cortes also knows the feeling firsthand. At the age of 7, she came to the U.S. for a family vacation; but with her father working at the San Antonio International Airport, the family decided to move. Now, at 20, she’s studying

‘I think it’s disheartening, the (proposed) DREAM Act has been around for years and some of the immigrants don’t qualify for what it offers anymore since it’s a decade old.’

Mariano Aguilar Jr.

faculty adviser for Students United for the DREAM Act at San Antonio College liberal arts at SAC. “As an undocumented American, I always face troubles. I can’t go to college, I can’t get a job, I can’t drive,” Cortes said.

“Aside from that, all the emotional stress that comes with it. At first, you blame your family, imagine reliving your teenage years, but only you don’t exist in this country.”

She says she’s only fighting for what she believes to be right.

“I became so involved with the DREAM Act because I believe in fighting for equal rights. I deserve to be treated like a human being,” she said. “This is just another chapter waiting to be written down in history.”

For Gomez, the DREAM Act would not only open doors for his future, but for the futures of his brothers as well.

“I know my little brother likes school,” Gomez said. “He’s smart, and he wants to be someone in life. They aren’t going to stop him.”

YOU S.A.

June 21, 2012

11

Faces behind the DREAM Continued from previous page “I tell my friends I’m going “undocument-al” because I’m literally going nuts,” Cortes said.

At the age of 19, she turned to her lawyers who told her they couldn’t do anything but what she could do for herself. So she then turned to activism and joined forces with DREAM Act poster child Benny Veliz and created SUDA (Students United for the DREAM Act).

“I’m not scared anymore, I know the bill, I know my rights as an immigrant — as a human,” Cortes said.

“I go to high schools and leave my card for any student that’s undocumented and needs someone to talk to because no one was there to guide me. I grew up here all my life, so I know I belong here.

“So why don’t I feel like I belong here?”

Felipe Vargas Felipe Vargas is an Indiana University graduate, a youth organizer for the National Immigrant Youth Alliance and director of the Campecine Youth Academy who speaks passionately about the DREAM Act. “The role of undocumented youth has been to get our elected officials to act on the consensus of the community,” Vargas said.

“If the DREAM Act were to pass, there’d be a little bit more hope in the democratic process,” Vargas said, noting that 54 percent of people support the bill and 42 percent oppose it.

“There’s something about the way this selective morality works where some people matter and some people do not,” he said.

“Republicans, our mayor, Democrats, they don’t see the undocumented, interact with them, or care about them because they don’t vote, they don’t buy many things, and they don’t keep their money in banks — so why should they matter?

“At the end of the day, when it comes to the DREAM Act, the only reason it came to a vote is because youth risked their lives.

“In this day and age, people like my mother, and the students that I love and serve that come into contact with all of the food that we buy from H-E-B, work in the kitchens of all the restaurants, clean all of the hotels in this country, they just don’t matter.”

Pamela Resendiz Pamela Resendiz came to the U.S. when she was 9 on a tourist visa with her parents and her sister.

Today, she is an undocumented student, UTSA graduate and intern at the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund.

“I knew we were coming here with the intent of staying here,” Resendiz said. “Since I was 6, (when the family was planning the move) it’s been engraved in my mind that talking about my status was something I should not discuss — I went into self-preservation mode.”

Resendiz grew up in Rockwell and was enrolled in gifted and talented classes where she was secluded from the small Latino community in the small, conservative town.

She was 14 when she started advocating for GLBTQ (Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer) rights. She also fought for immigration rights, but never revealed herself as an undocumented immigrant.

“I was always trained to say that I came here with a visa and that I had a green card,” Resendiz said.

While attending UTSA, she majored in political science and minored in Latin American studies with a concentration in pre-law. She created DREAM Act NOW, a group that organized the Washington hunger strike in November 2010.

“I feel as if the hunger strike became a nationwide narrative that fueled the movement, and even though it didn’t pass that year, we gained a lot of experience as organizers.

“The shift of our mentality from what we’re trained as children of not speaking out on our status dramatically changed. A

Behind the byline Richard Hernandez loves Twitter.

He tweets constantly and is a very social person. But for the 17-year-old making people laugh is just part of his persona.

Hernandez also harbors a passion for sports journalism and isn’t afraid to work hard to excel in the field. His dream is to graduate high school and attend Columbia University or Texas State UniversitySan Marcos.

But he’s still undecided on a minor. Don’t count on a minor in math though. He hates it.

He said this shortly after a pre-calculus class his junior year.

After graduating, he said he’d like to live and work in Austin because of the active music scene.

Some of Hernandez’s favorite artists include Young the Giant, Grouplove, Walk the Moon, Foo Fighters, Linkin Park, Imagine Dragons, The Pixies, Childish Gambino, MGMT, Company of Thieves and Kanye West.

Hernandez explains that he was accidentally scheduled for a newspaper class at Madison High School as a freshman. “I got in somehow, but I’m glad I did,” he said.

He served as co-editor of the high school newspaper his junior year and looks forward to being co-editor his senior year. He likes to write about football and basketball, but he is also said a baseball fan.

“I’ve always loved sports,” he said. He used to play middle school basketball and football until he realized he could not play very well, he joked.

Hernandez is in the top 25 percent of his high school graduating class and works at Party City. When he’s not working long hours, Hernandez said he’s always looking for new bands to follow on Twitter.

Photos by Katherine Garcia Jesus Gomez, a recent graduate of Harlandale High School, hopes to stay in the United States to become a teacher and coach. Gomez’s visa expired just before his senior year.

— Kristin Martinez lot of students came out nationwide,” Resendiz said. “We were speaking our truth and our story and not being on the back burner of politicians’ agendas.”

She’s not stopping anytime soon.

“I was in the Senate watching the vote for the DREAM Act in 2010 when it didn’t pass, and after that, they had the vote for the repealing of Don’t Ask Don’t Tell,” she said.

“That struggle lasted 17 years for our brothers and sisters who are queer in the military — so we know change takes time.

I know it’s going to pass, even though it might take longer than it should.”

Jesus Gomez At age 14, Jesus Gomez embarked on a journey from border city Piedras Negras, Mexico, to America, the country he now calls home.

“We came to America because of a job for my dad,” Gomez said. “We all came to America legally.”

Soon after the move, Gomez enrolled at Harlandale High School and he quickly learned to speak English. As he turned 18, just before he entered his senior year, his visa expired, making him an undocumented student.

But he didn’t let that affect his senior year. He went on to walk the stage and was named a Co-MVP of District 57-4A in soccer as a forward.

Gomez said for the past year, he’s been worried about “getting caught and getting sent back to Mexico.”

“I don’t know what to do in Mexico. It’s going to be a different style of life, everything is going to be so different,” he said.

If he had it his way, he said he would stay in the United States and become a teacher.

He said his English teacher, Najat Hema, knew about his status and encouraged him to perform at his highest level.

“The first thing she told me is that she be-

Felipe Vargas, a National Immigrant Youth Alliance organizer, shows a photo of a man embracing his wife after facing deportation. NIYA bombarded the jail with calls, prompting his release. lieved in me,” Gomez said. “She knew about me and she taught me.”

Although Gomez is cautious in planning his future, he hopes to join the Navy, or possibly attend San Antonio College and transfer to Our Lady of the Lake University to play soccer.

“It’s not keeping me from living a regular life,” Gomez said. “I’m going to keep doing

what I can do, get degrees and go as far as I can go. I would like to coach soccer and football.”

Gomez also shares this struggle with his two brothers, who attend a local high school and middle school. “I know the little one likes school. He’s smart, but if he wants to become something in life, the illegal status is going to stop him.”

12

YOU S.A.

June 21, 2012

Mexican families find refuge in S.A.

By Alejandra Salazar Communications Arts High School Two years ago, at a Carl’s Jr. restaurant in Monterrey, Mexico, 40-year-old Laura made a decision that would radically change her life: to take her family and leave her hometown.

“We were sitting, and I had my baby — at the time, he was just months old — sitting on the highchair, and my son and my daughter were there, too,” she said. “And I was just talking to them, you know. ‘How was school, how was your day, blah blah blah.’ Then all of a sudden, I see through the window — we call them convoys. It was like 10 trucks of soldiers with the machine guns and everything.”

Restaurant customers ran to the restrooms to hide while employees crouched below registers. Laura grabbed her baby and told her two older children to get under the table.

Within a few minutes, the convoys passed without incident, and Laura looked around to see the rest of the people in the restaurant had resumed their business as if nothing had happened. But as she looked at her children, she realized she didn’t want her kids growing up like that.

“They didn’t stop at Carl’s Jr.; they were just turning,” she said. “But we were so afraid, so scared, that we thought they were going to start shooting there. You don’t know how scared we are now. They didn’t even stop; there was no shooting, nothing. We just imagined something bad was going to happen. We were so paranoid.”

That was the day she decided to move to the United States. Laura’s husband was already working for an American company, but she had originally rejected the idea of moving so far away from Monterrey and everything she had ever known.

“I called my husband and said, ‘You know what? Start looking for a house,’” she told him. Laura asked that her last name be withheld because she still fears for her family’s safety.

The Mexican government released a database with documentation of more than 35,000 homicides in Mexico as a direct result of the cartel feuds since 2006. In addition, wholesale kidnappings have become an independent, money-making enterprise. These conditions have led many like Laura to move to the United States or at least consider the possibility, San Antonio immigration lawyer Jon Haynes said.

“The violence definitely plays a role in increased interest in immigration, particularly in northern Mexico from people who fear for their safety and are trying to get here,” he said. “It’s definitely having an effect.”

For Laura, the violent showdowns between law enforcement and criminals had become habitual in her hometown of Monterrey. As a result, like many in Mexico, she simply adjusted her daily schedule and habits. Instead of going out with her friends at night, they would meet at a karaoke bar at 9 a.m. after dropping the kids at school. Nobody would leave their homes past 6 p.m.

“You get used to it,” Laura said. “You adapt … people started thinking it was a normal thing. They’d say, ‘Oh, if you want to get to the store, go the other way; there was a shooting at the corner and the bodies are blocking traffic.’ … It was very violent and not safe for anybody, but you don’t realize that until you come here (to America). You come and see how peaceful life is.”

According to Laura, horror stories in Mexico have become all too common — a man is kidnapped while waiting in traffic, and neighbors betray neighbors to buy safety.

Ticking off a list on her fingers, she said six of her 10 closest friends had found their way to America after near-death situations.

A husband had been kidnapped on his wife’s birthday; they moved to San Diego seeking psychiatric help for posttraumatic stress disorder. One couple ended up penniless after being forced to pay protection money. A man had been held at gunpoint and forced to choose which family member would be taken: his daughter or his wife?

Laura said she knew she needed to move to avoid having her family fall apart like so many others. She and her children were able to come to the United States in 2010 as temporary residents through her husband’s work visa.

Similar to Laura, Juliana Alvarez, 18, and her family were able to move from Mexico City to San Antonio in 2010 because her father is a U.S. citizen. Her father commutes to Mexico City for his real estate development business and the family lives in north San Antonio. Alvarez, a senior at Reagan High School, is aware of the dangers her family managed to circumvent by moving to Texas.

“We didn’t like how things were in Mexico,” she said.

“Things here were better.”

Alvarez is aware of the deteriorating situation in her native country, even though she managed to avoid most of the bloodshed and loss that accompanied the drug wars in Mexico. Alvarez said that the worst thing that ever personally affected her was a robbery. Her family’s valuables were stolen and their maids threatened, but there was no loss of life. Yet she knows that things are changing, even in her nation’s capital, and she worries.

Laura is afraid to reveal her identity because she fears for the safety of her family.

Photos by Patricia Zaragoza

Behind the byline

Juliana Alvarez poses on her bed next to a collage of photographs from Mexico. Alvarez, originally from Mexico City, fled the country with her family because of violence.

“You can’t walk out on the street alone,” Alvarez said.

“When I first came here, it was weird. When people say ‘Hi’ on the street, it just felt weird because when people say ‘Hi’ to you in Mexico, you just run away.”

Alvarez said San Antonio is different from Mexico City.

It’s smaller, quieter and weekends are often less eventful.

But she realizes the benefits of moving to the United States.

“The thing about America is that there are so many opportunities, especially in school,” she said.

Alvarez attributes a lot of her success to the fact that she studied English in Mexico before moving to the United States. In the fall, she will be president of the French Club at Reagan and plans to join the newspaper staff. Alvarez loves San Antonio and plans to stay in the United States, but also is fiercely devoted to her home country. She follows Mexican politics and is watching the upcoming presidential election.

“I hope for the best,” she said. “It’s my country and I love it. But I know it’s going to take a while to get better.”

Yet, true to Laura’s word, she and Alvarez are indeed the “lucky ones.” As much as the current situation in Mexico has prompted Mexican citizens to seek refuge elsewhere, crossing the border today is tougher than ever, according to Haynes. The lawyer said that most visas are granted as a result of work applications or family unification. Finding a way to do so otherwise is still a challenge for most immigrants.

Some have tried to appeal to the U.S. government for political asylum as drug-war refugees. Tim Counts, a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement spokesman, said for a few of the most extreme cases, the appeals have worked.

“In 2010, about 2,300 Mexican citizens were granted po-

Alejandra “Ale” Salazar, 16, attends Communications Arts High School, a magnet school housed at Taft High School. Salazar will be yearbook editor, class secretary and the National Honor Society historian during her senior year this fall.

She is very involved with the San Antonio-based after school art program SAY Sí in the media arts program. There, she focuses on photography, videography and graphic design.

This wanderlust girl has been to Italy, China and Mexico and wants to continue traveling around the world while documenting her travels with photography. The next two places she would like to go are England and Brazil.

At home, Salazar spends her time working on the computer using Adobe Photoshop, Illustrator and Dreamweaver to create Web pages and graphics. “An Adobe CS addict” is what she calls herself. She also volunteers with Helping Hands, a Comm Artsbased school club.

Her volunteer work with Helping Hands consists of anything from buying and wrapping presents for homeless shelters during Christmas, to making Valentines for the Battered Women and Children’s Shelter in San Antonio. Salazar also volunteers at the McNay Art Museum as a teen art guide, and at SAY Sí she mentors middle school media arts students.

She likes to devote her spare time to taking pictures. She’s usually shooting “straight or street photography” with her Canon T3i, named Henri after her favorite photographer Henri CartierBresson.

Still undecided, Salazar would like to attend the University of Texas at Austin and double major in communications and computer science, and hopes to work for Google in web design or advertising.

— Emma Yanez litical asylum in the United States,” Counts said. “In 2011, that number went up to about 4,000.”

While asylum has increased, most applicants are still denied. Those 4,000 people make up only about 9 percent of asylum applicants, Counts said.

UTSA Lecturer Sandra Galindo, who holds a doctorate in culture, language and literacy, has personal roots across the border. She said this kind of migration shouldn’t be a surprise.

“Traditionally, when a country is in conflict, people decide to move to another, looking for safety and a better life,” Galindo said.