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Kevin Argueta, 18 | UCLA Community School

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Kevin Argueta graduated Thursday from UCLA Community School in Koreatown, where he addressed his classmates in Spanish. Here is the text of his speech, which Argueta translated to English:

My name is Kevin Argueta, and I am a native Salvadoran student. It is a privilege to be here and to be able to share my experiences as a Latino immigrant student on this unforgettable afternoon with all of you. My academic dream began the day that I decided to cross the desert in order to improve my lifestyle from the poverty and violence I lived through in El Salvador.

Without a doubt, the desert has become a metaphor in my life. I still remember when I was 11 years old and got separated from my mother while we were both immigrating to the United States. Since then, I never really knew what the future had prepared for someone like me. But somehow, all these years after immigrating to the United States, I continue to identify as a foreign student whose mother tongue is Spanish. This desert is not only for me, but also for thousands of immigrant students that want to obtain a high level of education through a university.

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To cross the border is something that many of us do not wish for but that is rather a necessity we have to face. We come from different countries, cultures and regions, but we all share something in common: our persistence, whether it’s in our studies or work. Sometimes as Latino immigrants, we see an arid desert, dry where dreams evaporate little by little. But every morning that I would see my father and mother get up at 6 a.m. to get ready to work, somehow, in some shape or form, that would give me strength to keep pushing forward. Then my arid desert would eventually become a sea full of life and hope.

Nevertheless, the persistence of my parents, with their love and dedication, has guided me today to be here with all of you. My parents have been my superheroes because there is no better hero than that without a cape, who fights with sweat and blood for those who he or she loves. My parents taught me that if we can’t fly, then we will run; that if we can’t run, then we will walk; that if we can’t walk, then we will crawl; but that no matter how hard things may get, we shall always keep moving forward.

To the class of 2016:

I would like to invite you to walk in this desert with me and to plant the seed of hope and knowledge, wherever life may take us. And to take on our next adventure without forgetting where we came from and who we really are. Because the new generations need to learn about our legacy and hear our story. But above all else, we must stop allowing our politicians and the media from making immigrants seem like criminals.

Society always judges a book by its cover. It does not take the time to read it. Today, each of us is demonstrating the strength and perseverance that determines a real Latino and Latina. From the man and woman who work as a cook or as a dishwasher, to the person who walks around the streets cleaning windows for a living, I invite you to look at your families: mothers, fathers, uncles and aunts, grandfather and grandmother, who have taught us to value each thing in our lives and the privilege that they have provided us with. I invite you to say to them, “Thank you.”

During seven years at UCLA Community School, I have learned to be more than a student. I have learned to be a human being who deserves respect and has a voice. At the same time, I have learned the significance of true friendship, regardless if you’re the only Salvadoran or the only Costa Rican in a group of four Mexicans. There is no wall, nor rivalry, nor desert that is larger than the unity of true friendship.

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