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THE GREAT DIVIDE: ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION ON ONE DAY : DOCTOR

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NAME: Dr. Juan C. Ruiz

AGE: 32

WORK: Medical director at a community health clinic in Pico Union

HOME: Los Angeles

IMMIGRATION STATUS: Naturalized U.S. citizen. A native of Colombia, Ruiz moved to N.Y. in 1978 as an illegal immigrant. This year became a citizen.

“Something I remember vividly in New York is going to visit my aunt in College Point, which is a working class neighborhood. Some kids started yelling at me ‘Spic go back home.’ I remember one day talking to this kid and asking him why they didn’t like me, and he said ‘Because you come here to take our jobs away.’ And I said, don’t worry. I’m not going to take away your job because I’m going to be a doctor.

“There are no other facilities for undocumented immigrants to turn to so they have to come to us. This is a free clinic that has to provide for lots of people and that caseload is increasing, as is the acuteness of care.

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“For us to think we can ignore the health care needs of undocumented immigrants, it’s a farce. Illnesses don’t recognize borders or barriers and if we deny health care to undocumented immigrants we will create a public health hazard because by denying health care to them we’re denying illnesses can be contagious.”

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