Summary: The first interview was on a man named Dan Bright who was born in New Orleans, Louisiana. Dan Bright was wrongfully convicted of first-degree murder in 1996 and was released in 2004. Bright grew up in the projects, 'the real projects' where guys got killed everyday he even had a brother that was killed. He was put on death row but he kept fighting and finally got a new trial from the court. Now that he is out its hard for him to get a job because everyone just sees him as an ex-convict that was on death row. One night Dan was stopped by the police and taken into custody, there was a warrant out for his arrest but it was a misdemeanor so he shouldn't have been taken in. He was in lock up during Hurricane Katrina and he said it felt as if he were on death row all over again, and he hated the feeling. He was left in prison in the cell during Hurricane Katrina, all the prisoners were trying to escape in order to save their own lives. All the prisoners were placed on one football field at another prison and were treated like animals and had to pretty much fend for themselves. The sheriff lied and said that he got the prisoners out but he didn't.
The second interviewee was Lorena, who was born in Puebla, Mexico. Lorena crossed over to the united states with her mother, step father and two brothers at the age of six. Her father was an alcoholic and used to beat her mom. One day her father kidnapped her in order to get back at her mom. The first time Lorena and her family attempted to cross the border it was unsuccessful but then they tried again not even a day later and they made it across. When they first got there they were really poor and could barely afford to eat. She started school the day after she arrived to the U.S. She attended Fresno state in 2002. She continued to fight for people's rights even when she came back from her trip.
The third interview was Mr.Lai, who was born in Fujian, China. Mr.Lai had many problems because his family broke the one-child policy.
Comment: These stories were very sad but also in a way very inspiring. The story I can relate to the most is Lorena's story. When reading her story it reminded me a lot about my mom and what she had to go through. She came to the united states at a very young age and she had to work, go to school, and pay for her own things. Lorena talks about how she continued to go to school because she felt as if that was the least she could do in order to repay her mom for helping her. She wanted to make something out of her life and actually make a difference. I am some what similar to Lorena as well. Although I did not have to cross the border in order to get to the U.S I consider myself Mexican because my mom was born there. My mom although she has lived in the United States for many years and is a U.S citizen she is still very proud of being Mexican and loves her culture. Reading these stories also just gives me a different view on people's lives and makes me think about all the things that they go through.
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