When he was in fifth grade, Manuel Contreras was diagnosed with diabetes. Taking insulin shots and
having to constantly monitor his blood sugar levels got him thinking about what others might go through with their healthcare. Now 18 years old, Contreras is a freshman at Black Hawk College pursuing a degree to become an Emergency Medical Technician.
“I want to go work at any hospital around here to be a paramedic,” says Contreras. “I enjoy helping others.”
Before he can get his EMT license, however, he’ll need a social security number. Contreras was born in Durango, Mexico and came to the United States with his family when he was only five or six years old. They took a bus from the border to the Chicago area, where they lived briefly with family members before moving to East Moline.
“I just remember my family being over there,” says Contreras about his early memories of Mexico. “Right here [in the Quad Cities] I’ve figured out my life and what I want to do- I have friends and I basically have everything here.”
Contreras and his two sisters all applied for the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program as soon as applications were available on August 15. He recently received some paperwork back from the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services.
“I got my biometric appointment to get my fingerprints and a picture and a signature,” says Contreras. “I was surprised- I thought it was going to take longer.”
Although the deferred action program is only temporary, Contreras sees the policy as better than nothing. “Without it, I would probably just take those courses still, but I wouldn’t be able to do anything with them until something happened,” adds Contreras. “My life would probably just pause for a while.”
Overall, he figures taking a chance on this program is worth the risk.
“I don’t think they would have the time or the money to just drop everything and punish us all or send us to Mexico or deport us or anything like that. It takes time and money; I don’t think they would want to make that their priority. There’s more issues in the government than just that.”
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