After reading The Tortilla Curtain by TC Boyle, I was asked to create an assignment for students to understand an issue in the novel, without actually reading the novel.
The Tortilla Curtain is a parallel story: one side about the struggles of illegal Mexicans living in California and the other is about an American family dealing with their own issues in that area. The Mexican family is camping in the forest of the Topanga River Valley because they are unable to attain citizenship in the United States so here is your task...
Imagine that you are a Mexican living in Mexico. You have a decent life, but your friends keep telling you stories of how many opportunities there are in America and how everyone has a job, makes lots of money, lives in a nice house, and drives a car. You decide to leave your family behind for Mexico and head for El Norte.
You have a big decision to make though: to go illegally or to go legally?
Browse through a series of websites on my delicious Delicious page to help you make your decision. Is it easier to try to attain a legal United States citizenship or is it easier to cross the boarder illegally and dodge la policia? The sites on my delicious include the steps to attaining an American citizenship, information about the Mexico-America border, and much more.
The end result of your project should include a one to two paragraph response (which you may post as a comment) of your decision. Did you deicide to come in illegally? If so, where did you cross the border? Where are you hiding now? Or did you deicide to come in legally and apply for an American citizenship? Did you pass the citizenship test?
As part of your end result, you must take the "Could you pass the US citizenship test?" quiz (also a link on Delicious). So did you pass?
Quotes to keep in mind while deciding:
"One coyote, who makes his living on the fringes of my community... has learned to simply chew his way through the plastic irrigation pipes whenever he wants a drink." (212)
This quote is being said by Delaney (one of the Americans) and refers to the illegal immigrants (the coyotes).
"I'm afraid." (279)
Said by América (illegal immigrant).
"Making the trees and bushes and the natural habitat of the Topanga State Park into his own private domicile, crapping in the chaparral, dumping his trash behind rocks, polluting the stream and ruining it for everyone else." (11)
Delaney speaking about the illegal immigrants.
"For three quarters of the year the villages of Morelos became villages of women, all but deserted by the men who had migrated North to earn real money and work eight and ten and twelve hours a day instead of sitting in the cantina eternally nursing a beer." (50)
América speaking about her hometown in Mexico.
*In the book, the Mexican illegal immigrants, Cándido and América, remained in the country illegally. They considered attempting to get Green Cards, but were unable to.
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