It was then that it hit me that I would never see my friends and extended family again," he added. "It was not until the Christmas break was over that my father announced to us that we would not be returning to our home country. for Christmas break and that we would be returning to Mexico afterward," said Rodriguez. "When we left Mexico, my siblings and I were told that we were just going to the U.S.
In retrospect, he says his story would have been much different had he stayed in Mexico during Christmas when he was 15-years-old. "The Immigration Reform gave me the opportunity to realize the American Dream without the fear of being deported or that the door of opportunity would close on me because of my legal status," said Rodriguez. His journey from being an undocumented immigrant to overseeing more than 1,000 Hispanic Baptist congregations for the BGCT was a feat of hardships and one made possible due to Washington lawmakers. Rodriguez was one of nearly 3 million to benefit from the 1986 immigration reform act.
It is in this crucial time where the potential future of millions of immigrants are on the line that The Christian Post spoke to Rolando Rodriguez, a former undocumented immigrant who now leads the Baptist General Convention of Texas (BGCT), about how his life changed after Congress passed an immigration reform law over 20 years ago. More than 11 million undocumented immigrants might have a chance of coming out of hiding and having legal residency in the United States if Congress can successfully pass a comprehensive immigration reform bill in the coming months.
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