Linda Madrigal's mother has to tell family members not to file taxes, even though they want to. Filing taxes could mean deportation back to Mexico because they are here illegally.
"They're not unwilling to pay taxes," said Linda Madrigal, a sophomore hospitality and food management major.
This is just one of the reasons why Linda Madrigal and two other Ball State University students joined in a rally in Indianapolis on Monday calling for immigration reform that would help people come to the United States legally.
According to The Associated Press, at least 10,000 people in Indianapolis joined people in about 100 cities nationwide.
The crowd wore white shirts to represent unity and waved American flags while chanting phrases such as "Do the right thing."
Linda Madrigal and her cousin Bernardo Madrigal, a telecommunications major, were born in America, but their fathers and other family members came here illegally, she said. When their family members got here, they worked in the steel mills in the Gary area, Bernardo Madrigal said.
Matzine Sanchez, a sophomore international business major, came to the United States legally 11 years ago, but her father came here illegally.
"We started from, like, zero," Sanchez said.
The family lived in a trailer while her father worked for a steel company and her mother worked at a Toyota factory. In Mexico, her mother was an accountant.
When Sanchez sees the current debate about immigration, she said she remembers how hard her family had it when they first came.
Sanchez wants people to understand that most immigrants take jobs that few Americans want, she said.
"If people like immigrants weren't here, who's gonna work at McDonald's, who's gonna do the farmwork?" she said.
Sanchez used to work at a chicken farm where people ended up with cuts all over their hands because of the work. Non-immigrants walked out all the time, she said, causing the company to lose money in hiring and training new people.
Linda Madrigal said immigrants are willing to work for lower wages because they're still higher than wages in Mexico.
Immigrants are also willing to work hard because they want to provide their families with a better life and education. Sanchez said her family has been able to send both her and her brother to college without help from the government because they're willing to work long hours, seven days a week.
The three students said they supported the government's right to secure the border but wanted to see regulations relaxed.
A bill passed by the House in December calls for a wall to be built along the U.S.-Mexican border.
However, a wall would not solve the problem, Sanchez said.
"People aren't going to stop because of a wall," she said because immigrants would just cross the border through underground holes.
Bernardo Madrigal said he wanted Ball State students to take notice of the issue because it affects everyone.
"I hope the rally will show the peace and show we're not bad people," he said. "We're just trying to support our families."
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