Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Dear America, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Citizenship, Belonging, and Identity
Family, Love, and Intimacy
Immigration Politics and Policy
Journalism, Storytelling, and the Power of Truth
Summary
Analysis
Stuck in traffic on the way back to his Los Angeles apartment, Vargas started looking through his emails on his phone. One said, “Ready to buy a home?” He wondered if it was a joke. It was a spam email from Bank of America, and he decided to call the bank and tell them that he couldn’t get a loan because he was undocumented. The customer service representative was confused, then asked, “Are you an illegal?” Vargas comments that he can’t vote, travel internationally, or use public healthcare. He doesn’t have to hide anymore, but he feels more lost and isolated the older he gets.
The housing email reminds Vargas that the U.S. isn’t built for people like him. Not only does he lack many of the opportunities that U.S. citizens take for granted, but other people forget that people like him even exist. This is because, while undocumented people are everywhere, they're expected to make themselves invisible by lying, passing, and hiding. They’re certainly not expected to announce their status to customer service. But Vargas insists that he will no longer accept second-class status by lying, passing, and hiding in situations where other Americans get to be their genuine selves.
Themes
