Artist Statement from David Amoroso for “Viajeros”

As the United States continues to polarize about immigration issues, we tend to forget that the individuals who cross into the United States illegally have made this risky decision, not out of greed, but for survival. The majority of the individuals I have interviewed carry the financial responsibility for their families.

While making the journey, these individuals are often robbed, sold or violated, and many die. Upon arrival, many of these Jornaleros (day laborers) often live in crowded, sub par living situations, and after working long days performing jobs that others are not willing to do, they are often not paid for their work.

Viajero 1 (36x48, Acrylic) March 2006

"Estaba encerrado en el motor de la camioneta hasta que quemo mi espalda."
"I was closed in on top of the truck´s motor until I burnt my back."

Although I had heard many stories about what an individual must face on his or her way to the USA, his story affected me so deeply that I felt I must share it with others. He spent over a month on the way. As he got closer to the USA, each country became more and more difficult to pass. He had been jailed in Central America where he reported that drugged-out guards took great pleasure terrorizing those who were incarcerated.

Viajero 2 (36x48, Acrylic) April 2006

"De Ida y Vuelta"
"Coming and Going"

Viajero 3 (36x48, Acrylic) August 2006

"Llegue solito, sin coyote ni dinero. Siempre tuve suerte en el camino. Siempre encuentro trabajitos para mantenerme. Pero después de llegar, la tristeza y soledad fueron demasiado, y empecé a tomar."
"I came alone, without a guide or money. I´ve always had luck on the way. I always find little jobs to take care of myself. But after I arrived, the sadness and loneliness were too much and I began to drink."

During the months that he spent here, he jumped from house to house renting rooms. The jobs he was offered all required that he have transportation. For a while he paid a co-worker who lived near him $60 per week to pick him up and take him to work. When the friend quit, he could no longer get to work. Out of frustration, he returned back to his country in October 2006.

Viajero 4 (36x48, Acrylic) September 2006

"Tenia miedo de cerrar los ojos y descansar porque no quería ver la imagen de la señora que dejábamos a morir en el desierto."
"I was afraid to close my eyes and rest because I didn´t want to see the image of the woman we left behind to die in the desert."

Viajero 5 (36x48, Acrylic) September 2006

"Mi madre me dejo para el sueno americano."
"My mother abandoned me for the American Dream."

Viajero 6 (36x48, Acrylic) 2006

Viajero 7 (36x48, Acrylic) October 2006

"Cada vez que llamo a mi familia, mi hija me pregunta, ‘¿cuando volverás?’ "
"Every time that I call my family, my daughter asks, ‘when are you coming back?’ "

Viajero 8 (36x48, Acrylic) February 2006

"Hace tiempo que cruce, pero ya no vale la pena. Creo que ya es mejor aquí."
"It's been a while since I crossed, but now, it's not worth it. I think that now it's better here."

Viajero 9 (36x48, Acrylic) March 2006

"Crucé sin problemas. Nadie me dio cuenta. Aquì nadie sabe di me."
"I crossed without problems. Nobody noticed me. Nobody knows anything about me."

Viajero 10 (36x48, Acrylic) 2006

Viajero 11 (36x48, Acrylic) June 2006

"En el camino, me robaron y después, me vendieran."
"On the way, they robbed me, and then they sold me."

Viajero 12 (36x48, Acrylic) June 2007

"Mayormente, caminábamos en la noche. No podíamos ver adonde ibamos, y por eso, caminábamos sobre las chilusos que dolían bastante. Cuando escuchábamos los helicópteros arriba, buscábamos lugares para escondernos."
"We walked mostly at night. We couldn´t see where we were going, so we walked into cactus plants which were very painful. When we heard the helicopters flying overhead, we looked for places to hide ourselves."

Viajero 13 (36x48, Acrylic) July 2007

"Después de intentar de cruzar varios veces, me pregunté en frente del muro: ¿Qué serã? ¿Un sueño, una pesadilla o la muerte?"
"After trying to cross several times, I asked myself in front of the wall: What will it be? A dream, a nightmare, or death?"

Viajero 14 (36x48, Acrylic) July 2007

"Demoré 2 semanas en viaje. Caminaba muchas noches en el desierto sin comer, sin agua, y mucho frío. Llegue acá y tampoco era fácil. No hablaba ingles y tampoco español. Nadie hablaba mi dialecto. Tenía 13 años. No conseguía trabajo. No conocía a nadie. Nadie me entendía. El primer día que trabaje me echaron. Era muy chico, débil, y no tenía experiencia. Después, otro trabajo me pidieron que descanse y me senté en la sombra (porque) era un niño. Lloraba porque no me dejaron trabajar. Me trajeron juguetes para que pase el día jugando. Estuve todo el día sin comer por que no se acoraron de mí."
"The trip took 2 weeks. I walked many nights in the desert without eating, without water, and it was cold. I arrived here, but it wasn´t easy. I didn´t speak English or Spanish. Nobody spoke my dialect. I was 13 years old. I couldn´t find work. I didn´t know anybody. Nobody understood me. The first day that I worked, they threw me out. I was very small, weak, and I didn´t have experience. Later, at another job, they asked me to rest and sit in the shade because I was a boy. I cried because they wouldn´t let me work. They brought me games to pass the day playing. I spent the whole day without eating because they forgot about me.°

Viajero 15 (36x48, Acrylic) September 2007

"Yo he cruzado 3 veces. Marqué las rutas en el mapa como un recuerdo. En mi último viaje, me quede encerrado adentro de un maletero en el autobús para muchas horas. Fue difícíl respirar, y cuando cruzábamos y finalmente salí del maletero, casi no pude caminar."
"I have crossed the border 3 times. I marked the routes on the map as a reminder. On my last trip I was locked inside of a baggage rack of a bus for many hours. It was difficult to breathe, and when we finally crossed over and I got out of the baggage rack I could barely walk."

To my surprise, this "Viajero" brought a map to the photo session to show me how he got to the USA. He had carefully marked the different routes he had taken to get here, and he reported that it each time he crossed over it was more difficult. As he spoke, it was almost as if it was a challenging game to him.

Viajero 16 (36x48, Acrylic) October 2007

"Llegué a los estados unidos hace cinco años para vivir con mi padre y su nueva esposa en Florida. Fue difícil para vivir con ellos porque mi madrastra siempre critico a mi mama. Por eso yo salí y empecé a trabajar en un restaurante hindú. No pagó bien, pero me quede allí dos años. Después, mi fui por Connecticut y otros estados para encontrar una vida mejor. En el camino, fui adicto para evitar la soledad que encontré para estar aquí solo."
"I came to the US five years ago to live with my father and his new wife in Florida. It was difficult to live there because my step-mother was always criticizing my real mother, so I left and found a job in an Indian restaurant. It didn´t pay well, but I stayed there for about 2 years. Then I moved to Connecticut and a few other states trying to find a better way of life. Along the way, I became an addict because drugs took away the loneliness of being here and not having anyone."

He reports that he is now off of drugs thanks to some good people in his life, but he is currently homeless because the apartment he was staying in "had so many bed bugs that I could not even sleep." He said that he has seen a decrease in his opportunities in Virginia, so he will go back to Florida. He has been in contact with "The Hindu," and will return to his old job. Although the pay is low, he can at least have regular, guaranteed hours and send money back home to his mother.

Viajero 17 (36x48, Acrylic) February 2008

"Las razones por dejar mi patria fueron muchos. Lo primero: para poder ayudar mi familia tener un major futuro. Este viaje fue algo fuerte para mi. En el camino, extranaba mucho mi familia y mi patria. Ahora extrano mi familia y mi patria, pero hay algo que me hace sentir bien: puedo ayudarles."
"There were many reasons to leave my country. First: to be able to help my family have a better future. The trip was tough for me. On the way, I missed my family and my country. Now I miss my family and my country, but there's something that makes me feel better: I am helping them."

Viajero 18 (36x48, Acrylic) February 2008

"TPS"
"Temporary Protected Status"

Viajero 19 (36x48, Acrylic) March 2008

"Perdido en el Camino"
"Lost on the Way"

I met Viajero #19 at a party with some other friends. He had moved to the East coast from California because he was told that there were more opportunities on the East coast. After a short period here, he realized that this was not true. He told me that he had sold all of his possessions to move here and had truly regretted his decision.
He was manic as he spoke about his life, immigration issues, and race issues. His regret, frustration, and sadness were clear as he spoke. Although the lighting was dim, his emotion was clear in his piercing eyes. He said that he "felt like buying a ticket back to California." The next week, I called a friend of his, and his friend reported that Viajero #19 had packed his bags and left without saying anything to his friends or family.

Viajero 20 (36x48, Acrylic) March 2008

"En la lluvia-abajo de una carpa-pensaba en no regresar a reunir con la familia, pero mi destino era seguir adelante hasta al alcanzar mi sueno de llegar hasta acá."
"In the rain-under a tarp-I thought about not returning to be with my family, but my destiny was to keep on moving until I reached my goal to arrive here."