Running Head: IMMIGRATION INTERVIEW 1

Immigration Interview

Olivia M. Norman

College of Southern Nevada

IMMIGRATION INTERVIEW 2

Bonnie Easterbrook was raised in Gisborne, NZ with a population of 36,000. Many small

towns in New Zealand revolve around Maori houses whose culture still hold a strong influence

there. New Zealanders are raised speaking both English and Maori. Many cities and streets have

Maori names. Bonnie described home as a laid-back atmosphere centered around outdoor

activities like surfing.

After university, she was living in Auckland and working as a nurse. She explained that

New Zealanders like to travel and participate in O.E. (oversees experience after university). Due

to the exchange rate of money, it is very beneficial to work out of the country. Manning and

Baruth repeatedly drive home the idea, in Multicultural Education of Children and Adolescence,

that socioeconomic status (SES) continues to be a powerful indicator of academic success for

American children (2009). For New Zealanders, moving somewhere where their money goes

farther instantly increases there overall SES. Because NZ and England are both part of the

Common Wealth, residents are able to work in England without a Visa. Many will spend time in

England working to earn pounds, saving, and paying off student loans.

Nurses are in such high demand that recruiters come from around the world trying to

entice nurses to move to their cities. Bonnie wanted to try some place different than most and in

2000 decided on Lubbock, Texas. She married James, a little sooner than she normally would

have, in order for him to be included in the Green card process. Lawyers from the hospital in

Lubbock paid for and facilitated the normally year-long procedure. When the Trade Center

Towers were attacked on 9/11, all immigration into the United States was halted. They were

postponed several times resulting in it ultimately taking three years to make it to the United

States; the hospital originally planned on 50 nurses immigrating, but with the delays, ended up

getting five. According to Manning and Baruth, regardless of the actual numbers [of
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immigrants], the United States is a country of destination for many people of differing cultures,

languages, and traditions (2009). If one hospital was planning to recruit fifty people from New

Zealand, there is no telling how many they recruited from other countries. This one place of

employment could be responsible for increasing our cultural diversity greatly.

Once the process started again, there were countless steps. After a very intrusive medical

exam, including EKGs, blood test, vaccines, and even a pelvic exam, they were approved three

months later to continue on to the next step. Bonnie flew to Hawaii to take the Inclex test for

nurses which is required for work in the United States. After six months, she was awarded a

nursing license for New York, which then needed to be transferred to Texas. She was then able to

go to the US Embassy in New Zealand for an interview, fingerprints, and picture which needed

to include the left ear as a marker. Another six months wait and they were finally ready to head to

the United States. They were given travel Visas and one way tickets. When they arrived, they

were able to pick up their Green cards.

In the early 2000s, Bonnie only had dial-up internet so she could only access a couple

pictures of Lubbock before arriving. She was surprised by how small the town was; she was

expecting it be much bigger. She also had never seen any place so flat before. The freeways were

enormous compared to the single lane roadways in New Zealand and much faster. Besides the

town itself, everything seemed bigger: stores, food servings, drinks. Free re-fills on soda was

completely new. One would think that our language would be familiar to her; however, that was

not the case. In Multicultural Education of Children and Adolescence, the authors explain that

several factors influence learners ability to speak English for example, whether the parents

and families live in language enclaves, where people speak native languages, whether the parents

are trying to learn to speak English, and the schools efforts to provide programs in English as a
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second language (Manning & Baruth, 2009). This does not take in to account language barriers

for people speaking the same language from different countries. Bonnie explained that because

of her accent and fast speech patterns, most had an extremely difficult time understanding her.

There were also several words that were different for certain items. While perhaps not as

frustrating as not knowing any of the words, it can still be difficult to adjust your speech patterns

so that others may understand you.

Traveling such a far distance, they only brought 2 suitcases each. First, they had difficulty

securing an apartment. They had brand new social security cards and no history. She felt like bad

credit would have been better than no credit. Often her checks would be declined, not for lack of

funds, but lack of history. The bank advised them to get a credit card and pay it off each month to

build credit; nobody really used credit cards back home, but rather saved up and paid cash. They

went to Walmart for the first time to get provisions for their new place. This can be quite an

experience to someone born here, but to her it was completely amazing. Bonnie and James had

never seen a store where you could buy furniture, food, and clothes all in one stop. Nor had they

seen so much packaged food or mixes; everything was made from scratch in New Zealand. They

bought a bed, a television, loveseat, and used the television box as a table.

Their original plan was to fulfill their two-year contract while saving money, then return

home. During that time, James became a helicopter pilot. There were more opportunities for him

to work in the United States so they stayed. After 2 years and 2 months in the flattest, brownest

city they had ever encountered, they moved to New Hampshire. Six years and three children

later, he was offered a job in Las Vegas where they have lived for five years now.

A few years ago, their Green Cards were getting close to expiring. There were more job

opportunities for James so they decided to stay longer. They could either re-apply for Green
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Cards which would cost $500 each, or apply for citizenship which would be $700 each. While

many people spend thousands on lawyers, Bonnie and James decided to attempt the immigration

paperwork on their own. Since their children were born here to non-citizen parents, they

automatically had US citizenship and through a simple form mailed to New Zealand, they were

given dual citizenship as babies. For many countries, new citizens are forced to denounce their

previous home, but New Zealand is one the few where you can apply for dual citizenship.

Once they started the application process, their Green Cards were frozen, meaning they

would not be deported while waiting for citizenship. Similarly, to the Green Card, there was

much waiting involved. They filled out the application, then waited for approval. They got

fingerprints, then waited for an interview. She and James were separated and asked about their

reasons for staying, their spouses, and what they were doing in the United States. They were

given a booklet to study before the interview. There were 50 questions in the study guide on

American history and politics, of which they would be asked 15 in an oral exam. They could

only miss 2 or they had to start over. They also had to demonstrate their knowledge of the

English language. Luckily, they both passed or they would have had to start at the beginning.

They were given a court date to be sworn in with 100 others. Bonnie noted that the part of her

dual citizenship that really stood out in her mind, was that she had to pledge that she would

remain loyal to and fight for the US if we ever went to war with New Zealand.

She would still like to move back to New Zealand, but of course life keeps getting in the

way. James still has much more opportunity for work here and there are aspects of the United

States that Bonnie really appreciates. Especially in Las Vegas, she can live in the convenience of

the city, but still quickly get to the snow, water, hiking, or camping. There is also the issue of cost

to get back home. It is $5,000 in plane tickets, $8,000 for their two dogs to fly home and remain
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for 30 days in quarantine, plus $15,000 for a crate to bring back some of their belongings.

Despite the cost to get home and the conveniences afforded to them in the United States, they

would like to move back home someday. They miss the beach and the laid-back atmosphere. She

told me stories of her nephew going to school barefoot, preschools practicing hammering nails

into a board for motor skills, and surfing two days a week as part of the physical education

curriculum. That led us to one facet that she has not gotten used to; Americans sue for

everything. Hammering nails in school or attending barefoot could never happen in the United

States because of safety regulations. She also does not like to see the waste that takes place here;

we throw items away instead of fixing them, or buy cases of water instead of refilling a glass.

While I would miss her greatly, but I hope she can stick to her two-year plan of making it back

home; I know she misses her family more.

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References

Easterbrook, B. (2017). Personal Interview. 6 April, 2017.

Manning, M. L. & Baruth, L. G. (2009). Multicultural Education of Children and Adolescents.

Boston: Pearson Education, Inc.