Saturday, October 12, 2024

A First-Time Voter’s Complicated Path Navigating Family and Politics


PBS: A First-Time Voter’s Complicated Path Navigating Family and Politics | VOCES: Latino Vote 2024

Jerry Reyes was born and raised in the heart of California’s Central Valley, surrounded by a sweltering expanse of industrial agriculture. He never worked in the fields, but his parents and grandparents did – picking the very grapes that Cesar Chavez once boycotted. And while Jerry is a citizen, his family members were all undocumented and at risk of deportation over the years and administrations. 

Sitting at a crowded taquería, Jerry talks about the upcoming election, and describes what matters to him as a 24-year old, first-time voter: he wants to “make money.” And while he concedes he himself is a product of immigrants, he thinks it’s time to close the border. Jerry sells insurance, is a registered Republican, and is voting for Trump. This decision has meant multiple family members will no longer speak to him, a consequence Jerry believes is an unfortunate necessity of being a “free thinker.”

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