There’s a phrase many of us have heard growing up: “Ni de aquí, ni de allá.” Not from here, not from there. It’s a feeling that weighs heavy on so many first-generation Latinos, immigrants, and children of immigrants. We grow up caught between cultures, navigating traditions that are passed down from our ancestors while also trying to find our place in a world that often tells us we don’t belong.
For many of us, home is both de aquí y de allá—from here and from there. But what happens when both places reject us? When the country of our roots sees us as outsiders, and the country we live in tells us we don’t belong?
The Politics of Belonging
Right now, the immigration conversation in the U.S. is more hostile than ever, with Trump and his supporters pushing for stricter policies, mass deportations, and fear-based rhetoric. Families are being torn apart, children are being detained, and people who have built lives here for decades are being treated as disposable. The message being sent is clear: You are not welcome.
But let’s be real—there is no such thing as "illegal" on stolen land. The very people who built this country—from the fields to the factories, from the kitchens to the classrooms—are the same people being told they have no right to be here. Indigenous people were here long before borders were drawn. Latino communities, especially those with Indigenous roots, have existed on this land for generations. We are not "aliens." We are not invaders. We are home.
Redefining Identity & Owning Our Place
For too long, we’ve been told that we have to choose—assimilate or be "other." Speak Spanish or speak English. Be American or be Mexican. Be Dominican. Be Salvadoran. Be whatever they say you are, but never both.
But we refuse to be placed into neat little boxes. We are the blend of our cultures, the beauty of our mixed languages, the power of our ancestors living through us. We are the Spanglish in our sentences, the tamales at Christmas, the mariachi at our graduations. We are the resistance, the resilience, and the future.
We don’t have to prove our worth to anyone. Not to a government that refuses to see our humanity, not to a system that profits off our labor while criminalizing our existence, and not to a society that wants to dictate what being "Latina enough" looks like.
We are de aquí y de allá. We are enough. We belong everywhere.
Taking Action
As we continue to fight for our place, we must also fight for those still trying to find theirs. We can:
- Support organizations helping immigrant families facing deportation.
- Amplify voices of undocumented activists and allies.
- Vote for leaders who value human rights over political gain.
- Continue to tell our stories and remind the world that we exist, we thrive, and we are here to stay.
At RAÍCES & REFLECTIONS, we believe in celebrating our roots while standing up for our communities. A percentage of every purchase goes toward helping families at the border because we know that when one of us rises, we all rise.
Let’s keep showing up for each other. Let’s remind the world that we are from here, from there, and from everywhere in between. Ni de aquí, ni de allá? No. We are de aquí y de allá. Always.
