The USA as Seen by an Immixile

Isabel Allende, talking about exiles and immigrants said, “The exile is forced out, looks to the past. The immigrant looks to the future and takes advantage of available opportunities.”  When I heard this I asked myself, “What am I, an exile, or an immigrant?”

Twice we were forced to leave Argentina. I love all things Argentine. I am an exile. My children and granddaughters were born in the States. I have lived here more than fifty years, and I became a citizen in 1982. I am an immigrant. Hence, I am an immigrant-exile, an immixile.  As an immixile, I would like to share my thoughts on the country that has become my second home. I will share praises and criticisms, likes and dislikes. I will share all of these with a single intent, to make the US a better place for all.  Recently, I heard Angela Davis state, “… the way to pay tribute to this country … is try to change it … to develop it into the … place where anyone can be free, and equal, and happy.”

I can only hope to do honor to her words.

Roberto Altschul was born in Buenos Aires. He started his education at an English bilingual grade school, and then moved to public institutions. Since his early teens, mathematics was his favorite subject. He loved music and reading, from Salgari’s pirate stories to Hesse’s Demian and Shaw’s plays. In his early teens, he saw adventure movies, and later, movies by Hitchcock, Bergman, and Rene Clair. He met Marisabel when he entered the university’s Science School. They moved to Cleveland to finish their graduate studies and taught there, then returned to Argentina in the worst of times. They moved to Seattle in 1977 and have been here since.