Carlos Lopez on Immigration MIC!

An outstanding athlete, driven by an intensity to succeed both on the wrestling mat and a passion for his community, Carlos represents the heart of the fight of the immigrant rights movement.

Brought to the US from Mexico at 1, his parents looking for better opportunities after experiencing mistreatment working for wealthy families, Carlos grew up in a part of Colorado where he experienced growing up in an anglo community which he credits for being able to communicate with people from diverse backgrounds - yet he says he’s missed out on experiences from his culture. He also credits his friends’ ambition to go to college as having inspired him to always be driven to receive a college education.

A technician on the wrestling mat, we share stories about our experiences - the thrill of finding the moment to dominate an opponent. From there, we talk about the limitations Carlos began experiencing in high school, when the rest of his friends were preparing to go to Mexico for Spring Break and he was unable to join in.

The rhetoric leading up to the election inspired Carlos to be open with people around him that were considering voting for the current president - hear the fascinating story of how he helped shift a few people’s perception by sitting with them and having an honest conversation.

He’s a business major, and is part of the Inspired Dreamers club at University Of Colorado working to create spaces, policies for undocumented students on campus — hear about the growth of the club, and also an important story about why he wasn’t included in a video for the university (the university didn’t want to be used as a political football in the immigration debate ... what?)

Fascinating conversation on how a data analysis class he was in predicted the election win in November, how deflated he was once it actually happened, and the nightmare he had about the worst case scenario. He’s looking towards the future now: having Inspired Dreamers become a respected student organization and to create more moments like the former “president supporter” who apologized for being an uneducated voter after interviewing him for a class, and stimulating dialogue beyond “you’re a Mexican/ you’re a racist”.