Aliento Features: Emily Salgado
“O Lord, you hear the desire of the afflicted; you will strengthen their heart; you will incline your ear.”
My name is Emily Salgado. I'm a senior at Bioscience High School. It was interesting to think that we are the future of this country, and our community has done so much to make America a better place, but still, the voices of our families and friends aren't heard. Therefore, I ensure that the public perceives my community as caring and present when we go and talk to legislators or host events that promote mental health awareness and security for our community.
The first time I attended an Aliento event was Education Day (E-Day 2024) with Sergio, an Arizona’s Future Fellow Alumni from my school in the 2023-2024 cohort. I was moved by Aliento's mission to advocate for Dreamers and immigrant families, and their courage in educating our legislators. It’s empowering to realize we have something to teach even those who hold authority. I want to continue educating people about the issue around immigrants, so when it came time to apply for the fellowship, I made sure I did, even if I was on a boat in the middle of nowhere. Looking back on it today, I think I have reached my goals in educating not only my community but also legislators more about our situations. Because of E-Days and Canvassing for Prop 314 . I’ve gotten better at speaking and sharing my story.
Aliento doesn't believe in confrontation; instead, we want to educate the community on the reality because we tend to get so caught up in politics that we forget the people who are being affected. When we started campaigning against Prop 314, educating the community on the potential impacts this bill would have, I couldn't believe it was true. I was so thankful that we were the ones educating voters who care and are affected by misinformation. As someone who just wants to scream at people when they don't get it or are stubborn, I'm glad I'm out here learning to be a better person and just educating because learning never stops. That is the whole reason Aliento was so amazing to me: it focuses on teaching and action.
I will never forget the day I spent 6 hours walking around canvassing. It was hot. I was nervous. I didn't want to say the wrong thing. I was scared people were going to slam the door in my face. On this day, I overcame my fear of being labeled a certain way. That day, I built friendships and worked up quite a hunger. From now on, I’ll be more respectful and listen to those who spend their hours walking around to educate their community.
This fellowship pushes you in many ways to become a better leader and advocate for what you care about. If you think you can't participate because you're not good at public speaking or believe you won't benefit from it, think again. If you have a passion and want to take action for the immigrant community, do this fellowship because they want to work with you. You’ll get better and build this skill. Even if you have this skill, they’ll still find ways to push you. All the work you do at Aliento is meaningful; you build wonderful friendships and a strong sense of community. One piece of advice I would give to incoming fellows is to be responsive to the leadership development coordinators, turn your timesheets on time, and always know you are good enough.
I still don't know where I'm going to college, but I would like to declare myself pre-med and, hopefully, in 13 years, become a pediatric oncologist/hematologist, but only God knows what will happen in the future; therefore, I'll put everything in his hands.
