Dear President Trump,

You see, I'm not here to analyze any of the decisions you've made since you took office or negate your presidency. I'm here to tell you that what you've so freely spoken to the world about immigrants couldn't be further from the truth. Now several lies have come out of your mouth since you've announced your candidacy, but your claim on immigrants and who they are, is the biggest one you've so carelessly fed to the public.

I am not an immigrant, but I am an honors student, an athlete, a young philanthropist to my community, I speak two languages fluently, and I am learning a third. My parents (immigrants), however, were honors students throughout their entire education (not to mention which was taught to them in an entirely different language than they spoke at home, which gave them a far larger vocabulary than I possess), my mother recently completed her first half marathon, and my dad can beat me in a race any day. Other than that, both my parents continually donate their time and money to the causes in our community not only in America, but in India. My parents are so much more than an honors student, an athlete, and a young philanthropist--they are so much more than I am and so much more than I could ever dream to be. They have taught me to be selfless and give back, so my parents did not give you rapists, or did not try to steal your job, but instead they gave you an honors student, an athlete, and a contributing member of her community who dreams to be as beneficial to this society as her parents are.

Lastly, you can walk into any of our parties (with my parents who are immigrants, my friend's parents who are also immigrants, and their friend's parents who are also immigrants), and the nearest person will be able to communicate in three languages minimum. In fact, conversation is flowing seamlessly between three languages about politics, education, and religion. So you can't tell me that we (immigrants) are not a group of intellectuals, capable of the same advanced thought as you. In fact, we are capable of the same advanced thought in a variety of languages. Immigration to the United States is not an easy feat, but a rather difficult one. My mother, pregnant with me, stood in line at 3 a.m. in the freezing cold with a 4 year old in one arm, and her papers in the other--just so she could live in this land of promise and success. Till today, my father and mother still have faith in this promise land that they so bravely left their entire family and life behind for, that they truly sacrificed everything for.

And so I would normally say "I don't expect you to understand" because I doubt you would understand what a sacrifice truly means, but the thing is--I really, really expect you and need you to understand. You are the President of The United States of America, how can you not understand your own peoples' issues? Not only do immigrants sacrifice their lives and families to start new ones, but they continually give to the benefit of the community, enrich American soil with their stories, past, and hard work, and solely promote the American dream in hopes to cultivate a better future not only for their children but for yours as well. President Trump, please reconsider your image of immigrants and do not be the reason that immigrants lose hope of peace, equality, acceptance, and freedom in this promise land.