Today we are talking with Michael Durack, author of The Illegal from Holland, published by Infinity Publishing and available on Amazon and other online outlets.
PBR: Michael, thank you for taking your time to talk with us today.
Thank you for providing the opportunity.
PBR: First let me say how "sorry" I am for you and your wife to have had such an ordeal. As they say, "Bad things often happen to good people," so are you bitter about your experience with ICE and the Immigration system?
I don't know if bitter is the right word, but I'm definitely much more cynical about the effectiveness and moral justification of the way people in the system are treated.
PBR: When did the concept of writing your book come about? Were you compiling a diary during the approximate year and a half?
I probably made a few notes while I was traveling in Europe with Yolande, but I didn't keep a diary. I think I just felt that our experience with the U.S. government's policies was so bizarre and being treated like criminals was so unjust that I had to write about it.
PBR: At any time when Yolande was in custody, did you fear for her safety?
Not really. She is so good at adapting to almost any situation and taking any obstacle in stride that she never seemed to feel there was any danger and she transferred that attitude to me. I was mostly concerned with how long she would have to stay there and not being able to get any information regarding when she would be freed.
PBR: I know from having read your book your personal views on "the system," but if you knew then what you know now, what might you have done differently?
Well, I certainly wouldn't have been so honest at the checkpoint in New Mexico. I was still naive enough to believe that my government had better things to do than imprison totally harmless individuals simply because they had broken an administrative law. I honestly felt that Yolande's immigration status could be overlooked since we were legally married and had begun working with an immigration attorney to reinstate her status. I never would have believed she would be punished so severely for her non-compliance prior to our marriage.
PBR: There is a big difference between an illegal immigrant and a terrorist seeking to do harm to America. In fact, most terrorists are in this country legally. Do you feel the public has lost focus on the issue?
Yes, absolutely. As you can tell from reading the book, I feel there is almost a national hysteria in process on this subject. I don't believe most Americans are aware of the sacrifices many immigrants make to come to the U.S. for a better way of life and how much they contribute whether they are legal or illegal. The illegality of most of these immigrants is something that could easily be resolved if we could all get over our national "pride" ( aka ego) and allow people a chance to remain here if they were given an opportunity to cure any administrative misdeeds in the past. The majority of illegals could become legal in a short time, people could continue to live their lives and the super patriots could save face by not allowing "illegal" aliens to live in this country and take away jobs from Americans that no one else is willing to do anyway.
PBR: What are your plans for the future?
I am hoping I can at some time in the near future take a shot at writing another book with a high school sports theme. Although it would be based on my own experiences as a high school and college football player, this one would be completely fictional. When it will get done is anybody's guess, since I am not financially independent and still need a "real job" to pay the bills. In addition, my wife keeps trying to convince me that we would have a better life in Europe and I'm not sure she's wrong. So it's possible we may emigrate there within the next year or two, which could open up another new world of writing possibilities.
Thank you very much for spending this time with us. We wish you the most success with your book and future plans.
Reviewed by: Gary R. Sorkin
Gary R. Sorkin is the Senior Editor for Pacific Book Review. Please visit Pacific Book Review at:
http://www.pacificbookreview.com/
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