Paper Trail, by Lesley Téllez
OFFICE OF THE SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION
MONTEBELLO, CA FIELD OFFICE
Box Number: 2077529 Film Number: 20L Date: Feb 18 1995
Dear Mary Fernandez,
Pursuant to our telephone conversation today, which I believe you did not understand, a fire in our Norwalk office has placed your file under temporary review.
In order to process continued benefits without interruption, please submit certified copies of one (1) of the following: Lawful Permanent Resident Admission (LPRA); statement of Conditional Entry under Section 203(a)(7) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA); U.S. Standard Certificate of Live Birth (SCLB).
Failure to provide adequate documentation by September 1, 1995, will result in termination of benefits, per U.S.C. Title 8.
Regards,
James McPherson
Regional Manager, Los Angeles County
*******************************************
LETTER TO THE EDITOR, LOS ANGELES TIMES
Monday, November 14, 1994
You just don’t get it, do you? The people have spoken. Prop. 187 has sent a message to the world—California rewards legal immigrants only. The next step in securing our borders is to deport illegal aliens and make legal immigration more streamlined for everyone.
********************************
UTEP ARCHIVES - MEXICAN REVOLUTION IN THE BORDERLANDS COLLECTION
TEXAS STATE LIBRARY
April 5, 1979
Betty Morales
Sampson Court Senior Apartments
Huntington Park, California
Dear Ms. Morales,
Linda Watkins at the Alamo School sent me your letter. Unfortunately, the original Alamo School building was torn down in 1975, and all records dating to the time period you inquired about — 1910 to 1920 — have been destroyed. Perhaps you should try writing to the Aoy School? Many Mexican children attended Aoy until fourth grade. I wish your mother the very best in figuring out her age.
Warm regards,
Kathleen Hanson
Docent, El Paso Historical Society
********************
LOS ANGELES HISTORICAL SOCIETY RECORD INDEX 1913-1935
Restricted Records Collection
October 5, 1932
Holy Spirit Charities
Los Angeles, California
Dear Mr. Rivers,
Following our discussion last week, I recently stopped at the home of Maria Jesus Fernandez, a Mexican laundress and a mother of three who has been receiving assistance. I informed her that Holy Spirit Charities must, under the circumstances, begin supporting more American citizens, as is our duty.
Mrs. Fernandez accepted the train tickets for herself, her husband, and her children to return to Mexico. Her eldest daughter, Betty, provided translation for our visit, so Mrs. Fernandez is quite aware of what is happening. I will remove them from our charity rolls.
Very truly yours,
Mrs. D.L. Lewis
***********
U.S. ADOPTION AND ORPHANAGE RECORDS – DOÑA ANA COUNTY, NEW MEXICO
Sanford Industries Home for Girls
August 4, 1920
Mrs. Evelyn Wagner, Directress
Las Cruces, New Mexico
Dear Ms. Wagner,
I would like to recommend the dismissal of MARY JESUS FERNANDEZ. After five years here, Miss Fernandez has proved herself to be skilled in the domestic arts and useful in the care of younger wards. Since she has reached seventeen years of age, Miss Fernandez will be released on her own recognizance to the Las Cruces train station with a $5 transportation stipend. A cousin confirms that Miss Fernandez will find a job as a domestic in Los Angeles, California.
The case file of MARY JESUS FERNANDEZ will be updated to reflect this change.
Very truly yours,
Anna Johnson
*******
BLOOD MEMORY FROM MARIA FERNÁNDEZ’S GRANDDAUGHTER, GLORIA
October 10, 1995
A windswept river bank.
A white obelisk.
The steel crosshatch of the bridge is as familiar as the weave of her cotton dress.
The hems she mended, the dresses she starched. She was not allowed to look tía Lorenza in the eye.
Father said she’d slipped out too fast. Her sister had taken a whole day to arrive, but María just fifteen minutes. They baptized her in the Rio Bravo because the church had already burned to the ground.
She only remembers the bristles of his mustache. It is better than what she remembers of her mother, which is nothing.
She dreams of it sometimes: the cows meandering in the tall grass, the neat paths between rows of cotton. The farm that men in her family tilled when there were no border markers at all.
****
TELEPHONE CALL BETWEEN ELENA “HELEN” PÉREZ OF SAMPSON COURT APARTMENTS AND UNKNOWN NEIGHBOR
February 10, 1996
Ay, ¿pero supiste lo de la Señora María en 303? La pobre. She would’ve been fine if she would’ve applied for her papers when everyone else did, te acuerdas years ago when the president went on TV? She should’ve done it then. Pero no lo hizo. Y no sé por qué, en esas cosas no me meto. Pero ahora mírala. Entrada en años. Leaving her apartment y sus cositas, y tan linda lo había decorado. ¿Yo? Yo sí agarré mi green card, no soy tonta. Oye, ¿crees que me regalaría algunas plantitas?
**
To: tellez_52600@gmail.com
From: info@findyourancestors.com
Sent on: August 5, 2023
Dear Lesley: Still searching for information about Maria J. Fernandez and other relatives? You have hints waiting for you in your family tree! Renew your worldwide access subscription now for only $75 a month* and get access to your ancestry and heritage that’s waiting for you. Don’t delay!
*After six months customer will be charged the regular rate of $199/month.
Author’s note: While many of these documents represent an imagined paper trail, taken from archives and people that I’ve invented, one comes from an official source. The Los Angeles Times letter culls some wording from actual letters printed in Letters to The Times, Page 10, Monday, Nov. 14, 1994.
Lesley Téllez is a writer based in Mexico City. She is a longtime journalist, food writer, and cookbook author, and a native of Southern California’s Inland Empire. Her work is inspired by embodiment practices, ancestral knowledge, food, motherhood, and desire. She’s currently at work on a novel about Mexican food and assimilation. This is her first published fiction piece.