It's been 10 years since Rosa Torres, 35, and her husband trekked four days and four nights through the desert to cross the U.S.-Mexico border through Arizona.
Leaving behind her family in Oaxaca, Torres and her husband started working in the Camarillo strawberry fields and moved to Oxnard where the couple are raising four daughters — ranging from 4 months to 9 years old.
Torres is neither a U.S. citizen nor a legal permanent resident, but that isn't what pains her every day. Holding 4-month-old Aria, Torres started to cry. She said she just wants to be able to visit her family — those who are still alive — without fear of being prevented from returning to her children.
"In Mexico, they say, ‘Oh, it's so great that you work,'" Torres said in Spanish. "I tell them, ‘Yes, it's great that I work and everything, but it's very difficult because you can't leave.' "
But with initial details of the long-awaited comprehensive immigration reform legislation surfacing, there is the possibility that life could soon change for Torres and millions of other immigrants living in the U.S. illegally.
If the proposed bill is passed and certain border security measurements are completed, eligible immigrants could apply to earn provisional legal status, which would give them the ability to travel outside of the country and work for any employer, according to a 17-page legislation summary obtained by The Star.
Individuals could apply to become legal permanent residents after 10 years with provisional status. However, after five years qualified agricultural workers such as Torres and Dream Act eligible immigrants would be able to obtain a green card, a document showing evidence of lawful permanent resident status.
"It's what we've been waiting for," Torres said in Spanish. "It would be like winning a big lottery with the law, because you could leave to see family and come back to work."
United Farm Workers Regional Director Lauro Barajas said he met with UFW President Arturo Rodriguez and other California-based union representatives over the weekend to discuss the provisions of the proposed law expected to be fully released this week.
Rodriguez was scheduled to join the bipartisan group of senators dubbed the "Gang of Eight" as they unveiled the legislation Tuesday. However, the event was postponed following the bombings at the Boston Marathon on Monday.
Barajas said UFW is "not totally happy" with the proposal, but the final product was a compromise for all parties involved.
While Barajas said the union was hoping for a shorter wait time to earn permanent resident status, he said that the law would address the main concerns of most farmworkers — the ability to freely travel, get a driver's license and be assigned a Social Security number.
"It's not the best, but it's something that is decent for people — not to be fearful of going to work or having a problem with the police," he said. "Something that is very important for the people is to travel and see their families in their countries."
For Torres, that is the most important aspect of the immigration overhaul. Over the last decade since Torres left her home in Oaxaca, both her father and brother died.
"You don't know if you're going to find them (your family) alive or dead — and they're dead," she said. "I won't see them It's horrible."