Social Security Administration

We spent our Cesar Chavez holiday at the Social Security Card Office. Felix was applying for his brand spanking new card and I needed a replacement since I hadn't seen mine since I was 16. Before we even left the house I warned Felix to stay calm if he was put into a tough situation. We parked out front then had to walk around the back of the building to where the card office was.

The security guard checked my bag at the door then we went on in and each took a number from the computer. It was completely empty that day - we were the only ones in the waiting area for quite some time. The SSA office is reminiscent of a DMV except with comfier chairs and significantly less people.

I got called up to my window first and the guy behind the counter was personable and kind of silly. Turned out he lived pretty close to us. We talked about how nice the weather was and how he was making a trip to McKinley Park later. He had me confirm my information then gave me a reciept saying my card would arrive in about two weeks.

Felix had an entirely different experience. He presented his Employment Authorization Document and his passport and the guy asked (in a thick accent drenched in "I'm not from here") if he had an extension. Felix said, "Excuse me?"

The guy replied, "Yeah, do you have an extension on your passport? This is expired. I'm not going to be able to help you."

Felix responded that the whole point of his legal process was to fix that issue but "I can go ahead and leave the country and come back in 10 years to apply for a SSN." He ended on the note that his lawyer informed him he only needed his EAD.

The guy asked for any other ID such as a birth certificate and Felix said, "Sure I've had that on me all along" and handed it over. The guy ran off to get his manager who said that it was ABSOLUTELY NO PROBLEM and to go ahead and finish up Felix's application.

"I am going to be able to help you after all," he said. Yeah, no shit jackass. At this point Felix felt bad for being kind of a dick so he made an attempt at small talk. The dude ran through a questionnaire with him and to the question, "Have you ever received government assistance?" Felix replied jokingly, "I wish! School is expensive!"

The guy put down his piece of paper and looked at Felix. "Look, I'm not asking this for any benefit of mine. I don't want to know, it's just the questions I have to ask."

Felix apologized and said he was just trying to make conversation then went on with the questions. When we finally left Felix told me the whole story described above. That dude was lucky I was already outside.

The thing that got to us was not the fact that he was rude - that guy was just doing his job, albeit he should have asked for further identification BEFORE saying he couldn't help Felix. No, the problem is that it was so blatantly obvious that he too had been through the immigration process. Now that he has a cushy government job he can't remember what it was like to be unsure and fearful?

Hmph. Whatevs, the card is in the mail.

Finally a big step!

Today we received notification that the I-765, Application for Employment Authorization, was approved. This is such a huge relief because it shows that someone has had his or her hands on our application and it's actually all underway. The checks were cashed back in January but it still didn't give us the feeling something was being done. Employment Authorization is a big step in the right direction for us :]