Rep. Robert Garcia is the Next Generation Congressman

“I always tell people that I am gay, I’m a politician, I’m an educator, but the thing that defines me the most is my immigration experience,” says Congressman Robert Garcia. “That makes me more ‘me’ than anything else.”

The 45-year-old California Democrat — who recently made history as the first openly gay immigrant elected to the U.S. Congress — has been profoundly shaped by his early life experiences, immigrating from Peru at age five with his extended family and growing up in a working-class household, surrounded by other immigrant families, in the San Gabriel Valley of Southern California.

“We came to the U.S. in search of the American Dream and trying to improve my family’s situation,” Garcia says during an hour-long sitdown in his new office in the Longworth House Office Building on Capitol Hill. “In Peru, in South America in general, it was a rough time. So we came on a mission to improve our lives.

“I learned to have an incredible work ethic as an immigrant,” he continues. “I learned from seeing my mom, early on, cleaning houses, then moving on to clear clinics, and then becoming a nurse’s assistant.

“I also gained this incredible sense of American patriotism through my immigrant experience. I tell people all the time that immigrants are some of the most patriotic people in this country. My mom would always tell us to be thankful for being here in this country, to honor this country for welcoming us, and to give back, and work hard for the chance to be here. And I’m just very grateful to her and for instilling those values in me and in my brother.”

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