My Visit to the Driver’s License office of USA

tx_temp_visitor_card
Image Courtesy of TX DPS

I went to the Irving Drivers License office to renew my license. First I filled up a form, showed the lady all the required documents and she said, “Everything is fine, wait to be called.” It seemed to be a busy day there and I understand the work pressure. I waited patiently for one hour for my number to be called. Finally it was my turn. I stood in line1 for another good 10 minutes.

As I approach the service counter, this elderly AMERICAN lady at the counter asks me, “What are you here for?” I said, “I’m here to renew my license.” Then she says “License?… or are you here to renew your Temporary Visitor’s Card”. This is where her attitude starts, apparently now we are not supposed to call it a license, which is not a big deal for me as long as I can drive.

She says, “Show me all the documents.” I showed her a faxed “letter of recognition” from my college, my I-20 and my passport. She looks at the letter from the University and says, “This is in Garland, what are you doing in Irving.” I said, “My university is in Garland and I live in Irving, there’s my my address on the letter.”

She gives me a cold look and says, “I know where you live” then she looks at the letter and says, “you are only taking 6 credits, you are not even a full time student, I cannot accept this letter.”

I explained to her that our university has a quarter-semester system and I am allowed to take 6 hours being a graduate student. Then she says, “I cannot accept this letter because it’s an email.” I told her, “It’s not an email, it’s a fax.”

Then she goes on saying, “This is not an original copy, you could have made it yourself.” I replied, “There is a phone number of the university on the letter itself, you can call the university and verify.” She says “I cannot call the University, it’s your job to bring the paperwork”.

For another 10 minutes she tells me how people come in with fake papers and say they are students but do not even go to school. She adds, “You want me to give you a driver’s license for one year relying on the papers that do not look real”.

I showed her my original I-20 which has the international advisor’s signature that matches the signature on the letter of recognition. She tells me, “You could have forge that”. She says “People do that all the time.” She made me listen to her complains about foreigners for another 15 minutes. And finally she says, “Well, I will do you a favor this time and give you the license.” I was shocked to hear what she was telling me, so I said, “OK”, and she says, “Sign here..” and hands me a yellow card.

As I am about to sign she tells me, “ You know what, I do not feel like doing you a favor.” I asked her what she wants me to do, she says “Go and bring original papers” and I simply left.

The way she was yelling, I felt like everybody was staring at me, I could not wait to get out of the office.

My time was wasted, I was accused of trying to show false papers, and I was humiliated.

I have some questions which might not be very pleasing yet I have to ask them.

1. How can a Government office hire someone so illiterate, who does not know what a fax or an email looks like? She did not know how many credit a graduate student can take, she knows nothing about the university system. She was even unable to compare the signatures.

2. If The department of public safety wants to confirm if the international student is going to school or not, why don’t they simply call and verify with the University, instead of humiliating a legal F1 student in the office?

3. If the fax copy was not good enough – why was I not told in the first place? Why was I made to wait for one hour? Then why could the officer simply not tell me it’s not good enough and that I have to bring the original copy instead of lecturing me for 20 minutes? What gives her the right to accuse me and humiliate me in front of all the people?

Just because I am brown, it does not mean I am illegal or I am a terrorist.

USA claims to be the most civilized and the greatest country in the world and yet cannot educate its own people well enough to know human beings all around the world are still as human as American citizens are.

The American people (who feel Godly of themselves for being born in America) need to go out of their own country and know more about other countries just so they can broaden their general knowledge.

Well, if you, people at DPS office, do not even know a quarter-semester university and the graduate level credit requirements in your own state, how can I expect you to know anything about the outside world.

After living in United States for 8 years and being a LEGAL STUDENT all this time, I have realized that no matter how many years pass by, no matter how many great people sacrifice their lives, America will always remain a racist country. If Americans hate foreigners so much, you should speak with your government and stop any kind of foreigners in this land, period. There is no point inviting foreigners as students or tourists just to hate and treat them like they are nothing while portraying Americans as above-all-people. As an international student, I have paid an international tuition which was and is way above what American citizens pay. So NO! your country or your government is not doing me any favor just by renewing my driver’s license, or letting me stay in this country. I am paying for everything.

It is interesting how American people think that foreigners like to come and live in America, take their jobs, take place in their country and blah blah, Which is true, in many cases. People do come here looking for a better lifestyle, better opportunity, better education. That is what I came here for too.

After being here for all these years, I have realized how shallow this country is! How nicely you welcome foreigners and when they get here, how miserably you treat them! For the people who hates foreigners I hope this will make you feel better – I regret coming to your country.

But since the damage is done, all I want to do is complete my studies. I guess I am very much thankful to the United States of America for letting me stay here all this time (which now seems like it had been a big deal) and I am so glad I was not born American, or else I would still be figuring out the difference between an email and a fax.

Comments or concerns – please post them below and the author will receive them.

0 thoughts on “My Visit to the Driver’s License office of USA”

  1. kudos to you for what you have written…I had the same problem here in Arlington.well not to that extent…i got my license anyhow..but won’t lie had to fight for it…my license was expiring on the 20th and college wouldn’t issue any enrollment letter until the 13th of next month….but luckily i had taken summer 1…so when i went to the DPS office here in Arlington,after summer 1..she was like…well Summer 1 is gone and August 20th is not here yet…i said..”Well, but my license expires on the 20th and college won’t issue any letter until September, the 13th”…she was like i will have to take driving test and whatever all over again…I was like, but Maam I have taken summer classes….She said,”Well Summer 1 is gone , so I can’t do it.”and I was all furious…I said, “in that case let me explain something to you about nature of summer classes…there are 3 types of classes offered;A. Summer 1-5 weeks, B. Summer 2-5weeks or.C. Summer -11 weeks.It’s just the way student would like to take class-either fast track or slow paced.So, in that regard, summer 1 enrollment should still be valid. She thought for a moment and was like, “Well it makes sense.Alright, I will give you your license…And that’s how I got it amidst the scorching sun, hours of waiting and definitely having to explain her like some student at junior high…and yup truly agree about the shallow part….People here are, all but plastic….Picture perfect, yet no one knows the dark truth about so called perfectionists…Long live America without immigrants-I’m laughing it off….They have dwindled our existence, nevertheless we have become stronger bit by bit…so I careless…..:)….alright…peace out..

  2. thats a sad story. i have pictured the woman who yelled at you and i’ve seen plenty of those bitches already. you should also post your story on other student complaints websites where they’ll hear you..

    and i feel for you too arjabi, k garchas aba arka ko desh ma aaiyeko cha, jasle ni hepna khojcha ni chance payo ki.. koi koi ta ramro manche ni hunchan.

  3. its really sad story n sad to hear about this who ever went through it…n i do agree they do need more educated ppl n who r not racist….

  4. We have also some kind of discrimination here but not like that …thnks god !we don’t need to show college paper to renew licence just visa is enough… I don’t know why they ask for other documents …. It’s just racism and discrimination against foreigners but this USA needs to realize that other countries are getting more powerful than their countries .if they don’t realise this truth on time they could get themselves in the middle of nowhere..

  5. That was a great puch Mary. I am facing kinda same situation. They typed some wrong information in their computer while I arrived here in the USA. Last week I went in DMV office for my new license, the computer required some additional information. coz, some security numbers were mismatching. WTF…is that my fault, that I put wrong number. It were you who filled out some wrong numbers. I am contacting them being nice and polite, but still getting waiting response. I have to wait for their final answer. THe DMV office really sucks especially for International students.

  6. Get the hell outta southern states & move to north. Your problems are all solved. I know,a lotta Southern states are way cheaper than North but believe me people from Northern states are way better than those from South(Including DMV!)

  7. Sad story. I’ve also realized that the problem is in law itself. Seems like they did not give much time to study all possible scenarios like this one when deciding what documents you need to produce to prove your legal status.
    I had a story as well. I lost my license while I was on F1 status and going to school full time. But my tuition was not paid in full and I was paying in instalments. I showed them all the documents that would describe the situation, but I was not given a copy based on the fact that I had not paid my tuition in full. I asked the lady what should I do to drive. She told me, “Just be careful” and ther you go I was forced to drive without a license. Luckily I didn’t get pulled over for anything and I got my license few months later when I paid off the tuition in full.

  8. I understand your concern. At the same time, you should have complaind to the manager about that bitch regarding the discrimination that was happened to you. If I were you, I would have made a big picture and get that bitch end up in damn jail for at least a day or so for freakin discrimination. Please stay out of trouble from the damn racist who exist here. Good and bad people are everywhere. Don’t let your emotion get you next time and I feel you girl. Next time go to Grand Prairie office or Hurst office. They are more friendly, Or complained that issue with Dallas morning news and get it covered in front page.

  9. I am so sad you went through this. I must tell you, that america is not a racist country (i am from india and have been living in a mid western city for the past 3 1/2 years). I do agree that some folks are racists. But not all. Hope your view on america changes 🙂

  10. I’m really sorry that you had to go through all of that. Texas faces a lot of immigration discrimination due to the large number of illegal Latin and South American immigrants crossing into Texas. It doesn’t benefit you that your skin tone is probably similar to that of a person from Mexico. When my Nepalese husband and I went to Miami for a week, people would automatically start speaking to him in Spanish, assuming he was Spanish-speaking. If you really want to stay in the States and get away from all of that, come up North a little bit and get away from an area that is so negatively affected by illegal immigration. You will find that not all of the United States is so unaccepting.

  11. Nisha Ji.. After Staying in 8 and 1/2 years in US, you should be aware of the fact that goverment agencies need offical letter of recommendation in official letterhead. Fax or email is not considered as offical so the officer was right and she was just doing her job.I personally do not believe that she said ” i am going to give you a favor or i am not going to give you a favor” But if you had felt like you were discriminated then you should have talked to her boss or someone incharge of her. As a foreign studnent, you cannot enjoy all the priviledges that citizens get,, if you wanna get those rights , then why donnot you go back and get your right in ur own homecountry? Just a though….

  12. i think she should have seen d manager coz i had similar( regarding document) issues in maryland dmv, i made an appoinment with the manager d next day n i was treated as a guest, no complain…

  13. well, first of all it is nothing with Nationality(American) , you are the immigrant here so you just can’t think yourself as a fucking superior. No matter you live here for 8 or 15 years you are still an immigrant and will be immigrant so shut your pussy and go back to your country you dumbitch.. after all you want to live in this country that’s why you are taking 8 fucking year to complete your study?? you said I will leave this shithole country after my studies but in reality you wont non of you fucking brown immigrant will. fucking pricks come here from your third world to live like us huh?? why dnt you go and make your own country rather than making own dick longer??

  14. Dude please! you think thats new to us? i think you forgot how its like here in Nepal after living in the US for “8” years. that happens here everyday. the government officials show their attitude in nepal even more than in the US. we deal with it every day. out of all these years(8 years) all you have is one complaint? and you’re making it a big issue?

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