Entrepreneurship in First Gen Latinx Students

Being a first generation Latinx teen during the 21st century is a journey with hundreds of different roads, yet for most teens on this same journey they always end up choosing two of many; college or the workforce. But there is another road, entrepreneurship, which can be a mix of both and can give you a lot more in return. I, like other Latinx teenagers, have dreams of becoming successful through my business and investments; things that will make my family proud and put them in a comfortable position. But many times these same teens do not receive family support, or aren’t able to get financial loans because of their race, and just end up working for the same system that holds them down. All obstacles that aren’t easy to overcome, and some that I’ve lived through.

This was the same situation I was in two years ago when I was applying to colleges, luckily for me I got into UC Berkeley and decided to pursue my degree in Economics. But for me, college is only my back up plan, my real plan is becoming a successful serial entrepreneur and living off my business/investments. I come from humble beginnings and tough parenting, my mom dropped out of college after having me, and my step father didn’t even finish middle school but together they managed to work things out. Now they own a successful business and have been 110% invested in it ever since they met. It’s hard growing up with business owners as parents, I am 20 years old now and can’t recall a single family oriented thing we did. It was almost like living in a household with two managers and a couple co workers, there was never real bonding going on because business was always first for them. Nonetheless I learned enough from them and how business and the world works to spark ideas of my own. I remember being 12 years old, keeping a journal with me at all times full of drawings and ideas I had come up with to start a business from, now 8 years later and those drawings and doodles became real life. Now I own my first business, and plan on starting others very soon but had to come across a lot of road blocks, from family disagreements to how “the system” is made to keep us in an never ending loop of poverty, all of this had to be overcome in order to reach my first stepping stone.

Like most things in life, everything starts at home. Home is where your family is, where you grew up, where you learned the hardships of falling and scraping your knee, as well as the hardships of coming home late after a night out. It makes sense that your family and friends are the first people you speak to about your business ideas and startups. But most of the time, for many Latinx teens who are interested in the business/entrepreneurial industry, don’t receive support from their family and this in return diminishes their drive and feeds to the system they are born into. Where and who you are born into plays a huge role in your success growing up, it is a known fact that people who are born into wealthy families are extremely likely to be successful in their life, while those are born into working class and middle class have a harder time climbing the social ladder and becoming successful through the social norms eyes (Downey 2019). There have been many times where I express my interest in a business idea and get completely shut down by my parents, who don’t believe in money being earned without physical work. They are part of an era in Latin culture and tradition where they believe physical work, hard work, is the only option to make it out in the world. But they are wrong, this same mentality is what keeps the system happy, seeing the Latinx community, people of color, in a working class condition. In most cases, Latinx families have parents who have unsteady work schedules and low wages, which only harms the entrepreneurial drive in teenagers even more. This allows for a weak connection between parent and child, as well as weakening the psychological well-being of these children at young ages (Wildsmith 2018).

Family obstacles are just the beginning, there are other factors that automatically put first generation Latinx students at a disadvantage when pursuing entrepreneurship. Because first generation students are the first in their family to go to college, their parent’s financial literacy may not be the best. Especially if a family is from an immigrant background, due to the fear of being deported many hispanic families don’t open up bank accounts or credit cards; without good credit there is no way to be approved on a business loan for a startup (Harrison 2014). Not to mention that there are little to no programs offered to first generation students that can help them expand their experience in the entrepreneurial field, a lot of a person’s success is heavily dependent on their family’s income. And for programs that are available for first generation students, oftentimes they are located in expensive locations around the country like Silicon Valley and New York. Not everyone who is a first generation family can afford to raise children in these areas, yet they are the ones that offer the most programs for minority groups. For example, I had the opportunity to apply and complete several internships up to date only because I had the privilege to grow up in the Silicon Valley, just two blocks away from Facebook Headquarters in Menlo Park. If it weren’t for me growing up there, I wouldn’t be in the position I am today and talk about these issues. My main goal in life is to become a successful serial entrepreneur in order to bring awareness to the business world about these issues. There is a lot of potential out there in places outside of the privileged walls of big cities, countless first generation students with potential that can possibly change the world for the better.

The reality is, the American dream was never created for people like me, it was never intended to push through the first generation migrant families that place the country on its shoulders. It was never made to create a place where everyone is financially stable, as a country we have one of the highest crime rates, homelessness rates, debt, and highest taxes. It is a tough starting place for students like myself with dreams of entrepreneurship success. Starting off it feels like you’re 3 steps behind while everyone else is three steps ahead, putting yourself out there and making a name for yourself will be extremely hard. The real American dream is made to put the people in debt, work 40 hour weeks for a pro capitalism agenda, pay huge taxes that goes into things that will never benefit you, all while keeping your energy down unable to reach for those entrepreneurial dreams. I hope to one day create a difference in this world for the better, and for my community.