--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: My father, a refugee from Eastern Europe…" description: "\"My father, a refugee from Eastern Europe, was preparing a fraudulent marriage to an American citizen as a route to this country when he was sponsored, ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7f6/nicholas-kristof-6723_american_my-father-a-refugee-from-eastern-europe_710237.jpg" --- # My father, a refugee from Eastern Europe, was preparing a… ![“My father, a refugee from Eastern Europe, was preparing a fraudulent marriage to an American citizen as a route to this country when he was sponsored, making fraud unnecessary. My wife's grandfather bought papers from another Chinese villager to be able to come to the United States.” quote by Nicholas Kristof](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7f6/nicholas-kristof-6723_american_my-father-a-refugee-from-eastern-europe_710237.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7f6/nicholas-kristof-6723_american_my-father-a-refugee-from-eastern-europe_710237.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7f6/nicholas-kristof-6723_american_my-father-a-refugee-from-eastern-europe_710237.jpg) > “My father, a refugee from Eastern Europe, was preparing a fraudulent marriage to an American citizen as a route to this country when he was sponsored, making fraud unnecessary. My wife's grandfather bought papers from another Chinese villager to be able to come to the United States.” [Nicholas Kristof](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-kristof/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A man avoided illegal marriage fraud after receiving a legitimate sponsorship, illustrating how lawful pathways can replace desperate schemes. **In simple terms:** Legal help can stop risky shortcuts. Key Takeaway Seek proper assistance. Themes immigration ethics family legal risk Mood hopeful reflective Type narrative informative When to use this quote - immigration counseling - legal aid - family planning - community support Key Concepts refugee experience family reunification policy humanity Questions to Reflect On - What legal resources are available for refugees? - How can communities better support lawful immigration? A Different Perspective Legal options may be limited or slow. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [American](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/american/) [American citizen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/american-citizen/) [Eastern europe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/eastern-europe/) [Europe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/europe/) [Fraud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fraud/) [Fraud Unnecessary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fraud-unnecessary-5603423/) [Fraudulent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fraudulent/) [Fraudulent Marriage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fraudulent-marriage-5603422/) [Immigration](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/immigration/) [Making Fraud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/making-fraud-5603424/) [Marriage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/marriage/) [Parenting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/parenting/) [Wife](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wife/) ## Related quotes > [The Tax Division is committed to prosecuting accountants who assist their clients in fraudulent tax schemes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dana-boente/the-tax-division-is-committed-to-prosecuting-accountants-who-assist/) [Dana Boente](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dana-boente/) > [Get-educated-quick schemes are usually about as sound as subprime mortgage-backed securities: Enticing but basically fraudulent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tucker-carlson/get-educated-quick-schemes-are-usually-about-as-sound-as-subprime/) [Tucker Carlson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tucker-carlson/) > [“When is the Denver Police Department going to start prosecuting Denver based fraudulent Frontier Airlines and its toxic employees for its illegal activities it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-magee/when-is-the-denver-police-department-going-to-start-prosecuting/) [Steven Magee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-magee/) > [It was not my wish to come into politics. I was not a public person; I preferred to spend my birthdays with family and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bidzina-ivanishvili/it-was-not-my-wish-to-come-into-politics-i-was-not-a-public-person-i/) [Bidzina Ivanishvili](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bidzina-ivanishvili/) > [Artists are expected to fit into fraudulent categories.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-smithson/artists-are-expected-to-fit-into-fraudulent-categories/) [Robert Smithson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-smithson/) > [“I pretend to give gifts that people pretend to be gifts so that I can pretend that I gave something that actually cost me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-d-lounsbrough/i-pretend-to-give-gifts-that-people-pretend-to-be-gifts-so-that-i-can/) [Craig D. Lounsbrough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-d-lounsbrough/) > [I think an ethical lawyer would absolutely refuse, if he or she had knowledge that this is the purpose for which her work would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viet-d-dinh/i-think-an-ethical-lawyer-would-absolutely-refuse-if-he-or-she-had/) [Viet D. Dinh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viet-d-dinh/) > [Medicare's top officials said in 2006 that they had reduced the number of fraudulent and improper claims paid by the agency, keeping billions of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-duhigg/medicare-s-top-officials-said-in-2006-that-they-had-reduced-the/) [Charles Duhigg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-duhigg/) > [“He was a splendid old man, only partly fraudulent, and what more can you ask of anyone?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-bellow/he-was-a-splendid-old-man-only-partly-fraudulent-and-what-more-can/) [Saul Bellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-bellow/) > [When you have elections in which 90% or 95% or 99% of those elected come from one party, then I think there is some fraudulent act.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahathir-mohamad/when-you-have-elections-in-which-90-or-95-or-99-of-those-elected-come/) [Mahathir Mohamad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahathir-mohamad/) > [I do not remember in my whole life I ever willfully misrepresented anything to anybody at any time. I have never knowingly had connection…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-p-morgan/i-do-not-remember-in-my-whole-life-i-ever-willfully-misrepresented/) [J. P. Morgan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-p-morgan/) > [I feel like I came in comedy's side door, and still feel very fraudulent in many ways.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carrie-brownstein/i-feel-like-i-came-in-comedy-s-side-door-and-still-feel-very/) [Carrie Brownstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carrie-brownstein/) > [“It has been my personal experience that the government engages in a wide range of frauds with the common people.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-magee/it-has-been-my-personal-experience-that-the-government-engages-in-a/) [Steven Magee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-magee/) > [Every writer I've ever spoken to feels fraudulent in some way or other.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-sondheim/every-writer-i-ve-ever-spoken-to-feels-fraudulent-in-some-way-or-other/) [Stephen Sondheim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-sondheim/) > [Even if, as is generally the case, everything that the ad says about the product is scrupulously honest, or at any rate scrupulously avoids…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-schudson/even-if-as-is-generally-the-case-everything-that-the-ad-says-about/) [Michael Schudson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-schudson/) ## More by Nicholas Kristof > [I have a one-question language test that people who have lived abroad do better on than those who studied in a classroom. Try my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-kristof/i-have-a-one-question-language-test-that-people-who-have-lived-abroad/) [Nicholas Kristof](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-kristof/) > [There's something to be said for CEOs' entering politics: In theory, they have management expertise and financial savvy. Then again, it didn't work so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-kristof/there-s-something-to-be-said-for-ceos-entering-politics-in-theory/) [Nicholas Kristof](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-kristof/) > [A basic element of the American dream is equal access to education as the lubricant of social and economic mobility.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-kristof/a-basic-element-of-the-american-dream-is-equal-access-to-education-as/) [Nicholas Kristof](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-kristof/) > [Every high school and college graduate in America should, I think, have some familiarity with statistics, economics and a foreign language such as Spanish.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-kristof/every-high-school-and-college-graduate-in-america-should-i-think-have/) [Nicholas Kristof](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-kristof/) > [However imperfectly, subsidies for the poor do actually reduce hunger, ease suffering and create opportunity, while subsidies for the rich result in more private…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-kristof/however-imperfectly-subsidies-for-the-poor-do-actually-reduce-hunger/) [Nicholas Kristof](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-kristof/) > [One of the aims of higher education is to broaden perspectives, and what better way than by a home stay in a really different…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-kristof/one-of-the-aims-of-higher-education-is-to-broaden-perspectives-and/) [Nicholas Kristof](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-kristof/) > [I suspect unconscious bias has been far more of a factor for President Obama than overt racism and will also be a challenge for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-kristof/i-suspect-unconscious-bias-has-been-far-more-of-a-factor-for/) [Nicholas Kristof](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-kristof/) > [Utah may well be the most cosmopolitan state in America. Vast numbers of young Mormons - increasingly women as well as men - spend…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-kristof/utah-may-well-be-the-most-cosmopolitan-state-in-america-vast-numbers/) [Nicholas Kristof](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-kristof/) > [Most of the time in the 21st century, we dominate our surroundings: We tweak the thermostat, and the temperature falls one degree. We push…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-kristof/most-of-the-time-in-the-21st-century-we-dominate-our-surroundings-we/) [Nicholas Kristof](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-kristof/) > [My take is that the optimal approach to food, for health and ethical reasons, may be vegetarianism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-kristof/my-take-is-that-the-optimal-approach-to-food-for-health-and-ethical/) [Nicholas Kristof](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-kristof/) > [Our world is enriched when coders and marketers dazzle us with smartphones and tablets, but, by themselves, they are just slabs. It is the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-kristof/our-world-is-enriched-when-coders-and-marketers-dazzle-us-with/) [Nicholas Kristof](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-kristof/) > [One of the most crucial kinds of intervention is in advocacy. We can think about charities in the context of delivering services, and indeed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-kristof/one-of-the-most-crucial-kinds-of-intervention-is-in-advocacy-we-can/) [Nicholas Kristof](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-kristof/) > [There are very few things I've done just twice in my life, 40 years apart, and one is to backpack on the Pacific Crest…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-kristof/there-are-very-few-things-i-ve-done-just-twice-in-my-life-40-years/) [Nicholas Kristof](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-kristof/) > [We journalists are a bit like vultures, feasting on war, scandal and disaster. Turn on the news, and you see Syrian refugees, Volkswagen corruption,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-kristof/we-journalists-are-a-bit-like-vultures-feasting-on-war-scandal-and/) [Nicholas Kristof](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-kristof/) > [Gays and lesbians began to gain civil rights when Americans realized that their brothers, cousins, daughters were gay.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-kristof/gays-and-lesbians-began-to-gain-civil-rights-when-americans-realized/) [Nicholas Kristof](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-kristof/) [Explore all 98 Nicholas Kristof quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-kristof/) ## More American quotes > [I wasn't attracted to American cinema, but I fell in love with Los Angeles the minute I arrived.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/agnes-varda/i-wasn-t-attracted-to-american-cinema-but-i-fell-in-love-with-los/) [Agnes Varda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/agnes-varda/) > [William Maxwell's my favorite North American writer, I think. And an Irish writer who used to write for 'The New Yorker' called Maeve Brennan,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-munro/william-maxwell-s-my-favorite-north-american-writer-i-think-and-an/) [Alice Munro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-munro/) > [I have fallen in love with American names, the sharp names that never get fat.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-vincent-benet/i-have-fallen-in-love-with-american-names-the-sharp-names-that-never/) [Stephen Vincent Benet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-vincent-benet/) > [I really like a lot of American country stuff, so my music has that influence, but I don't like to be set within a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jade-bird/i-really-like-a-lot-of-american-country-stuff-so-my-music-has-that/) [Jade Bird](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jade-bird/) > [I certainly don't think that the heirs of the American Revolution were a particularly noble class.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-w-brands/i-certainly-don-t-think-that-the-heirs-of-the-american-revolution/) [H. W. Brands](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-w-brands/) > [Congress passed the American Rescue Plan Act in a tremendous investment to support millions of workers without a paycheck and behind on bills.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jake-auchincloss/congress-passed-the-american-rescue-plan-act-in-a-tremendous/) [Jake Auchincloss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jake-auchincloss/) > [Small businesses are the backbone of the American economy and employ almost half of the working population. Yet because of their size, they rarely…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-lipinski/small-businesses-are-the-backbone-of-the-american-economy-and-employ/) [Dan Lipinski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-lipinski/) > [Although I write in English, and despite the fact that I'm from America, I consider myself an Armenian writer. The words I use are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-saroyan/although-i-write-in-english-and-despite-the-fact-that-i-m-from/) [William Saroyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-saroyan/) > [When we first sold the Wallace and Gromit shorts to America, people suggested we get rid of the strange British accents and put clear…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-park/when-we-first-sold-the-wallace-and-gromit-shorts-to-america-people/) [Nick Park](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-park/) > [Firefighters and rescue workers are American superheroes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kerry-kennedy/firefighters-and-rescue-workers-are-american-superheroes/) [Kerry Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kerry-kennedy/) > [France has not only built a bureaucratic barrier against American culture, it has constructed a notorious intellectual case against it as well. The French…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tyler-cowen/france-has-not-only-built-a-bureaucratic-barrier-against-american/) [Tyler Cowen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tyler-cowen/) > [New York and San Francisco are distinctly different. San Francisco is driving the American media, not New York. You have young, microwaved millionaires and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-whitlock/new-york-and-san-francisco-are-distinctly-different-san-francisco-is/) [Jason Whitlock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-whitlock/) > [Well look, CIA is an agency that has to collect intelligence, do operations. We have to take risks and it's important that we take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leon-panetta/well-look-cia-is-an-agency-that-has-to-collect-intelligence-do/) [Leon Panetta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leon-panetta/) > [Food as a hobby used to be an elite pastime, and it has become something that is totally ordinary for people of every background.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dana-goodyear/food-as-a-hobby-used-to-be-an-elite-pastime-and-it-has-become/) [Dana Goodyear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dana-goodyear/) > [It's important for American soldiers to be culturally sensitive when deployed in foreign countries. But it's just as important for the U.S. never to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-bauer/it-s-important-for-american-soldiers-to-be-culturally-sensitive-when/) [Gary Bauer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-bauer/) [Browse all 7,717 American quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/american/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "My father, a refugee from Eastern Europe, was preparing a fraudulent marriage to an American citizen as a route to this country when he was sponsored, making fraud unnecessary. My wife's grandfather bought papers from another Chinese villager to be able to come to the United States.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Nicholas Kristof" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-kristof/my-father-a-refugee-from-eastern-europe-was-preparing-a-fraudulent/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "American" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-kristof/my-father-a-refugee-from-eastern-europe-was-preparing-a-fraudulent/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7f6/nicholas-kristof-6723_american_my-father-a-refugee-from-eastern-europe_710237.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7f6/nicholas-kristof-6723_american_my-father-a-refugee-from-eastern-europe_710237.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7f6/nicholas-kristof-6723_american_my-father-a-refugee-from-eastern-europe_710237.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“My father, a refugee from Eastern Europe, was preparing a fraudulent marriage to an American citizen as a…” — Nicholas Kristof", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Nicholas Kristof", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-kristof/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "My father, a refugee from Eastern...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-kristof/my-father-a-refugee-from-eastern-europe-was-preparing-a-fraudulent/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-kristof/my-father-a-refugee-from-eastern-europe-was-preparing-a-fraudulent/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```