Summary
TLDR: The author shares her struggles with physical documentation as an immigrant and advocates for using blockchain and zero-knowledge technology to securely store and protect personal identity information, especially for vulnerable populations like immigrants and refugees. These technologies can provide a secure and permanent solution to the vulnerabilities associated with physical documents, ensuring individuals can access their information without risk of exposure or loss.
Key Points
1. My mother, holding three American degrees, had been in the United States for years via student and work visas, and my four siblings were all born in New Jersey. I wasn’t an American citizen yet, because I was born in Nigeria. And if I left the United States, I would be placed on a blacklist that would prevent me from returning.
2. I cried as my mother told me that I would be staying with my cousins in New York City instead — not because I was being left behind, but because neither of us knew what the future held, given the shaky political and religious climate that makes visiting Nigeria risky, even in the best of times.
3. I was just 13 years old, holding my identity in my hands, entirely made of paper.