Rochester resident Matt Knutson is the communications and events director for United Way of Olmsted County.

“Sometimes I think people don’t know what to do with you,” I told my wife during our lunch break. It was clear she was having a rough day, and I was getting a little peeved about what she was having to experience. When we got married in 2013, I knew she was committing to more than just loving me. She was committing to live in a place that is not her homeland — with traditions and customs she’s had to adapt to over the many years she has been here. While Sera has assimilated well to our culture, I occasionally get the sense that she is treated differently than I am.

I’m not sure if this is because she’s young, female, black, African or something entirely different, but it’s not OK. In reality, I think it’s the combination of all of those factors that she is treated differently. Let me be clear, while I’m sure my wife is treated differently than me in multiple ways, it is the lack of respect she’s given that I notice the most. We often pretend not to notice this, but I can confidently say that if Sera shared her opinion as a white man, people would be more likely to listen to her.

At my job, we’re working to improve lives in the community through a multitude of strategies. When we break down the statistics in my county on who is most likely to be struggling, minority women are always at the top of the list. I haven’t taken the time to do all of the research for Freeborn County, but I would assume it would reflect similar data. That’s an entirely different result than the categories I fall into. We come home to the same house every day, but statistically speaking, my wife should be living in a situation much closer to poverty than myself.

Rather uniquely, Sera’s reality doesn’t accurately reflect what other African Americans experience either. I watched a video on YouTube the other day that provided a unique insight into her international status. My wife didn’t grow up here, so her knowledge about our country before coming here was largely shaped through the lens of how a white person views America. That’s what is most commonly shared through mainstream media across the globe, so it makes sense for her perspective to be tilted in that way. Her ancestors didn’t come here through the slave trade, nor did anyone in her family live in this country during the civil rights era. There’s no firsthand experience there, so her experience is likely more closely related to mine than other black people. Yet, she didn’t grow up in her native country of Madagascar, meaning the culture of her home country is also not something she can claim to fully relate to, despite how much she loves her homeland. It’s a hard way to exist, not belonging.

I still have hope that my wife will one day feel like she fully belongs somewhere. I know that most days, she feels at home here. At times Sera described her home to be wherever I am. It’s a sweet sentiment, as well as revealing about just how homeless a person can feel sometimes — even when they have a home.

In May, Minnesota Compass released an article by Allison Liuzzi on immigration in Minnesota. In it, Liuzzi shared that Minnesota has 400,000 immigrants from around the world, and our immigrants are much more diverse compared to the rest of the United States. One interesting revelation: “21 percent of immigrants in Minnesota live below the poverty level, compared to 12 percent of all Minnesotans.” We know that people living in poverty often do not have the means for their children to succeed both inside and outside the classroom, creating another generation of poverty. Did you know that one in six children in Minnesota has a foreign-born parent? Until we start embracing and empowering these people, our communities will continue to struggle for generations.

People don’t know what to do with my wife because she is different. What they don’t understand is that different doesn’t make her any less of a person. Whether she feels welcome all the time or not, she’s here to stay. I’m sure many of the other immigrants in your community feel the same. Take some time this week to help these often marginalized people feel welcomed. The America that you long for is oftentimes the reason they uprooted their entire life to come here. Together, we can make that country possible.