VivirLatino

Immigrant Students Have a Dream

09:10 H | Topics: Education - Immigration

Among the current House and Senate Bills that were being debated before Congress went on vacation , one was written all the way back in 2003 and promises undocumented students to work towards their dreams of higher education. The Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors Act aka the DREAM Act would instate a provision allowing the children of undocumented immigrants to apply for “conditional” legal status upon graduation from high school. The “conditional” status could then be changed to permanent residency if the students either pursue higher education or serve in the military. One way ticket to Iraq anyone?

according to Hispanic Magazine :

In order to apply for “conditional” status under the DREAM Act, students must have “good moral character,” meaning they cannot have had any run-ins with the law. They must also have come to the U.S. before they were 16 years old and at least five years before the date of the bill’s enactment. To obtain permanent residency, students must graduate from a two-year college, a vocational college, or studied for at least two years towards a bachelor’s degree or higher. Alternatively, they can amend their status by serving in the U.S. military for two years.

In my opinion, the act and the idea behind may be a good idea, but it ignores the impact of racial profiling and the criminalization of young people, especially the "gang profiling" of many undocumented young Latinos that happens across the city.

Of course offering undocumented immigrants anything earns opposition. Ira Mehlman, a spokesperson for the Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR) feels that the Act is :

...de facto amnesty.It sends a message that if you come to the U.S. and get your kid through high school, your ticket is stamped.

Of course there is the usual knee jerk reaction that the Act would negatively impact documented residents and citizens.

Via / Hispanic Magazine

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• Katie Couric Tries to Boost Sagging Ratings on the Backs of Immigrant Women (Tuesday, Apr 08 2008)