Voters may get to decide on Maryland Dream Act

Voters might get the final say on whether immigrant students who live in the state illegally, but have graduated high school and paid taxes, would receive in-state tuition at Maryland's colleges.Opponents of a new Maryland law granting in-state tuition rates to immigrant students living in the state illegally said they submitted a portion of the number of signatures required to put the issue on the ballot on Tuesday.

Led by Washington County Republican Delegate Neil Parrott, opponents of the new law had to give the secretary of state at least 18,579 valid signatures Tuesday. That's one-third of the nearly 56,000 signatures they must collect by the end of June to bring the issue to a referendum next year.

“We've exceeded our goal. We're very, very thankful for that and it’s because of the hard work and diligence of people all across the state of Maryland,” Parrott said.

For months this spring, the debate about the issue raged in the Maryland legislature. A compromise was eventually reached and signed by the Governor. It grants a discounted in-state tuition rate at state schools, including College Park, to illegal immigrants who can prove their parents have paid taxes for three years and who first attend two years of community college.

For high school student Anngie Gutierrez, the Dream Act is a dream come true. She was brought to Virginia from Guatemala as a small child and lives in the U.S. illegally. She's also a straight-A student at Bladensburg High School. “Now I have a chance,” Gutierrez said.

University of Maryland student Andy Stiles believes in affordable higher education, but not for immigrants here illegally. “It should be overturned. To get in-state tuition they should be citizens,” Stiles said about the Maryland Dream Act.

Republican Delegate Neil Parrott says the Dream Act is a nightmare. “One, it costs too much money, and the second thing is we have federal immigration laws that are in place and we need to enforce those immigration laws,” Parrott said.

Since April, Parrott, who's from Hagerstown, has been gathering signatures on a petition to stop the Dream Act and put the issue in font of voters on a referendum.

The signatures don't count until the state Board of Elections has validated them, for which it has until June 20. It plans to start posting progress reports on its website Friday.

State House passes Illinois version of DREAM Act for children of immigrants

SPRINGFIELD — The Illinois House passed a state version of the DREAM Act Thursday in a vote hailed by immigration-rights advocates as historic.By a 61-53 vote, the House approved and sent to Gov. Pat Quinn legislation that would set up a state fund that would route privately funded college scholarships to as many as 95,000 children of undocumented immigrants.

Quinn has expressed support for the legislation, whose chief House sponsor was Rep. Edward Acevedo (D-Chicago).The measure, also pushed by Mayor Rahm Emanuel and Cardinal Francis George, would allow undocumented immigrants ages 18 to 29 with taxpayer-identification cards to invest in the state’s Bright Start and College Illinois programs.“I’m super excited this bill got passed. Illinois is going on a different path,” said Rep. Maria Antonia Berrios (D-Chicago), co-chair of the Illinois Legislative Latino Caucus.

Similar legislation on a federal level failed in Congress last year. Passage in Illinois is another example of the growing influence of Illinois’ Latinos, a bloc that grew by nearly 500,000 people since the 2000 Census.“Today’s bipartisan vote in the Illinois House is truly historic,” said Lawrence Benito, deputy director of the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights, which spearheaded passage of the bill. “This vote is a victory for our state and an important step forward in recognizing the contributions of immigrants.”

If Quinn signs the legislation, Benito said Illinois would become the first state to create a private scholarship fund for the children of undocumented Latinos.Only one lawmaker stood during floor debate to oppose the legislation, asking essentially why the state should sanction undocumented residents.

“A lot of people feel they shouldn’t be spending their tax dollars for people who aren’t citizens or people who are trying to become citizens,” said Rep. Robert Pritchard (R-Hinckley), who voted against the measure.But Acevedo insisted that wasn’t the case.“There’s not one tax dollar that goes into this program,” he said.

Durbin reintroduces federal DREAM Act

Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) reintroduced the federal DREAM Act on Wednesday to give undocumented students a chance to remain in the United States .The bill would allow students to remain in the U.S. as long as they enter the country before the age of 15, are long-term residents who have stayed for at least five years, show good moral character, graduate from high school or pass a General Educational Development test and complete two years of college or military service.

In a video address posted on Durbin's YouTube channel, he cited the case of a Korean American woman who called his office for help 10 years ago because her daughter had been admitted to the Juilliard School but was undocumented."I didn't think that was right, to punish her for something she hadn't done wrong," Durbin said in the video. "It was just unfair and unjust, so I wrote the DREAM Act."

In a news statement, Durbin said the act would benefit the armed forces and stimulate the economy. It also excludes immigrants ineligible for relief due to criminal histories or national security reasons.The introduction of the act is a step forward, said Stephen Smith, director of organizing for the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights. Smith added the bill will not drastically change the work of ICIRR.

"Our job is still to win some relief for these DREAM students but also to win relief from the president for their parents," Smith said. "It can't just be about the DREAM students. It has to also be about the parents and other undocumented families to make sure they are being supported."Durbin held a conference call with ICIRR last week, and Smith said Durbin admitted it will be hard to pass the bill, but he will keep trying.Among the obstacles the bill faces are the economy and Republican opposition, especially from southern border states concerned about illegal immigration, said Joshua Noah, the president of Northwestern University College Democrats.

"In tough economic times, people incorrectly believe that illegal immigrants take, whereas they really help create jobs," the Weinberg sophomore said.U.S. Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.) said in a news statement that the DREAM Act would not fix the immigration system and represents ignorance of the public's will.

"Over the last year, the Senate Democrat Leaders have introduced five versions of the DREAM Act, each seeking to add billions of dollars to the federal deficit with no committee review," Sessions said last Wednesday. "Today, Senator Durbin and others reintroduced the DREAM Act legislation under those same circumstances, demonstrating that the Democrats are still ignoring the public's plea to secure our border and to establish lawful immigration reform."Although the act does not solve all problems relating to immigration, it has the potential to have a positive impact on universities such as NU, said SESP senior Maria Salazar, a former undocumented immigrant. She said NU's current policy only allows federal financial aid, so the undocumented students currently at NU have to pay for their education on their own completely. This would continue if the federal DREAM Act does not pass. The act does not thoroughly reform the immigration system, she added.

"For me, the overall goal is something like a comprehensive immigration reform that would provide a path to legalization for qualified undocumented immigrants, so I would include families as well, so not just the children," Salazar said. "But I think the students, the organizers, everyone who's working for the federal DREAM Act are also aware of that. I don't think the DREAM Act in itself is viewed as a end-all to immigration reform. I think it's an important step forward."

yenyu2013@u.northwestern.edu

Students march to make DREAM a reality

Nearly fifty DePaul students approached St. Nicholas of Tolentine Church Saturday morning in a unison chant: "Education not deportation! Education not deportation!" Ross Richmond, Student Government Association President, and Pamela Barrientos shouted through megaphones, leading the march.St. Nicholas of Tolentine was the site of the New Americans Rally, an assembly for support of the Illinois DREAM Act, which will be voted on in the Illinois Senate on May 4. The rally was organized by the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights.Fr. Dennis Holtschneider, president of DePaul University said, "This is a critical point and day because this is when you bring elected officials into the room and they see the support for the legislation they're about to vote on. Today is the final push."

Around a thousand people packed inside the church to support the legislature. Chants erupted in every direction even before the scheduled speakers took the stage to the rhythm of hands-clapping and feet-pounding. Students waved signs that read "America was discovered by immigrants," "One Nation One Dream," and "Somos America." DePaul students, the largest of any college group attending, stood out in the crowd in royal blue T-shirts with "DePaul University Supports the DREAM Act" written on the back in bold white letters.

The rally opened with three prayers, one of which was delivered by Fr. Holtschneider. In the prayer, Holtschneider urged that we try to "see the world through other people's eyes."

Among the rally's speakers were Holtschneider, University of Illinois President Mike Hogan, Lake County Sheriff Mark Curran, Speaker of the Illinois House of Representatives Michael Madigan, and Illinois Senate President John Cullerton. U.S. senator Dick Durbin, the chief sponsor of the federal DREAM Act, planned to attend, but canceled due flooding in southern Illinois.

Madigan's address focused on the promise of the American dream.

"If we work together, if we keep our eye on the ball, if we stay focused, then we will fulfill the one nation, one dream platform," Madigan said to the rousing applause of the impassioned congregation.

"If we work together, there will be an Illinois DREAM Act that will be the modern implementation of the promise of America," Madigan said.

Cullerton emphasized the importance of the choice of higher education.

"I'm here to share support for what I believe is nothing more than providing the basic choice for a population of young people here in Illinois," Cullerton said. Cullerton said undocumented children were not give the choice to come to the U.S., but the law still limits their choice and denies them basic opportunities.

Hogan said the Illinois DREAM Act is more than a small step in the right direction for immigration reform and that no student should be denied financial aid because of outdated laws.The Illinois DREAM Act would create private scholarships and open up other financial opportunities for undocumented students, encourage high school counselors to be trained in educational opportunities for immigrant youth, and enable undocumented students to get driver's licenses. The ICIRR estimates 65 percent of youths that would benefit from the act come from households that earn below 200 percent of the poverty line.

Another speaker detailed the horrors her family is currently enduring as her husband is preparing to be deported. Through a translator, she said, "Enough is enough. Stop separating families."

An undocumented high school senior also spoke. The senior has been accepted to three colleges, but can't afford tuition, something the Illinois DREAM Act would like to fix. The senior said the DREAM Act would break down the walls that keep undocumented students from their full potential.

Richmond said, "The rally showed how strong our collective voice can be when we come from all different places in Chicago and support the DREAM Act."

Universities from across Chicago were represented at the New Americans Rally, including DePaul,University of Illinois at Chicago, Northwestern, Loyola, Dominican, Roosevelt, and University of Chicago.Richmond said he was most impressed with the representatives' ability to voice the goals of those in favor of the DREAM Act and make a solid commitment to bring those goals to Springfield for the vote on May 4.

Richmond said, "The Illinois DREAM Act is really important because on a state level it says these people are valuable in our society and we need to allow them to get higher education so they can then be able to contribute back to society." Richmond says the Illinois DREAM Act is important for DePaul because the university's mission is to make higher education accessible and affordable to all students.

"This is a small piece of Illinois doing its part, but it's going to have to be followed by the national DREAM Act or people are still going to be deported," Holtschneider said.The DREAM Act was originally federal legislation, first introduced in 2001 and most recently defeated last December. The federal version would enable undocumented students to earn legal status by earning a two or four year degree from a higher education institution, or by serving in the military for two years. The ICIRR estimates that 95,000 Illinois youth would have benefitted if the DREAM Act had passed in December.

Following the rally, the DePaul students quickly turned their attention to the Illinois Senate vote on May 4. A bus will leave from Lincoln Park and take DePaul students and others to Springfield in the morning on May 4 to continue supporting the Illinois DREAM Act.The rally "brought a lot of solidarity to the movement. I think that a lot of people gained energy and are ready to vote and go down to Springfield on Wednesday," Rachelle Snyder, Kindergarten co-teacher and DePaul alumni said.Sophomore Secondary Education major Nicole Arroyo said, "The energy was really positive, I hope we made an impact and when we go to Springfield on Wednesday that we pass the Illinois DREAM Act."

DePaul's participation in the New Americans Rally was organized by a coalition of DALE, the DePaul Alliance for Latino Empowerment and Student Government Association members. The event was advertised on Facebook. The coalition contacted the DePaul administration for support. Fr. Holtschneider funded the group's T-shirts. The Office of Mission and Values funded the buses that transported the students from Lincoln Park to the church.