Most Popular Change Type Size Young immigrants rally to support legislation on college assistance
Monica Alonzo-Dunsmoor
The Arizona Republic
Mar. 12, 2007 12:00 AM
About 30 local high school students gathered on the state Capitol lawn Sunday and rallied for a shot at an affordable education.
The students are pushing Congress for approval of the Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors, or DREAM Act, which would let students who entered the country illegally as children to legalize their immigration status and qualify for in-state tuition and financial aid.
Lawmakers from California and Florida recently reintroduced the DREAM Act in the U.S. House of Representatives and the Senate. advertisement
"We want to let the community know . . . we need their support," said Marina, an 18-year-old senior at Carl Hayden Community High School. "It's something wonderful for students. If they want us to integrate into society, we need this opportunity. It's for students who care about their education and want to contribute to their country."
Marina has lived in the United States since she was 7.
"We know no other country," she said.
Students asked that their last names not be used because of their immigration status.
Some of the students pushing for approval of the federal, bipartisan measure are members of Carl Hayden's award-winning robotics program, which this weekend won the Arizona Regional Chairman's Award for the third time. Those inner-city students have garnered national attention for their repeat victories at national competitions, even over prestigious colleges such as the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
"If given the opportunity, these students are tomorrow's scientists, engineers and business leaders," Marina said. "They need the opportunity."
CADENA, a grass-roots community organization, is leading a campaign to promote the DREAM Act because it says the act will remove the obstacles in the way of students' success.
As it now stands, the Arizona Board of Regents gave universities permission to implement Proposition 300, a voter-approved initiative that prevents undocumented residents from getting in-state tuition.
Students who want in-state tuition but don't apply for federal financial aid must present an Arizona driver's license issued after 1996, a passport or a birth certificate.
Out-of-state tuition costs about three times more than what Arizona residents pay.
2007-03-12 18:48:36 · 7 answers · asked by illegals_r_whiners 2 in Politics & Government ➔ Immigration
oops, Sorry i meant NOT
2007-03-12 19:02:50 · update #1
This nonsense raises its ugly head every few years. Unfortunately with the Dems holding Congress,its very likely to pass this time around, no question Bush would sign it......
2007-03-12 19:46:20 · answer #1 · answered by free_eagle716 4 · 2⤊ 4⤋
I agree with supermom on this. These kids have proven that they do want to continue their education by already graduating highschool wich is more that could be said for some legal kids. Why not help them continue their education,either way they will still be in this country.this way they at least are contributing in a good way to it. In highschool I knew a girl who had great potential to go on to college and was very smart but because she was illegal she couldn't. Did she go back to her country? nope. She stayed here and last i heard she has about 10 kids wich the government (aka the working american citizens) is supporting. And as far as them taking "anything" away from other kids,the one answer I have to say to that is that the world is about competition. If i wanted to think like that I would be mad at the ***** college fund group for taking away money from me and my future kids just because they aren't black. Or all those other scholarships that are only for a certain type of people. So yeah sorry to say the world isn't perfect, if u want something u actually have to work hard to get it because rarely is it just handed to u.
2007-03-13 13:08:48 · answer #2 · answered by Nexus K 4 · 7⤊ 1⤋
I have known illegal immigrants who weren't able to go to college.
I am not pro-illegal because of the negative impact that it is having on our society. But the students who are applying to get into college are certainly not the ones who are having a negative impact on our society! I have a problem with the ones who join gangs, flood our hospitals, have 5 kids before they turn 18, and solicit minors . . . certainly not ones who just want to further their education.
Basically what I am saying is this: If they made the effort to successfully complete highschool, proficiently speak english, and not have a litter of children on social services in the process, why punish them for that? Let them go to college, especially if they want to pay for it (over time). The illegals I knew who were denied were prepared to pay upfront for their tuition and books. They often migrated over here when they were very small children (I guess they didn't know they were breaking the law!).
2007-03-13 10:16:16 · answer #3 · answered by ☼Pleasant☼ 5 · 7⤊ 3⤋
Deportation isn't the answer. It's a quick fix, until America addresses WHY people feel they need to risk their lives to immigrate to this country illegally we wont fix this problem. By the way, neither is a wall, "strengthening our borders" have actually only aggravated the problem of what was illegal MIGRATION and turned it to illegal IMMIGRATION. In the past Mexico represented a migrant workforce that came here to work during seasonal months and returned home during non-seasonal months. The US has a long history with migrant labor: Irish, Japaneese, Chineese, Fillipino, and others. By building a wall (or increasing the fortification of our border) we did not keep immigrants out (we never addressed the underlying problem) instead we did the exact oppossite of what "we" (representatives in congress) wanted and kept illegal residents in the US.
As for social services, you have two options, fix the underlying problems or integrate them into the US society, there really isn't a middle ground here, as you will see over the next few years. It is a substantial waste of resources to work in the middle ground, that middle ground includes: our "strengthened border", and deportation. Neither plan will work.
Too many people one think that everyone wants to come here from Mexico, and 2nd that they are looking for a handout when they get here. If instead of forcing people into seclusion we integrated them into society our country would be better not worse off from illegal immigration.
So to close, in my opinion, integrate immigrants here (legal or otherwise) or help improve conditions in offending countries so illegal immigration here is not seen as a last resort or last hope.
Aton L. Gutierrez
Management Science and Engineering
Stanford University
PS-one other comment on not having enough money for education, its true, we don't but that is because we choose not to force politicians to spend enough money on the education of our own kids or kids from other countries. If a fraction of the money we spent on Iraq went to education, well maybe we wouldn't still be in Iraq.
2007-03-13 06:26:25 · answer #4 · answered by akenaton 2 · 6⤊ 5⤋
I'm in total agreement with Ornery, here. Guess that makes me ornery, too! If California and Florida wants the illegal immigrants, then let them have them ALL. Then, cut off any federal transfer payments that go towards any of the social costs of keeping these people - then see how long they want them for!
2007-03-13 03:04:43 · answer #5 · answered by Daisy 6 · 3⤊ 3⤋
It is a nightmare because that discount is actually public funding, and there isn't enough college education funding for our own children now that there are so many poorer people illegally here. We are the ones funding it, our children should get it, not theirs.
It is not punishment to ONLY fund k-12 education at $10,000 per child per year in California. It is certainly more than Mexico does for its own poor, and they aren't even supposed to be here, if they are here illegally.
Refusing to give them MORE of the education funds that belong to our children is not punishment.
Why should OUR children be punished?
2007-03-13 12:03:29 · answer #6 · answered by DAR 7 · 1⤊ 5⤋
Sure, let's let them have in state tuition, and while we are at it, screw the immigration law, let's just make them citizens!
If we "let this slide" why don't we just open up every door on every cell in every prison in the USA, what the heck, if we are going to reward one group of law breakers, we might as well just throw in the towel and reward them all. FREE COLLEGE TUITION FOR ANYONE WHO HAS EVER BROKEN THE LAW!!!! For those people who have actually served time in jail or prison for offenses of the law, we should pay them a wage for their inconvenience, don't you think?
Now that the bulls*** has been disposed of ... Every student of every college should be checked for legal resident status, those applicants who are not here legally ... should be DEPORTED!
Every applicant for any job should be checked for legal resident status, those who are not here legally, should be deported ... period!
Any patient in any hospital in the USA should be checked for legal resident status ... those not here legally should be stabilized and deported (see I do have a heart! I agree that they should be stabilized before they are deported).
The Illegal immigrants should be allowed to apply for college, "accepted" by any state college, and when they arrive for their first day of college ... DEPORTED!
2007-03-13 02:58:24 · answer #7 · answered by ornery and mean 7 · 6⤊ 10⤋