A step closer to the DREAM Act

by Svetlana Ozden
sozden@unm.edu

Undocumented students are now eligible to work legally in the U.S. and will no longer be sought out for deportation.

During a June 15 speech on immigration, President Barack Obama announced that undocumented immigrants who arrived in the U.S. before age 16 and are younger than 30 years old, are enrolled in school and do not have a criminal record will be able to apply for work permits and protection from deportation.

Obama said the new policy is another step toward the Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors (DREAM) Act, which would allow undocumented immigrants who came to the U.S. as a child, have been here for five years and are willing to enroll in college or the military to one day earn citizenship.

He said the policy is effective immediately and that it provides an opportunity for undocumented immigrants to better their futures.

“Now, let’s be clear. This is not amnesty. This is not immunity,” he said. “This is not a path to citizenship. It’s not a permanent fix. This is a temporary, stopgap measure that lets us focus our resources wisely while giving a degree of relief and hope to talented, driven, patriotic young people.”

UNM Vice President for Student Affairs Eliseo “Cheo” Torres said the new policy is a step forward for undocumented students who can now work and share more of the same privileges as students who have citizenship. He said the policy complements Senate Bill 582, a New Mexico bill that allows anyone who graduated from a New Mexico high school to receive state financial assistance for college.

“Well, we’ve taken a role at the University of New Mexico, we provide undocumented students with all the same privileges with the exception that they can’t work because they don’t have a social security number,” he said. “The bill allows these students to get a permit to work and they don’t need be afraid that they will be deported.”

Torres said UNM is at the forefront in the support of education and students who want to be educated. He said the University advocates education for all people and giving hardworking, undocumented students a promise for the future.

“It’s about education, educating students and allowing them to work for their education,” he said. “Now these students can work and contribute to our society. Many of them came here as babies, but because the residency and citizenship process is so long, they might not have the appropriate permits to work.”

Torres said the next step is to pass the DREAM Act and allow undocumented students the opportunity to put their hard work and education to good use. He said undocumented students have overcome only the first step to a better future.

“We’re going on the right path,” he said. “This will help us have a more educated society.”