ok, this doesn't have to do with my abroad experience, but it's been on my mind, and i wanna encourage you guys to take some simple action :) and try to get the word out. every action counts!
There are very few times I feel like I can make a real difference in someone’s life. Especially in a democracy which acts on a large scale drowning out the voice of the individual and raising the voice of the majority which paradoxically is composed of individuals.
There are also few policies which I have a definite, non-controversial opinion on. Most issues, like abortion or capital punishment carry difficult implications to resolve morally. However, the DREAM Act is now something I support whole-heartedly. After reading through http://media.www.dukechronicle.com/media/storage/paper884/news/2009/04/03/Columns/Is.It.Too.Much.To.Dream-3696561.shtml , doing my own research on the topic, and watching the above video, I’ve realized there are still many injustices in this country which could easily be resolved simply through simple legislation.
The Chronicle story speaks power to the issue. It recounts the hardships a student at our very own Duke University surpassed to get to where he is now. The saddest thing is that while we “stressfully” debate what we’ll do after graduation with one another, this student probably won’t have a chance. Illegal immigrants can’t get drivers licenses, can’t get internships, can’t apply for jobs. The fact that they have worked the system far enough to get an education at Duke speaks to the level of determination and brilliance these people have. And to think that each year 65,000 graduates are in this position of holding a college degree and working low level, low profile jobs such as waiting tables and working construction.
Conservatives argue that granting amnesty to these people whose illegal status is the product of their parents struggles and not their own, is unfair to the American population. Honestly, this makes me furious. What is amnesty but a fancy word for forgiveness? Since when is forgiveness unacceptable in our culture. Actually.. since when is being brought up in America, albeit “illegally”, and wanting to succeed through our education system a moral travesty? There is no wrong to forgive. I am disappointed that much of America has adopted a selfish view on life, and that the media has portrayed immigration as a sin commited by low class criminals. Immigrants, legal or not, are human beings who want the same chance at a future as any other citizen.
One thing I’ve learned this year is that it’s easy to point the figure at something i know nothing about. It’s easy to regurgitate what we’ve heard on the news about an issue. Life is way too intricate though. These immigrants have stories and lives. They have passions and skills. They are every bit as deserving as others who hold a paper indicating citizenship.
Just like I was born into citizenship in America, many of these people were born or raised at an early age into illegal status. The progressive reform in america has been in the direction of relieving blame from inherited traits. The civil rights movement was the most evident movement. skin color was an inherited trait that people judged against. For those to which the DREAM Act would apply (those brought to america before the age of 15) I would argue that these circumstances were “inherited” or uncontrollable by the children. Their illegal status should not be a wall blocking off any future for them especially when they are such hard working individuals with college degrees more prestigious than the majority of America.
Please support the DREAM Act. It has been re-introduced in the Senate (where it was voted down back in 2007 by a margin of 7 votes).
According to http://dreamact.info/senators there are 58 senators listed as “yea” or “likely yea” for the vote, and 12 listed as “unknown” or “on the fence”. The Act needs 60 votes to pass in the Senate. From there, it should meet little opposition in the House. And of course, Obama will not veto it http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_GwNVo7siFA .
Please please look at the list above and contact your respective senators to support the dream act. The simplest thing you can do is to go to your senator’s webpage. All of them have a contact link where you fill out a form with your concern. This concern is in the topic of Immigration or Education. It takes literally like 5 minutes to fill one of these out.
You can also go to www.change.org and register and select the DREAM Act as an important issue. This is Obama’s website to survey the top 10 issues he should address. There are also many petitions on that site and other sites that you can easily fill out. We finally have the chance to make a difference. The vote is so close, it would be such a shame if this weren’t passed. Our fellow classmate at Duke, along with thousands of other deserving students would not get the chance to live fully.
5 comments:
"I am disappointed that much of America has adopted a selfish view on life, and that the media has portrayed immigration as a sin commited by low class criminals. Immigrants, legal or not, are human beings who want the same chance at a future as any other citizen."
Thank you Jason for capturing this point about selfishness in the immigration debate. I too am often frustrated that people always seemed to vote according to what would serve their own interests - whether a government program to help the poor would raise their taxes, or in this case allowing in the immigrants would create competition for jobs and strain the schools etc.
However, as a legal immigrant and having seen how much my parents went through to get here, contributed to this country and paid its taxes, I suppose there were moments when I felt a little unfair that amnesty is given to illegal immigrants who broke the law, when I had to wait 6 years just to get a green card... But that is strictly selfishness/pride speaking, as it's presumptuous, self-righteous, and so judgmental to think that I'm here because of my own effort. But in the end, what's done is done; I agree it's time to move on and give all people a chance to pursue happiness.
edith
This is an awesome blog. =) I'm glad we've got people in our community who are aware of what's happening. And yay for California! Both our senators are a 'yea' for the DREAM Act.
thanks for reading and responding :) and go california! i think one of the senators in CA is a major advocate of the DREAM Act
I feel like the most untold story though is how hard a lot of illegal immigrants work too. In a way, just like a legal immigrant family waits for 6 years to get a green card, the illegal ones are still waiting for their chance. Meanwhile they have to work jobs and stuff too. The paperwork they fill out is mostly lies and they end up paying taxes and things like that too.
There's also an article in todays' New York Times that addresses the immigration issue.
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/26/nyregion/26immig.html
Good luck on the finals, everyone.
Article here
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