While networking with some students during club hours, I found out that immigration matters to Baruch students too. In fact, we have the Dream Team at Baruch, which provides resources, information and nation and statewide news regarding immigration and education. Their mission is “to unite, educate and bring awareness to the Baruch Community by providing workshops on knowing your rights, resources of scholarships and internships to students.” This week, a member from the Dream Team invited me to attend a panel/discussion event on immigration called “Documented the Undocumented: Immigration Reform,” which was hold at Baruch College. This event was organized with the collaboration of other Baruch clubs such as LASO and Baruch Impact Club.
But before I give my overview of this event, I would like to clarify what D.A.C.A and DREAM Act is all about. D.A.C.A. (Differed Action for Childhood Arrivals) is an initiative, announced on June 15 of 2012, which offers a two-year reprieve from deportation to unauthorized immigrants who entered the U.S. before age 16 and are under the age of 31. Those who qualify also should:
– have lived continuously in the country for at least five years
– have not been convicted of a felony, a “significant” misdemeanor, or three other misdemeanors
– currently be in school, graduated from high school, earned a GED, or served in the military.
Those Immigrants who meet these criteria are referred to as “DREAMers” because they meet most of the general requirements of the Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors (DREAM) Act.
Now that you have an idea of what this two concepts are, you will be able to understand what the panelists talked about. The discussion began with moderator Cesar Ventura, a senior student at Brooklyn College and Vice President of the BC Dream Team. He, a DREAMer, took charge of the podium and asked the panelists what pushed them to speak and advocate for an immigration reform.
From left to right: Silvia Echeverria, Hina Naveed, Ivy Teng Lei, Susan Lema, Anita Teekah, and Alan Lee
Hina Naveed, current nursing student at Staten Island College and an advocate for immigrants’ rights, was the first panelist to share her story. She became undocumented the moment she had to overstay in the U.S. due to her sister’s medical treatment and the fact that her lawyer misfiled her petition for visa (which resulted in a denial). She was ashamed to talk about her status until recently. Last February she got a fellowship through New York Immigration Collision, which empowered her to speak about immigration and why it is important for the community. Now she works as a Civic Engagement Coordinator at an immigration center in Staten Island where she helps the undocumented youth. In her case, D.A.C.A. offered opportunities for her at school and work. However, she states that a two-year permit is not enough and changes to the immigration reform are needed.
Ivy Teng, Baruch alumni, also shared her experiences as an advocate for Asian Americans in the immigration reform. She mentioned that the reason she decided to get involved in this topic is the fact that 3 out of 4 Asians in America are foreign born and from the 11 million immigrants that are in the U.S., 1.3 are Asians. She also considers herself as a DREAMer who currently works in the marketing industry. Panelist Susan Lema, a senior at Baruch and treasurer of the Dream Team at Baruch, shared her moving personal story as well. She recounted her experience when coming to this country and the struggle she faced when she got here. Attending some events at Baruch that had the DREAM Act as main topic inspired her to talk openly about immigration. She felt the momentum that DREAMers where going through and decided to create the Dream Team at Baruch. She and other fellow students have participated in some pro immigrant rallies in New York and Washington. Among the panelists, we also had Assemblyman Francisco Moya, who offered support to DREAMers. He remarked the importance of lobbying those in charge of immigration issues since the New York State DREAM Act has not been passed. Anita Teekah, a Legislative Coordinator for NY, also suggested that writing petitions and reaching Legislators was a great way to speak up on this issue.
Assemblyman Francisco Moya
Alan Lee, a well-known immigration lawyer, made very clear observations of the current immigration situation and what is to come in the following years. According to him, even though Republicans control only one chamber, they are now thinking they will control the agenda on immigration. He mentioned that the President was optimistic about the goal of Congress of passing the bill by the end of this year, but that was immediately rejected by the Rep. Representative Paul Ryan, who said there is not enough time to tackle the issue this year. So, what is the timetable for an immigration reform? According to Alan Lee, the best time for action is probably going to be at the beginning of 2014, before everybody in Washington gets caught up in other legislation and before the effects of the midterm elections start to be felt. If nothing happens during those months, we could probably just say that the rest of 2014 will see no changes. Moving on to 2015, Mr. Lee said that it could be a promising year since there are no elections going on.
However, going back to 2014, the worst thing that could happen is that the Republicans win the elections, bringing disastrous consequences. If they win, immigration reform will be surely off the table. Lee suggested that advocates, organizations, and immigrants in general should treat 2014 as the “Super Bowl for immigration” due to the midterm elections. If Republicans win, immigrants lose. For that reason, he encourages immigrants to mobilize and put pressure on Representatives, Legislators, and Congressmen to work on an integral immigration bill. He noted that we should try to decide which kind of immigration reform we are going to accept. We may have to make a choice of accepting less or not accepting what is being offered. It is better to recognize the possibilities early on to be prepared for the best or the worst.
Finally, Silvia Echeverria, Baruch Alumni, provided useful information regarding centers that specifically assist immigrants on different legal matters.