A small group of university presidents today called for immediate passage of legislation that would provide an easier path to citizenship for illegal immigrants who have spent two years in college or in the military. The Development, Relief, and Education Act for Alien Minors, known as the Dream Act, could improve immigrants’ access to higher education and would open up federal loan opportunities to them. The presidents — representing Eastern Washington University, Northern Virginia Community College, the University of California at Berkeley, and the University of Houston-Downtown — spoke as part of numerous rallies and lobbying efforts this week in Washington by the United We Dream Coalition. Some immigrant-rights advocates have worried that passage of the Dream Act as a separate bill could harm the effort for broader immigration reform, but students and higher-education leaders asked for support as soon as possible. The presidents also said the Dream Act could reduce dropout rates and help strengthen the work force.
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10 Responses to University Presidents Call for Stand-Alone Passage of Dream Act
your_rights - July 20, 2010 at 5:55 pm
Dear University Presidents:How much money is Hillary Clinton paying you to take these students as she sells out America in her quid pro quo efforts to utilize foreign countries in our war/peace efforts?
lost_angeleno - July 20, 2010 at 7:53 pm
Stupid comment: HC doesn’t cut any ice here, and a lot of other places too, I’ll bet.
chrism1329 - July 21, 2010 at 10:15 am
Would stand-alone passage not create a powerful incentive for parents to illegally bring their children across the border, trafficking them, if need be? I’m all for democratizing access to higher education, but it seems like we’re setting ourselves up for disaster if the Dream Act isn’t passed in the context of broad, comprehensive immigration reform that includes more rigorous border controls.
meriweh - July 21, 2010 at 11:02 am
No way!!!! Why should students who have done the right thing scramble for seats at Universities and colleges. How about asking students who are here on a Student Visa how they feel about this proposal. Why? why? why? Why are some people so eager to reward illegal behavior????? There has to be some benefits to being a legal citizen (other than PAYING for those who are not). I am so incredibly tired of illegal individuals crying for rights, etc., Go back home to your country and fix and demand things there! We have far too many people here in the wagon of the United States and not enough folks pulling the wagon!!!
wilkenslibrary - July 21, 2010 at 12:32 pm
While I don’t usually cite Wikipedia as a source, it’s often the easiest place to get basic information, so if you’re unfamiliar with the provisions of the DREAM act, as many commenters here obviously are, please check it out at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DREAM_Act. It is a bipartisan piece of proposed legislation (do scroll down to see the supporters).
rachaelski - July 21, 2010 at 3:08 pm
@meriweh, why punish the children for the decisions of their parents? Many of the children that the DREAM Act would benefit have never been or recall being in their home country. @wilkenslibrary thanks for the link, I did not know about the military part of this act, very interesting!
greenhills73 - July 21, 2010 at 5:50 pm
#6, that’s a tired old question. As a parent, nothing inspires me to do the right thing more than the knowledge that if I don’t, my child will be hurt by it. We need to stop giving what ought to be the privileges of citizenship to illegal aliens. It is a slap in the face to people who have done the right thing, as well as our men and women in uniform who have fought for what this country provides to its citizens. And what message are we teaching those children illegally here if we give them a pass – that there are no consequences to breaking the laws of this country? It is time for that to end.
rachaelski - July 22, 2010 at 10:40 am
@greehills73 I would argue that that’s a tired old response. Perhaps your children have benefitted from your flawless parenting, but my working class parents certainly made a lot of mistakes, often times to try to benefit their children. Should I be punished because my parents chose to partake in selling contraband, since we the children benefitted from the profit? My mother had me young and relied on public assistance from the time I was 5 until I reached middle school. Should I be held responsible for that? Am I repeating the pattern of my parents? Absolutely not. In fact, if anything, the support we were given has influenced me to do voluntary service, join movements like Teach for America, and dedicate my life to education. I believe the same would happen with the majority of the children who would benefit from the DREAM act.
edwardo - July 22, 2010 at 2:09 pm
@rachaelski, You play the cards your dealt with. If you have bad parents, then deal with it. Illegals are taking spots in the universities that could be given to actual US citiziens or to immigrants who are here legally. Most of these illegals are paying in state tuition and while other actual citiziens are paying more out of state tuition.
gsawpenny - July 23, 2010 at 9:43 am
Where is the dream act for the poor white kids I rememeber from the Smokey Mountains?Where is the dream act for the black kid who lives on the 18th floor of a public housing ghetto that looks more like a scene from Stalingrad in 1942 than a housing project?Where is the dream act for the American children of coal miners, lumber jacks, oil rig workers, car sales people, single mothers, and so one.This law is just plain ignorant.