Battle over immigration law heats up in White Plains, Washington
By Robert Marchant • rmarchan@lohud.com • June 7, 2009


WHITE PLAINS - As a fight over immigration law looms in the nation's capital, about 200 marchers chanted slogans in Spanish and English, waved banners and collected names on a petition in downtown White Plains yesterday to spell out their support for proposed legislation.

Young people and college students made up most of the crowd of local supporters for the the Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors, or DREAM, Act, a set of proposed laws that would establish a legal procedure for undocumented students to gain legal status and pursue their education. The bill, which was defeated in a previous 2007 version, has been reintroduced in Congress and could prove to be contentious again, as opponents are also gearing up for the fight.

Advocates who took to the streets yesterday said the legislation would allow longtime residents of the U.S. to achieve their potential through education.

"It's a right for any human being to get an education," said Juan Bedoya, 29, a U.S. Navy veteran and White Plains High School graduate now studying at Purchase College.

He came to this country from Colombia at the age of 18. Students who have lived in the U.S. for years though lacking citizenship are in a tough spot, he said.

"They've Americanized themselves, and some of them are at the top of their class, but they can't get loans or scholarships," Bedoya said. "If they go to college, it will benefit society."

The DREAM Act would allow students whose parents came here illegally before they turned 16 to acquire citizenship rights and educational resources.

Indhira Arizmendi, 23, of White Plains said she knew several bright, ambitious young people who could not pursue university education or professional careers because they are ineligible for loans and grants that citizens can obtain.

"I know a good handful who are in that boat," she said. "They're working construction or landscaping or baby-sitting, anything to make ends meet. I had a friend who wanted to teach - couldn't do it."

Arizmendi, whose family came from Mexico when she was a young child, said, "It really limits what you can do."

Arizmendi said she plans to attend law school in the fall.

The marchers carried signs reading "Legalization Not Criminalization" and "Together We Are America." The orderly march covered several blocks in the downtown district, with a light police presence accompanying it.

DREAM Act supporters are encountering foes, both locally and in Washington.

A Mount Vernon man walking by the rally stated his opposition.

"I think they should crack down on illegal immigration and enforce the laws on the books," said Joshua Askew, who recently lost his job in retail sales.

As a few onlookers gave him puzzled but polite looks, Askew said, "Illegal immigration has a big impact on the labor market and, for me, this is about employment. Illegal immigrant rights? I don't understand it. It doesn't seem fair."

In Washington, Howard Beck, the executive director of Numbers USA, an organization looking to reduce levels of immigration, is critical of the DREAM Act.

He acknowledged there were "compelling stories" behind the proposed law, "and this is where political compromise gets involved."

But, his organization says, the proposed law is "overly broad" and too prone to fraud. Beck said legal improvements for undocumented immigrants should be coupled with more enforcement in the workplace and at the borders.

Local organizers, including El Centro Hispanico and the Hudson Valley Community Coalition, are looking to send letters to congressional delegates, set up call centers and hold town hall-style meetings on the DREAM Act in coming months.Arizmendi, whose family came from Mexico when she was a young child, said, "It really limits what you can do."

Arizmendi said she plans to attend law school in the fall.

The marchers carried signs reading "Legalization Not Criminalization" and "Together We Are America." The orderly march covered several blocks in the downtown district, with a light police presence accompanying it.

DREAM Act supporters are encountering foes, both locally and in Washington.

A Mount Vernon man walking by the rally stated his opposition.

"I think they should crack down on illegal immigration and enforce the laws on the books," said Joshua Askew, who recently lost his job in retail sales.

As a few onlookers gave him puzzled but polite looks, Askew said, "Illegal immigration has a big impact on the labor market and, for me, this is about employment. Illegal immigrant rights? I don't understand it. It doesn't seem fair."

In Washington, Howard Beck, the executive director of Numbers USA, an organization looking to reduce levels of immigration, is critical of the DREAM Act.

He acknowledged there were "compelling stories" behind the proposed law, "and this is where political compromise gets involved."

But, his organization says, the proposed law is "overly broad" and too prone to fraud. Beck said legal improvements for undocumented immigrants should be coupled with more enforcement in the workplace and at the borders.

Local organizers, including El Centro Hispanico and the Hudson Valley Community Coalition, are looking to send letters to congressional delegates, set up call centers and hold town hall-style meetings on the DREAM Act in coming months.

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