Thread: Young immigrants plan rally to protest lack of path to becom

Young immigrants plan rally to protest lack of path to becoming legal residents
By: BERTRAND M. GUTIERREZ | Winston-Salem Journal
Published: September 04, 2011
» 1 Comments | Post a Comment

Illegal immigrants brought to the United States as children plan to risk arrest and deportation at a rally Tuesday in Charlotte to protest what they believe are unfair laws that prevent them from correcting their immigration status and make it harder to get an education.

Moises Serrano, a Yadkinville resident who graduated with honors from Starmount High School in Boonville, said he and others from the area plan to attend the rally because their options are running out.

"I'm a great worker, but because of my status I can't take advantage of that. I can't get a job. I can't go to school because I can't afford out-of-state tuition. I can't drive down the road to my friend's house because I'm scared I might get pulled over. It's like living in fear 24/7," said Serrano, 21, who was brought to the U.S. by his parents before he was 2.

Serrano and others call themselves "dreamers" after legislation in Congress known as the DREAM Act, which would give a pathway to legal status to young, educated illegal immigrants without criminal records.
Legislators who oppose the DREAM Act say creating a pathway to legal status is tantamount to amnesty and would encourage more illegal immigration. They say these immigrants must return to their country of origin and wait in line like anyone else who wants to enter the U.S. legally.

Because Charlotte is in a county that is part of a federal program known as 287(g), which allows local enforcement agencies to enforce federal immigration laws, Serrano is aware that attending the rally comes with the risk of arrest and deportation.

But he and other illegal immigrants in his grass-roots advocacy group El Cambio say they are willing to take that risk because they believe they are being forced to live in the shadows, unable to do such things as get a license or work permit or pay in-state tuition.

Rally organizer Domenic Powell, a founding member of the advocacy group N.C. Dream Team, said high school- and college-age youths will publicly declare their immigration status in what he referred to as a "coming out" rally, culminating with a march at Central Piedmont Community College.

"All that is being asked for is a pathway for young people to correct their status," Powell said. "These people are not criminals. They're being made criminals."

On Facebook, information about the rally has been listed under "North Carolina: We Will No Longer Remain in the Shadows!" As of Saturday evening, nearly 200 people said they would attend.

The rally is scheduled to fall on the same day as the kickoff for the Democratic National Convention, which starts at 10 a.m. at the Time Warner Cable Arena. And the rally caps off a summer marked by a public shift by the Obama administration in the way deportation proceedings are carried out.

President Barack Obama — backing a directive that had been spelled out in June by John Morton, the director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and in August by Janet Napolitano, the secretary of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security — said immigration authorities would put a higher priority on deportation proceedings involving immigrants with criminal records.

Under the directive, immigrants with no criminal record would be given lower priority and possibly could have their cases closed. Being in the U.S. without authorization is a civil offense, not a criminal offense.
The priority shift, administration officials said, would better use limited resources. The shift also comes after years of criticism that immigration authorities actually weaken national security by putting energy into noncriminal immigrants at the expense of pursuing those with criminal records.

In the current federal fiscal year through early July, the number of noncriminal immigrants removed by ICE nearly equals the number of immigrants with a criminal record. ICE has removed 289,386 immigrants during the fiscal year, which started in October. Of that number, 148,182 were convicted criminals and 141,204 had noncriminal cases, according to ICE.

The 'Dream'

The N.C. Dream Team is working with its umbrella organization, the National Immigrant Youth Alliance, which is made up of a network of grass-roots immigrant-advocacy organizations, Powell said, to bring in immigrants from as far as Georgia, New York and Ohio.

Their broader goal is to bring attention to what they believe is the plight of young, educated immigrants in North Carolina who were raised in the U.S., know little of their native country and risk being deported even though they had no part in the decision to move to the U.S. The specific goal is to protest the requirement that they pay out-of-state tuition and register for classes after all other students register.

Those obstacles would be alleviated under the Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors Act, commonly known as the DREAM Act.
It would give young immigrants such as Serrano a pathway to legal status, under certain conditions. Among them, the immigrant must have a clean record, must have been 15 or younger upon arriving in the U.S., must have lived in the U.S. for five consecutive years, must earn a high school diploma or general equivalency diploma and go to college or join the military.

There are more than 2 million immigrants in the U.S. who would be eligible for the DREAM Act, according to a 2010 report by the Migration Policy Institute, a nonprofit research group based in Washington. The largest segment — 553,000 — lives in California. In North Carolina, there are about 51,000, or about 0.5 percent of the state's 9.5 million residents.

The U.S. House version of the DREAM Act, known as H.R. 1842, was introduced in May by Rep. Howard Berman, D-Calif., and has 47 co-sponsors. The U.S. Senate version, known as S. 952, was introduced by Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., and has 34 co-sponsors. Neither version of the bill has a co-sponsor from North Carolina.

Dividing lines

U.S. Rep. Virginia Foxx, a Republican who represents Northwest Carolina and parts of Winston-Salem, said in an email that she supports enforcing existing immigration laws, securing the country's borders and stemming illegal immigration.

"One of the primary reasons people come to the U.S. is the opportunities and stability created by our tradition of the rule of law. However, the more we disregard our laws or selectively enforce them, the more we erode that foundational element which sets us apart from so many nations: the strong rule of law.

"Additionally, creating a backdoor amnesty policy not only discourages legal immigration, but it creates a raft of new incentives for illegal immigration," Foxx said.

Siding with Foxx, state Rep. Dale Folwell, R-Forsyth, said he opposes the DREAM Act.

"My position is that they can follow the same procedure as all the hundreds of thousands of other people who would like to be in this country and are trying to come to this country legally," Folwell said. "Just because someone is here physically, it doesn't give them permission to break in front of the line. It's black and white: The parents broke the law in order to take advantage of the U.S. Constitution and the taxpayers. They knew exactly what they were doing, and why should we be rewarding that?"

Not everyone is opposed to easing the threat of deportation against such youths as Serrano.

U.S. Sen. Kay Hagan of North Carolina was one of a handful of Democrats who voted to kill a previous version of the DREAM Act in December, but she has expressed support for the ICE directive that immigration agents should give criminal cases higher priority.

Hagan did not respond when asked what should be done about "dreamers," such as Serrano.

U.S. Rep. Mel Watt, a Democrat who represents parts of Winston-Salem, Greensboro and Charlotte, said he supports the Obama administration's deportation guidelines, adding that it is an example of what Congress should do. When asked whether Congress would discuss the DREAM Act, he said, "There isn't much chance of that happening until after the next election."

(Mod Edit/ Separated paragraphs/ RB)

http://www2.journalnow.com/news/2011/se ... r-1356813/

They should all protest their parents. The parents are to blame for their situation, not American citizens.

All illegal aliens must be deported. And those who support Perry for GOP candicate, do not support Perry because he wants amnesty for illegal aliens and does not want to build the fence to stop illegal immigration. NO PERRY. HE IS LIKE MCCAIN, GEORGE W. BUSH AND OBAMA.

I think they're intentionally testing Obummer's new policy. Heaven help us if just one of these IA students gets into the system and is granted an exemption.

And the Government claims they cannot round them up? Here they are offering themselves up on their own. It should only take 4 buses and an hr or two to load up those who " come out" at this rally if all 200 show up. I would have an extra bus or two just in case of overflow. Maybe a national rally day should be declared for this purpose, after all they are illegal and unafraid , 5 May 2012 would be a good day to do it.

Originally Posted by dsprtt

And the Government claims they cannot round them up? Here they are offering themselves up on their own. It should only take 4 buses and an hr or two to load up those who " come out" at this rally if all 200 show up. I would have an extra bus or two just in case of overflow. Maybe a national rally day should be declared for this purpose, after all they are illegal and unafraid , 5 May 2012 would be a good day to do it.

They are unafraid because they know there is no one going to touch them (gutless politicians and city council members alike),and so they blatantly come out on the attack. If it were citizens out there doing some of the things these people do there would be no hesitation in bringing the police and hauling them off (and we have all seen this happen).

Young immigrants plan rally to protest lack of path to becoming legal residents

Really ignorant people. There is a path to citizenship,and it is called the LEGAL PATH (the right way to do things)and it is not just about documentation but also health screening. That is why some of our past diseases are showing up once again in this country.

Charlotte is over a thousand miles from the border and yet, it is becoming a hot bed of illegal invader resistance and mayhem. We are losing this country and those elected to uphold our Constitution sit back and do nothing about it.

How come these criminals are not being driven out of town? They have no right to protest anything and have become much to comfortable in doing so. It's time for change!

Originally Posted by NoBueno

Charlotte is over a thousand miles from the border and yet, it is becoming a hot bed of illegal invader resistance and mayhem. We are losing this country and those elected to uphold our Constitution sit back and do nothing about it.

How come these criminals are not being driven out of town? They have no right to protest anything and have become much to comfortable in doing so. It's time for change!

Charlotte and Raliegh are Sanctuary Cities in reality. Even here in the Triad areas all you see anymore in construction is Hispanic workers . They have literally taken over the industry here.

In some areas we are reaching once again into the 12 % unemployment marks but yet you will find all these people still working.

If they want to become citizens and legal then take your parents and drag them and yourselves back over the border and come back LEGALLY. If you don't then you deserve to be arrested and deported. If the Feds and our spineless president don't deport you then the states that you have trespassed into should be able to toss you out. I am sure there are plaenty of LEGAL Americans who will make a donation to go to your deportation costs as long as it is swift and sure and that once you are tossed out you do not have the chance to return. That includes your kids, aunts and any relatives you have residing here who are illegal.