Thread: They are Calling TOO! This is what we are up against.

OK, so you are writing your congressmen and Senators, picking up your phones and making calls, and MAYBE assuming all they have going is their MARCHES....WRONG. As this article shows, they too are contacting our elected officials, and demanding their (supposed) rights, though doubt they identify themselves as ILLEGALS. This artical is about the Dream act, but if you read it, you will see they also make calls supporting other legislations (Amnesty) that affects them.

There calls SHOULD NOT COUNT, but it is obvious that our elected officials don't GET IT, so we have to double our efforts.

Pinto Bean

Students hope act can make dreams come true.
By Vesna Jaksic
Staff Writer

Published March 26 2006


STAMFORD -- After getting home from school each day, Karen Castillo, 17, picks up the phone and calls the White House.

The Westhill High School senior has been dialing President Bush's public opinion line, letting the administration know she wants the DREAM Act to become law. Castillo, who moved here from Colombia almost a decade ago, said the legislation would help undocumented immigrant students, many of whom are Hispanic.

"Most of us came to the United States for better opportunity because in our countries it's hard to get a job," she said. "But it's hard because many don't have papers."

The DREAM Act, which stands for Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors Act, is bipartisan legislation that would allow certain undocumented students to apply for in-state college tuition rates and provide a path to live here legally. The U.S. Congress may vote on the bill this month.

In Stamford, there has been a big push for the DREAM Act, with dozens of students organizing meetings, handing out fliers and scheduling a march.

Students from Stamford, Greenwich and Norwalk were expected to show their support for the proposed law and other immigration bills during a noon rally today in front of the Government Center.

Many students who do not have proper documents declined to have their names or their immigration status printed for this article.

But some American students, who would not be directly affected by the DREAM Act, have become involved.

"It's so hard to see (some of the undocumented students) struggle so hard to get good grades and not be able to afford college," said Jessica Granda, 17, a Westhill senior who said she had been handing out fliers about today's march and talking to her classmates about the proposed legislation.

Others said the act could mean the difference between a community college or a top university.

"All this time I've been doing good, and the only thing I want is to keep studying," said Henry Mendoza, a Stamford High School senior who came here from Peru four years ago. "I really want to go to college."

Though colleges do not verify a student's immigration status, those without documents are not eligible for federal loans, academic scholarships and in-state tuition rates, which are often tens of thousands of dollars cheaper than out-of-state rates.

Because many immigrant families cannot afford to send their children to college without these financial benefits, it becomes a major issue for them, said Maria Olveira, Westhill's Spanish-speaking guidance counselor.

"There is not much you can do," she said. "I usually tell them you need to sit down with your family and discuss what are the sources at home. Sometimes the answer may be to go part-time to school. Another option may be to take a year off and put some money aside. That just becomes a family conversation."

Opponents of the act have said the country should not help some of the nation's estimated 12 million undocumented residents. The DREAM Act is one of several bills fueling the nation's heated immigration debate. Most are expected to be discussed this week.

In Stamford, several meetings have been held on the proposal. Stamford immigration attorney Philip Berns rallied a crowd of more than 50 students and parents during a mid-March meeting at a local church.

"If you want something, ask for it!" he said after handing out fliers with the phone numbers of Connecticut and Washington, D.C., lawmakers. "You've got the recipe for how to change the world."

Valentina Pereda, 18, president of Greenwich High School's Vision club, which serves mostly Hispanic students, also took the microphone and encouraged fellow students to call their legislators.

"We definitely need to do something about it, and I definitely need your help more than anybody's," said Pereda, an American citizen born to Venezuelan parents.

To qualify for the DREAM Act, students must live in the United Sates for at least five years; be under the age of 16 when they arrive to the United States; be a high school graduate or be accepted to college; and be in good moral character without a serious criminal record.

Originally introduced in 2003, the proposed law would allow an estimated 65,000 undocumented students get on a path toward legal status, according to the National Immigration Law Center.

Mayra Garcia, 17, a Westhill junior who was born in Peru, said some undocumented immigrant students could afford to go to community college if the DREAM Act fails, but want to have an option to attend the best schools.

"Us, we are achievers," she said. "We want to be professionals."

Of course they're calling, too....and they're voting in polls...and they're screaming their heads off against legislation that no one LEGAL would even give a second thought.

And...they're protesting the 'criminalization' of aiders and abettors...however, if they WERE legal citizens they would KNOW that such a law is already on the books...has been for ages. So it doesn't take 4437 to kick their butts...all it takes is for our prez and congress to ENFORCE our existing LAWS. If Bush refuses to do it...get on your congressperson and yell in his ear...OUR LAWS MUST BE ENFORCED.

RR

ditto. im calling tomorrow when i get in from work.