Essay on The DREAM Act Debate

The undocumented students that will benefit from the Dream Act are students that are practically U.S citizens but not by birth. Some opponents to the Dream Act don’t realize how much these students have suffered throughout their life. The article, “Standing up for Immigrant Students,” mentions all of these hardships and struggles; children are exposed to many dangers when crossing the border, and once they settle in the U.S they face other hardships and struggles like learning a new language, meeting the expectations of their instructors, and being discriminated against (4-5). Despite the obstacles they encounter in their path, many manage the way to do well in school and many overpass American students and become leaders in their community. Being undocumented becomes a major issue for undocumented high school graduates who want to continue their education because it’s nearly impossible to attend a University and get federal help because a valid social security number is required. These young adults are some of the best and brightest students in this country;

The debate over illegal immigration has been a constant and ongoing struggle in the United States. Millions of illegal immigrants are living among us in the country, we have more entering daily. Recently, President Barack Obama touched on the topic with his immigration executive order. Unfortunately, with the republican takeover of the white house, many of his actions are not being supported. This is viable evidence that there are people who want to help fix the immigration system in a way that will benefit illegal immigrants and give them a fighting chance to prosper here in the United States. With that being said, there are also powers who do not want to see that happen because they believe that it is not in the best interest of the United States to open their borders to illegals. This puts to question what the next steps for the United States will decide and how that will affect Americans across the country. My goal of this essay is to enlighten the moral concerns in the debates pertaining to immigration.

The Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors Act (DREAM Act), is a proposed bipartisan legislation that is meant to provide amnesty and relief

Many proponents of the DREAM Act argue that “these kids were brought to the United States before they had a say in their life circumstances. Denying them hope and opportunity is punishment for an act beyond their control” (Fitz). Supporters of the DREAM Act continually advertise this argument; They claim that the children are innocent, and the United States is treating these children unjustly, but not rewarding them with “legal residence and expensive college tuition subsidies is simply withholding benefits to which they never had any entitlement in the first place” (Mehlman). These children are innocent, and deserve to be given an opportunity to come to the United States and have a good education, but it should not be through the DREAM Act or illegal immigration. It is not un-American to prioritize United States citizens, and other immigrants waiting to enter the country legally. A gross misconception is that DACA is only opposed by a radical few who want to hurt innocent children and families, but “a recent Quinnipiac University poll shows that Americans across the political spectrum favor tougher enforcement of existing immigration laws over rolling out the amnesty welcome wagon.” (Malkin). Despite this poll, many patrons of the DREAM Act think that continued amnesty is a right the United States is taking away, when in truth, the general public supports tougher immigration law. The DREAM literally goes against popular opinion, as it sponsors amnesty, and not harsher immigration

Imagine a world with an educated youth. Now imagine a parallel world where children are fighting to keep a smile on their faces, because, in truth, it is the only thing they have. In reality, this is what is happening. Youth, who have the privilege to be American citizens, are granted a very fulfilling education with a promise of a career. Children of illegal and undocumented immigrants do not have such luck. Some undocumented children in America have very promising futures and even a degree under their belts, but they cannot apply for a job because they have no proof of citizenship. A controversial topic is the matter of the DREAM Act (Development, Relief, and Education, for Alien Minors) which permits undocumented immigrants to obtain

About half a million children are born to undocumented immigrants every year. These children are not given the opportunities that they so rightly deserve. They spend their entire lives in the United States and are considered illegal immigrants. They are given no choice, but to live their life as an undocumented immigrant. That is what the DREAM Act is trying to solve. The DREAM Act, or Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors is a proposal that would provide permanent residency to undocumented immigrants who meet certain eligibility requirements (The DREAM Act). If the DREAM Act is approved, then the education will be improved. It will improve the economy, the military will receive a significant increase in recruitments, and

The dreams act is an American legislative proposal first introduced in the Senate on August 1, 2001, by Dick Durbin and Orrin Hatch. This bill would provide conditional permanent residency to certain undocumented residents of good moral character who graduate from U.S. high schools, arrived in the United States as minors, and lived in the country continuously for at least five years prior to the bill's enactment.

The Dream Act, the Development, Relief and Education of Alien Minors Act is a bipartisan legislation pioneered by Sen. Orin Hatch [R-UT] and Sen. Richard Durbin [D-IL].The undocumented students will granted a conditional legal status. Within the 6 years the student must be able to obtain a degree from a four year university. After the 6 years passes the conditional status becomes a legal American citizen. The following is the detailed qualification process obtained from the official web site of the dream act:

Taking U.S citizens rights away or is it just an opportunity to illegal aliens? This is one of the many arguments people have been stating about the dream act. This program was passed to help illegal immigrants grow in education. It was not to acquire U.S citizen’s rights, in fact it was passed because many immigrants want to give back to the country that has offered them many things. This program also known as DACA was proposed by the president Barack Obama and has been applied to many illegal immigrants since 2010. It is an aid for immigrant students that want to go top college and stay in school. Being part of the Dream Act is not giving illegal aliens U.S citizen’s rights, it is allowing young immigrants to have the opportunity to get

Born and raised here in the U.S. many students, and parents for that matter, are currently struggling with the bills, loans, and the stress of trying to stabilize a healthy future for themselves by pursuing an education. When a law like the California Dream Act is passed, it makes those who have done nothing but follow the rules of our legal system, feel as if the right as a legal citizen is being pushed aside. The money to fund the education of these illegal immigrants has to come from somewhere, causing a bigger whole to burn in tax payer’s pocket; when the money can easily go elsewhere to legal students in dire need of it. The state of

On 2001 The Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors (DREAM) Act (S.1291) was introduced, which would provided legal status and educational opportunities to students who entered the United States before the age of sixteen (The DREAM Act, 2011). The DREAM Act was created to help undocumented individuals to achieve the so called American dream for many this is the opportunity that has been waiting for years. According to the article Get the Facts On The DREAM Act by Luis Miranda states three objectives are:

America the land of the free has been an open place for anyone to come and make a better life for themselves and their families. Our freedom has created more opportunities and open fields for anyone of any race, ethnicity, or sex to be able to flourish. Freedom to do almost as one pleases had been more of a crowd drawer than anything else throughout all of history. Freedom of religion, speech, and many legal freedoms of rights even today is a massive promoter of immigration and movement to the U.S. This immigration and movement across the boarder is exactly what The Dream Is Now is targeting. The documentary gives voice to and puts a human face on the undocumented children of immigrants who are desperate to earn their citizenship and give back to the only country they've ever called "home." The film also goes beyond the personal experiences of the individuals but places their stories in the larger pictures and explores the consequences of continuing our current policies and maintaining the status quo. Consequences not just for these young people today, but for our country's future because our future is not what we do today but what our children and the young group of people around us do.

America is the number one country that people from all around the world want to come in order to have a better life. To be able to enter the United States legally, the country requires a Visa for entering and be able to stay in the period of time. However there are some people that happen to enter the country illegally without the visa. According to the Migration Policy institute, in 2012 there are 11.4 undocumented immigrants in the US. and 4.1 million undocumented immigrants who brought children who were under 16 to the country with them. Unfortunately, the children who come to America illegally at such a young age do not know about their status in the country. They embrace America as their own country and they are familiar with the US. more than the countries that they were born in. Moreover young undocumented immigrants who grow up in America more likely to eager to push themselves to be nearly as American. Education is what makes them move to the middle class, to be Americanized. Although, the road for young undocumented immigrants had been impossible to reach, but the government has been introduced the policy that makes young undocumented students’ lives more reality which are “DACA and DREAMS Act”. DACA and DREAM act are the policies that have good benefits to young undocumented immigrants, however, there are downsides to this two policies that could harm immigrants who live in America illegally.

The American Dream: Immigration in the United States Starting in the 1600s, people began fleeing their home countries and entering the United States in search of freedom and stability for their families. Fast forward to modern times, immigration is becoming more popular for immigrants who are in search of “The American Dream.” Unfortunately, this “American Dream” is not exactly what the immigrants had in mind. Immigrants entering the United States are not being treated as equals in the eyes of Americans; this goes against James Truslow Adams’ definition of “The American Dream.”

“The Dream Act’s history is tortured. In 2001, a concerned guidance counselor for a frightened young woman whose family immigrated from South Korea reached out to Mr. Durbin for help. The young woman, Tereza Lee, was a pianist who was hoping to apply to top-ranked music schools, but the law said she would have to leave the United States for 10 years and apply for re-entry. To help Ms. Lee, Mr. Durbin introduced the Dream Act” (Alcindor). Most people are afraid of failure. They do everything they can to ensure their success. This might include taking extra classes or even as far as moving to a completely different country. Imagine that a hardworking person puts all that they have into what they do and then later fail. Unfortunately, that happened to Tereza Lee. To ensure her success as a pianist, she wanted to attend music school and they turned her away. People could freely follow their dreams regarding their background under certain conditions. The United States government needs to pass The Dream Act because opportunities continue to disappear, a good marriage between border security and the Dream Act needs to happen, and 800,000 kids’ futures remain in the balance.