By kyledeb on August 18, 2010 9:47 AM
Crossposted from Citizen Orange
The "DREAM Now Series: Letters to Barack Obama" is a social media campaign that launched Monday, July 19, to underscore the urgent need to pass the DREAM Act. The Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors (DREAM) Act, S. 729, would help tens of thousands of young people, American in all but paperwork, to earn legal status, provided they graduate from U.S. high schools, have good moral character, and complete either two years of college or military service. With broader comprehensive immigration reform stuck in partisan gridlock, the time is now for the White House and Congress to step up and pass the DREAM Act!
[Note from Kyle de Beausset: Selvin wrote this letter right before he got into a minor car accident on April 9, 2010. He was set to get his high school diploma in June but has been in detention ever since. I have chosen reproduce Selvin's letter as I found it in his empty room, rather than polish his slight grammatical errors, to allow his character to shine through.]
Dear President Barack Obama,
From the bottom of my heart, I plead to my God that you and your entire family receive blessings from the highest God while you are reading this letter. I admire and thank you for the great labor that you are fulfilling as a president in this big nation. My name is Selvin Ovidio Arevalo. I came to this country when I was 15 years old. I came from Guatemala to this country to fulfill my dreams because I always have believed that this is a country of many opportunities for those whom want to succeed.
Since I came to this country, I have been going to school to learn and enhance my English. Three years ago, I enrolled with Adult Education in Portland, ME, for my high school diploma. Finally, in this June 2010, I shall have my high school diploma. I am already enrolled in college transition. I wish that at the end of this yar, I can go to college, but what concern me about is getting financial aid. I cannot qualify for any financial aid because I am not legal in this country. The reason that I write you is to plead you for a solution to my problem. I have been a Christian since I was a kid. For eight years, I have been praying to my God to touch the heart of the leaders of this country to provide me legalization. I think that I have three important reasons for why I want to be legal in this country. First reason: I want to go to college and have a degree of computer science and more. Second: I am one of the leaders of a Christian church in Portland, Maine. I am the treasurer of the church, a musician; I play instruments in the chorus of my church, and a youth leader. Third: I have not seen my family (parents, sisters, and brother) for eight years. I have shed tears for them, but I am waiting until a legalization to go to see them.
I appreciate and thank you for spending your time reading this letter. Once again, I plead you for a solution to my problem. My faith is great; I believe that one day I am going to be legal in this country. Then my dreams will become true. Once again, thank you for your good will and I hope you have a wonderful time. May the peace of God be with you forever and ever!
Sincerely,
Selvin Arevalo Ovidio
How you can help Selvin:
Right now, the focus should still be on stopping the deportation of Ivan Nikolov, but if you would like to stay up to date on Selvin's case you can:
1. "Like" his Facebook page
2. Join the Facebook group "We Are Selvin"
3. Follow Citizen Orange for more updates
The "DREAM Now" letter series is inspired by a similar campaign started by the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network for the repeal of Don't Ask Don't Tell. The letters are produced by Kyle de Beausset at Citizen Orange with the assistance of America's Voice. Every Monday and Wednesday DREAM-eligible youth will publish letters to the President, and each Friday there will be a DREAM Now recap.
Approximately 65,000 undocumented youth graduate from U.S. high schools every year, who could benefit from passage of the DREAM Act. Many undocumented youth are brought to the United States before they can even remember much else, and some don't even realize their undocumented status until they have to get a driver's license, want to join the military, or apply to college. DREAM Act youth are American in every sense of the word -- except on paper. It's been nearly a decade since the DREAM Act was first introduced. If Congress does not act now, another generation of promising young graduates will be relegated to the shadows and blocked from giving back fully to our great nation.
This is what you can do right now to pass the DREAM Act:
1. Sign the DREAM Act Petition
2. Join the DREAM Act Facebook Cause
3. Send a fax in support of the DREAM Act
4. Call your Senator and ask them to pass the DREAM Act now.
5. Email kyle at citizenorange dot com to get more involved
Wednesday, August 18, 2010
Monday, August 16, 2010
DREAM Now Letters to Barack Obama: Yves Gomes
crossposted from Citizen Orange
By kyledeb on August 16, 2010 3:20 PM
The "DREAM Now Series: Letters to Barack Obama" is a social media campaign that launched Monday, July 19, to underscore the urgent need to pass the DREAM Act. The Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors (DREAM) Act, S. 729, would help tens of thousands of young people, American in all but paperwork, to earn legal status, provided they graduate from U.S. high schools, have good moral character, and complete either two years of college or military service. With broader comprehensive immigration reform stuck in partisan gridlock, the time is now for the White House and Congress to step up and pass the DREAM Act!
Dear President Obama:
My name is Yves Gomes. I am 17 years old and I just graduated from Paint Branch High School in Burtonsville, MD this June. Under the grace of God I was able to do well in my studies all my life and I graduated in the top 5% of my class and got into University of Maryland College Park and a handful of other colleges. However until today I had an order for deportation from this country on August 13, 2010, a few days from now.
I spent the last year restlessly awaiting my unknown future. But today, thanks to the work of my lawyer, Mrs. Cynthia Groomes Katz, the help of the media (e.g. Ms. Andrea McCarren of WUSA9 TV) Organizations such as the We Are America project of the Center for Community Change and my family and friends, I was able to get Deferred Action after subsequent to Stays of Removal, and now I am ecstatic because I can stay in the United States.
I came to this country from India with my mom on tourist visas when I was barely more than a year old. I was born in India but I have never been back to visit nor do I remember anything about the life there. As far as I can remember, my earliest memories came in America and I consider myself American. I grew up all my life here, completing my grade school education and assimilating into the American culture, which is so rich and diverse. My parents always told me to be grateful and realize how great the opportunities are in America, which is a sharp contrast of the life they described in the less developed countries where they came from, India and Bangladesh. My parents were deported back to their home countries last year. But with their words in mind, I continued to pursue my childhood goal to finish high school and get a scholarship into a college. I did achieve my goal, but it was devastating to see it escape me as I could not accept any of the college offers because of my status and my looming deportation.
All that changed today when I was granted a deferral, and with the deportation now on hold I can continue my life here in the US. Over the last few months fighting my deportation I learned that there are other young adults in the US who have received the same deferral of removal I received, but also that there are thousands of other students out there who are in similar and worse situations than mine and who don't have as many resources to receive help. I learned that the reason I was able to get an extension and keep my dream alive is because of the countless efforts made by my family, friends, attorney, community, organizations, and the willingness of the US government to comply with the efforts. This illustrates how the US is different from any other country in the world, because the government is willing to listen to its people when something is wrong.
Mr. President, it is clearly wrong that there continue to be so many promising young adults who are prevented from achieving their full potential simply because they don't have the right papers, trumping a bright, ambitious mind. To correct this wrong we need to pass the DREAM ACT.
Sincerely,
Yves Gomes
The "DREAM Now" letter series is inspired by a similar campaign started by the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network for the repeal of Don't Ask Don't Tell. The letters are produced by Kyle de Beausset at Citizen Orange with the assistance of America's Voice. Every Monday and Wednesday DREAM-eligible youth will publish letters to the President, and each Friday there will be a DREAM Now recap.
Approximately 65,000 undocumented youth graduate from U.S. high schools every year, who could benefit from passage of the DREAM Act. Many undocumented youth are brought to the United States before they can even remember much else, and some don't even realize their undocumented status until they have to get a driver's license, want to join the military, or apply to college. DREAM Act youth are American in every sense of the word -- except on paper. It's been nearly a decade since the DREAM Act was first introduced. If Congress does not act now, another generation of promising young graduates will be relegated to the shadows and blocked from giving back fully to our great nation.
This is what you can do right now to pass the DREAM Act:
1. Sign the DREAM Act Petition
2. Join the DREAM Act Facebook Cause
3. Send a fax in support of the DREAM Act
4. Call your Senator and ask them to pass the DREAM Act now.
5. Email kyle at citizenorange dot com to get more involved
By kyledeb on August 16, 2010 3:20 PM
The "DREAM Now Series: Letters to Barack Obama" is a social media campaign that launched Monday, July 19, to underscore the urgent need to pass the DREAM Act. The Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors (DREAM) Act, S. 729, would help tens of thousands of young people, American in all but paperwork, to earn legal status, provided they graduate from U.S. high schools, have good moral character, and complete either two years of college or military service. With broader comprehensive immigration reform stuck in partisan gridlock, the time is now for the White House and Congress to step up and pass the DREAM Act!
Dear President Obama:
My name is Yves Gomes. I am 17 years old and I just graduated from Paint Branch High School in Burtonsville, MD this June. Under the grace of God I was able to do well in my studies all my life and I graduated in the top 5% of my class and got into University of Maryland College Park and a handful of other colleges. However until today I had an order for deportation from this country on August 13, 2010, a few days from now.
I spent the last year restlessly awaiting my unknown future. But today, thanks to the work of my lawyer, Mrs. Cynthia Groomes Katz, the help of the media (e.g. Ms. Andrea McCarren of WUSA9 TV) Organizations such as the We Are America project of the Center for Community Change and my family and friends, I was able to get Deferred Action after subsequent to Stays of Removal, and now I am ecstatic because I can stay in the United States.
I came to this country from India with my mom on tourist visas when I was barely more than a year old. I was born in India but I have never been back to visit nor do I remember anything about the life there. As far as I can remember, my earliest memories came in America and I consider myself American. I grew up all my life here, completing my grade school education and assimilating into the American culture, which is so rich and diverse. My parents always told me to be grateful and realize how great the opportunities are in America, which is a sharp contrast of the life they described in the less developed countries where they came from, India and Bangladesh. My parents were deported back to their home countries last year. But with their words in mind, I continued to pursue my childhood goal to finish high school and get a scholarship into a college. I did achieve my goal, but it was devastating to see it escape me as I could not accept any of the college offers because of my status and my looming deportation.
All that changed today when I was granted a deferral, and with the deportation now on hold I can continue my life here in the US. Over the last few months fighting my deportation I learned that there are other young adults in the US who have received the same deferral of removal I received, but also that there are thousands of other students out there who are in similar and worse situations than mine and who don't have as many resources to receive help. I learned that the reason I was able to get an extension and keep my dream alive is because of the countless efforts made by my family, friends, attorney, community, organizations, and the willingness of the US government to comply with the efforts. This illustrates how the US is different from any other country in the world, because the government is willing to listen to its people when something is wrong.
Mr. President, it is clearly wrong that there continue to be so many promising young adults who are prevented from achieving their full potential simply because they don't have the right papers, trumping a bright, ambitious mind. To correct this wrong we need to pass the DREAM ACT.
Sincerely,
Yves Gomes
The "DREAM Now" letter series is inspired by a similar campaign started by the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network for the repeal of Don't Ask Don't Tell. The letters are produced by Kyle de Beausset at Citizen Orange with the assistance of America's Voice. Every Monday and Wednesday DREAM-eligible youth will publish letters to the President, and each Friday there will be a DREAM Now recap.
Approximately 65,000 undocumented youth graduate from U.S. high schools every year, who could benefit from passage of the DREAM Act. Many undocumented youth are brought to the United States before they can even remember much else, and some don't even realize their undocumented status until they have to get a driver's license, want to join the military, or apply to college. DREAM Act youth are American in every sense of the word -- except on paper. It's been nearly a decade since the DREAM Act was first introduced. If Congress does not act now, another generation of promising young graduates will be relegated to the shadows and blocked from giving back fully to our great nation.
This is what you can do right now to pass the DREAM Act:
1. Sign the DREAM Act Petition
2. Join the DREAM Act Facebook Cause
3. Send a fax in support of the DREAM Act
4. Call your Senator and ask them to pass the DREAM Act now.
5. Email kyle at citizenorange dot com to get more involved
Thursday, August 12, 2010
DREAM Now Letters to Barack Obama: Stop Ivan Nikolov's Deportation
By kyledeb on August 11, 2010 9:19 AM
Crossposted from Citizen Orange
The "DREAM Now Series: Letters to Barack Obama" is a social media campaign that launched Monday, July 19, to underscore the urgent need to pass the DREAM Act. The Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors (DREAM) Act, S. 729, would help tens of thousands of young people, American in all but paperwork, to earn legal status, provided they graduate from U.S. high schools, have good moral character, and complete either two years of college or military service. With broader comprehensive immigration reform stuck in partisan gridlock, the time is now for the White House and Congress to step up and pass the DREAM Act!
Dear Mr. President,
In May, my mother and I were picked up in an immigration raid in our home. I was told that in 2002, when I was just 12, I missed a court date at which I was ordered removed from this country. I've been in detention for three months, now, awaiting my deportation. My mother was deported on Friday, August 6th, and I'm set to be deported any day now.
I immigrated to the United States from Russia when I was just 11 years old. My mother married a U.S. citizen who is the only father I know. I do not remember much about the journey to America, nor did I even know I was undocumented until I was 15 and asked my parents about getting a driver's permit. This is the only country I know as my home and I don't know what I would do if I were deported, now.
I am a long-time resident of Michigan. I have a fiancée who has been with me for over three years. It would be a great loss to her and to my community if I were deported.
In Russia, it would be difficult for me to survive. I barely speak the language and I have very little family there. I dream of studying film or music. I love my pets and my many friends in the U.S. I want to be able to see them again. Please take action now to stop my deportation.
Sincerely,
Ivan Nikolov
Please do the following to help Ivan:
1. Sign this petition to DHS
2. Send a fax to DHS
3. Call Janet Napolitano, Director of the Department of Homeland Security (202-282-8495)
4. Call John Morton, Director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (202-732-3000)
5. Call Sen. Carl Levin (D-MI) and ask him to lead on getting the DREAM Act passed this year (202-224-6221)
6. Call Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) and ask her to co-sponsor the DREAM Act (202-224-4822)
When calling ICE please be very polite and say something like this:
I am calling to leave a message of support for Ivan (A#078-251-095) who is going to be deported any day now. I ask that Director Morton please step in to defer his deportation, he is an asset to this country. Thank you.
The "DREAM Now" letter series is inspired by a similar campaign started by the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network for the repeal of Don't Ask Don't Tell. The letters are produced by Kyle de Beausset at Citizen Orange with the assistance of America's Voice. Every Monday and Wednesday DREAM-eligible youth will publish letters to the President, and each Friday there will be a DREAM Now recap.
Approximately 65,000 undocumented youth graduate from U.S. high schools every year, who could benefit from passage of the DREAM Act. Many undocumented youth are brought to the United States before they can even remember much else, and some don't even realize their undocumented status until they have to get a driver's license, want to join the military, or apply to college. DREAM Act youth are American in every sense of the word -- except on paper. It's been nearly a decade since the DREAM Act was first introduced. If Congress does not act now, another generation of promising young graduates will be relegated to the shadows and blocked from giving back fully to our great nation.
This is what you can do right now to pass the DREAM Act:
1. Sign the DREAM Act Petition
2. Join the DREAM Act Facebook Cause
3. Send a fax in support of the DREAM Act
4. Call your Senator and ask them to pass the DREAM Act now.
5. Email kyle at citizenorange dot com to get more involved
Crossposted from Citizen Orange
The "DREAM Now Series: Letters to Barack Obama" is a social media campaign that launched Monday, July 19, to underscore the urgent need to pass the DREAM Act. The Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors (DREAM) Act, S. 729, would help tens of thousands of young people, American in all but paperwork, to earn legal status, provided they graduate from U.S. high schools, have good moral character, and complete either two years of college or military service. With broader comprehensive immigration reform stuck in partisan gridlock, the time is now for the White House and Congress to step up and pass the DREAM Act!
Dear Mr. President,
In May, my mother and I were picked up in an immigration raid in our home. I was told that in 2002, when I was just 12, I missed a court date at which I was ordered removed from this country. I've been in detention for three months, now, awaiting my deportation. My mother was deported on Friday, August 6th, and I'm set to be deported any day now.
I immigrated to the United States from Russia when I was just 11 years old. My mother married a U.S. citizen who is the only father I know. I do not remember much about the journey to America, nor did I even know I was undocumented until I was 15 and asked my parents about getting a driver's permit. This is the only country I know as my home and I don't know what I would do if I were deported, now.
I am a long-time resident of Michigan. I have a fiancée who has been with me for over three years. It would be a great loss to her and to my community if I were deported.
In Russia, it would be difficult for me to survive. I barely speak the language and I have very little family there. I dream of studying film or music. I love my pets and my many friends in the U.S. I want to be able to see them again. Please take action now to stop my deportation.
Sincerely,
Ivan Nikolov
Please do the following to help Ivan:
1. Sign this petition to DHS
2. Send a fax to DHS
3. Call Janet Napolitano, Director of the Department of Homeland Security (202-282-8495)
4. Call John Morton, Director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (202-732-3000)
5. Call Sen. Carl Levin (D-MI) and ask him to lead on getting the DREAM Act passed this year (202-224-6221)
6. Call Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) and ask her to co-sponsor the DREAM Act (202-224-4822)
When calling ICE please be very polite and say something like this:
I am calling to leave a message of support for Ivan (A#078-251-095) who is going to be deported any day now. I ask that Director Morton please step in to defer his deportation, he is an asset to this country. Thank you.
The "DREAM Now" letter series is inspired by a similar campaign started by the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network for the repeal of Don't Ask Don't Tell. The letters are produced by Kyle de Beausset at Citizen Orange with the assistance of America's Voice. Every Monday and Wednesday DREAM-eligible youth will publish letters to the President, and each Friday there will be a DREAM Now recap.
Approximately 65,000 undocumented youth graduate from U.S. high schools every year, who could benefit from passage of the DREAM Act. Many undocumented youth are brought to the United States before they can even remember much else, and some don't even realize their undocumented status until they have to get a driver's license, want to join the military, or apply to college. DREAM Act youth are American in every sense of the word -- except on paper. It's been nearly a decade since the DREAM Act was first introduced. If Congress does not act now, another generation of promising young graduates will be relegated to the shadows and blocked from giving back fully to our great nation.
This is what you can do right now to pass the DREAM Act:
1. Sign the DREAM Act Petition
2. Join the DREAM Act Facebook Cause
3. Send a fax in support of the DREAM Act
4. Call your Senator and ask them to pass the DREAM Act now.
5. Email kyle at citizenorange dot com to get more involved
Monday, August 9, 2010
DREAM Now Letters: David Cho
DREAM Now Letters: David Cho
crossposted from Citizen Orange
By kyledeb on August 9, 2010
The "DREAM Now Series: Letters to Barack Obama" is a social media campaign that launched Monday, July 19, to underscore the urgent need to pass the DREAM Act. The Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors (DREAM) Act, S. 729, would help tens of thousands of young people, American in all but paperwork, to earn legal status, provided they graduate from U.S. high schools, have good moral character, and complete either two years of college or military service. With broader comprehensive immigration reform stuck in partisan gridlock, the time is now for the White House and Congress to step up and pass the DREAM Act!
Dear Mr. President,
My name is David Cho and I'm undocumented.
I will be a senior studying International Economics and Korean at UCLA this upcoming Fall. While most of my friends will enter the workplace after graduation, I will not be able to even put my name down on a job application because of my status. I'm a hardworking student with a 3.6 GPA and I am the first Korean and actually the first undocumented student to ever become the conductor, the drum major of the UCLA Marching Band in UCLA history.
My parents brought me to this country when I was only nine years old. I went to school not knowing a single word of English, and I often became my classmates' object of ridicule - many bullies perpetually and ignorantly harassed me. My reaction to this harassment was to study harder, for I was determined to overcome my obstacles and excel in everything that I did. I studied hard and graduated from my high school with a 3.9 GPA.
It was not until my freshman year of college when I found out about my immigration status. I asked my parents for my social security number when filling out my application for UCLA. There was a long pause. That day, I found out that, after eight years of going through the process, our family visa had expired because our sponsor had mismanaged our paperwork.
Unable to receive any state or federal financial aid due to my status, I work 20 hours a week tutoring high school students while maintaining a high GPA and leading the UCLA Marching Band as their Drum Major.
Mr. President, I feel like I'm living inside an invisible prison cell; these invisible bars block me from doing things, while my U.S. citizen friends can glide right through. I want to serve in the Air Force after graduation. I want to attend Harvard Kennedy School of Government, and I ultimately dream of becoming a U.S. Senator because I want to serve and change this country for the better. This is the American dream I want to achieve, but I am unable to fulfill it because of my status.
I have come out publicly on CNN and on C-SPAN. I'm taking a huge risk in doing so (because I could be deported) but I believe it is a greater risk to be silent in the face of oppression and injustice. This country is throwing away talents every minute, every second. You and I clearly know that our immigration system is broken, but the DREAM Act can bring thousands of students out of the shadows and allow them the opportunity to work for the country that they truly love, right now. It is more critical now, than ever.
I know you have shown your support for the DREAM Act, but I sincerely ask that you take some real action to make sure Congress passes it this year.
Sincerely,
David Cho
The "DREAM Now" letter series is inspired by a similar campaign started by the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network for the repeal of Don't Ask Don't Tell. The letters are produced by Kyle de Beausset at Citizen Orange with the assistance of America's Voice. Every Monday and Wednesday DREAM-eligible youth will publish letters to the President, and each Friday there will be a DREAM Now recap.
Approximately 65,000 undocumented youth graduate from U.S. high schools every year, who could benefit from passage of the DREAM Act. Many undocumented youth are brought to the United States before they can even remember much else, and some don't even realize their undocumented status until they have to get a driver's license, want to join the military, or apply to college. DREAM Act youth are American in every sense of the word -- except on paper. It's been nearly a decade since the DREAM Act was first introduced. If Congress does not act now, another generation of promising young graduates will be relegated to the shadows and blocked from giving back fully to our great nation.
This is what you can do right now to pass the DREAM Act:
1. Sign the DREAM Act Petition
2. Join the DREAM Act Facebook Cause
3. Send a fax in support of the DREAM Act
4. Call your Senator and ask them to pass the DREAM Act now.
5. Email kyle at citizenorange dot com to get more involved
crossposted from Citizen Orange
By kyledeb on August 9, 2010
The "DREAM Now Series: Letters to Barack Obama" is a social media campaign that launched Monday, July 19, to underscore the urgent need to pass the DREAM Act. The Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors (DREAM) Act, S. 729, would help tens of thousands of young people, American in all but paperwork, to earn legal status, provided they graduate from U.S. high schools, have good moral character, and complete either two years of college or military service. With broader comprehensive immigration reform stuck in partisan gridlock, the time is now for the White House and Congress to step up and pass the DREAM Act!
Dear Mr. President,
My name is David Cho and I'm undocumented.
I will be a senior studying International Economics and Korean at UCLA this upcoming Fall. While most of my friends will enter the workplace after graduation, I will not be able to even put my name down on a job application because of my status. I'm a hardworking student with a 3.6 GPA and I am the first Korean and actually the first undocumented student to ever become the conductor, the drum major of the UCLA Marching Band in UCLA history.
My parents brought me to this country when I was only nine years old. I went to school not knowing a single word of English, and I often became my classmates' object of ridicule - many bullies perpetually and ignorantly harassed me. My reaction to this harassment was to study harder, for I was determined to overcome my obstacles and excel in everything that I did. I studied hard and graduated from my high school with a 3.9 GPA.
It was not until my freshman year of college when I found out about my immigration status. I asked my parents for my social security number when filling out my application for UCLA. There was a long pause. That day, I found out that, after eight years of going through the process, our family visa had expired because our sponsor had mismanaged our paperwork.
Unable to receive any state or federal financial aid due to my status, I work 20 hours a week tutoring high school students while maintaining a high GPA and leading the UCLA Marching Band as their Drum Major.
Mr. President, I feel like I'm living inside an invisible prison cell; these invisible bars block me from doing things, while my U.S. citizen friends can glide right through. I want to serve in the Air Force after graduation. I want to attend Harvard Kennedy School of Government, and I ultimately dream of becoming a U.S. Senator because I want to serve and change this country for the better. This is the American dream I want to achieve, but I am unable to fulfill it because of my status.
I have come out publicly on CNN and on C-SPAN. I'm taking a huge risk in doing so (because I could be deported) but I believe it is a greater risk to be silent in the face of oppression and injustice. This country is throwing away talents every minute, every second. You and I clearly know that our immigration system is broken, but the DREAM Act can bring thousands of students out of the shadows and allow them the opportunity to work for the country that they truly love, right now. It is more critical now, than ever.
I know you have shown your support for the DREAM Act, but I sincerely ask that you take some real action to make sure Congress passes it this year.
Sincerely,
David Cho
The "DREAM Now" letter series is inspired by a similar campaign started by the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network for the repeal of Don't Ask Don't Tell. The letters are produced by Kyle de Beausset at Citizen Orange with the assistance of America's Voice. Every Monday and Wednesday DREAM-eligible youth will publish letters to the President, and each Friday there will be a DREAM Now recap.
Approximately 65,000 undocumented youth graduate from U.S. high schools every year, who could benefit from passage of the DREAM Act. Many undocumented youth are brought to the United States before they can even remember much else, and some don't even realize their undocumented status until they have to get a driver's license, want to join the military, or apply to college. DREAM Act youth are American in every sense of the word -- except on paper. It's been nearly a decade since the DREAM Act was first introduced. If Congress does not act now, another generation of promising young graduates will be relegated to the shadows and blocked from giving back fully to our great nation.
This is what you can do right now to pass the DREAM Act:
1. Sign the DREAM Act Petition
2. Join the DREAM Act Facebook Cause
3. Send a fax in support of the DREAM Act
4. Call your Senator and ask them to pass the DREAM Act now.
5. Email kyle at citizenorange dot com to get more involved
Wednesday, August 4, 2010
DREAM Now Letters: Stop The Deportation of Marlen Moreno
Crossposted from Citizen Orange
By kyledeb on August 4, 2010 10:50 AM
DREAM Now Series: Letters to Barack Obama" is a social media campaign that launched Monday, July 19, to underscore the urgent need to pass the DREAM Act. The Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors (DREAM) Act, S. 729, would help tens of thousands of young people, American in all but paperwork, to earn legal status, provided they graduate from U.S. high schools, have good moral character, and complete either two years of college or military service. With broader comprehensive immigration reform stuck in partisan gridlock, the time is now for the White House and Congress to step up and pass the DREAM Act!
Dear Mr. President,
My name is Marlen Moreno and I am undocumented. I am also a possible beneficiary of the DREAM Act. On Sunday, August 8, I will be deported.
I was born in Nacozari, Mexico in 1984. My parents brought me to the United States when I was only 13 years old. We were searching for a better life and we found it in Tucson, Arizona. Despite being born in Mexico, I don't consider myself Mexican. I have been living in this country for over thirteen years. The United States is my country and Arizona is my home.
My parents have always told me to value education. I remember them telling me that they came to the United States, "the country of opportunity," so I could live a better life than they did. I never took their sacrifice for granted. In 2002, I became the first and only member of my family to graduate from high school. I was proud of my achievements but scared that I could not go any further. Because of my status, I was not able to continue with my education. My goal is to become a pre-school teacher, because I believe education is the key to success. I want to help children achieve their full potential from a young age, so they can continue to excel in every aspect of their lives.
Despite my goals of higher education, I was forced to put them aside and work as an assistant cleaning houses and a maid in a hotel. This was not what I wanted to do with my life, but I was thankful for any job I was able to get. For four years, I worked hard to support myself and help my family financially knowing that someday I would be able to live out the American Dream.
In 2007, my first son was born, Freddy Alan. Thanks to him, I came to know what it means to be a mother. I never knew I could be this happy or love someone as much as I love him. I went back to work soon after his birth because I wanted to provide him with everything he deserved.
On March 28, 2008, my son and I were awakened by a loud bang on our door. Before I could fully figure out what was happening, ten heavily armed deputies came into my house and arrested me because I am undocumented. I was taken to jail and held without bail.
I was detained for over four months, when I was finally released and allowed to reunite with my son once again. When I came home, after four and a half months, I realized how much I had missed. My son had turned one and he had learned how to walk while I was in jail. It pains me to know that I never saw his first crawl, the first time he sat up, learned to play, his first bites of real food, or when he took his first steps. But what pains me the most is the fact that he didn't recognize me, his own mother, after I got out of jail. It still brings tears to my eyes knowing my own son didn't know who I was. It took us months to come back together, like we had been before we were separated.
I try not to think about the way I was treated during this time. I had been treated like a criminal, as if I had robbed a bank when all I was doing was working to provide for my son and my family. It was not the same America I had grown up knowing.
In 2009, I met my husband and we married. He came into my life at a time when I needed him the most. He provided the support and love that I needed, and I will never forget that. In November of 2009, I had my second son, Leobardo Jr. My husband is a Lawful Permanent Resident and both of my sons are citizens. I am the only person in my family who is undocumented, but I still cannot legalize my status.
For the past year I have been fighting my deportation but now I am at the end of that fight and I am being told I must leave the United States by August 8th. I cannot think about being separated from my husband and my sons. I don't want to think about going back to Mexico, a place I don't consider my home.
I consider myself an American. This is where my husband and my children are and I don't want to be separated from them. I want to continue living my life in this country and I want to contribute back. I am not a criminal. I am a wife, a mother, a daughter. I am a human being.
Please act to stop my deportation and to pass the DREAM Act now so that I can have a chance at a life in the only country I know as my home, later. I only have 3 days before I'm deported. This is what I need most urgently from you. Please:
1. Sign the petition for asking for me to stay
2. Send a fax to DHS to ask them to allow me to stay
3. Call Janet Napolitano, Director of DHS at 202-282-8495 and leave a message in support of me. This is an answering machine that fills up by the end of the day, so please fill it up with support for me.
4. Call John Morton, Director of ICE, at 202-732-3000 leave a message urging him to take action and defer my deportation. This is a live comment line that will be picked up by a real human being so please be very polite
For both calls you can say something along the lines of:
"I am calling to leave a message of support for Marlen Moreno (A#88-771-833) who is being deported on August 8th, I ask that Director Morton please step in to defer her deportation, she is an asset to this country. Thank you."
The "DREAM Now" letter series is inspired by a similar campaign started by the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network for the repeal of Don't Ask Don't Tell. Every Monday and Wednesday DREAM-eligible youth will publish letters to the President, and each Friday there will be a DREAM wrap-up. If you're interested in getting involved or posting these stories on your site, please email Kyle de Beausset at kyle at citizenorange dot com.
Approximately 65,000 undocumented youth graduate from U.S. high schools every year, who could benefit from passage of the DREAM Act. Many undocumented youth are brought to the United States before they can even remember much else, and some don't even realize their undocumented status until they have to get a driver's license, want to join the military, or apply to college. DREAM Act youth are American in every sense of the word -- except on paper. It's been nearly a decade since the DREAM Act was first introduced. If Congress does not act now, another generation of promising young graduates will be relegated to the shadows and blocked from giving back fully to our great nation.
This is what you can do right now to pass the DREAM Act:
1. Sign the DREAM Act Petition
2. Join the DREAM Act Facebook Cause
3. Send a fax in support of the DREAM Act
4. Call your Senator and ask them to pass the DREAM Act now.
5. Email kyle at citizenorange dot com to get more involved
Tuesday, August 3, 2010
DREAM Now Letters: Tania Unzueta
crossposted from America's Voice & Citizen Orange
The "DREAM Now Series: Letters to Barack Obama" is a social media campaign that launched Monday, July 19, to underscore the urgent need to pass the DREAM Act. The Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors (DREAM) Act, S. 729, would help tens of thousands of young people, American in all but paperwork, to earn legal status, provided they graduate from U.S. high schools, have good moral character, and complete either two years of college or military service. With broader comprehensive immigration reform stuck in partisan gridlock, the time is now for the White House and Congress to step up and pass the DREAM Act!
President Barack H. Obama
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue Northwest
Washington, DC 20500
Dear Mr. President,
My name is Tania Unzueta and I'm undocumented.
I have lived in Chicago since I was 10 years old. I came with my mother to join my father, who had found a stable job and a promise to legalize his status. Eventually our tourist visas ran out, and my family became undocumented.
For years we lived in a small basement, then a small apartment. When we moved here, my dad had been offered a job with the promise of regularizing his status through employer sponsorship, 245-i. Our family was going through that process when the workers began to organize a union, and asked for the support of my dad. He gave it to them, which resulted in his dismissal from his position, and an end to the sponsorship.
I too have tried and failed to regularize my immigration status. When I graduated from high school I went to Mexico to try to apply for an international student visa, so that I could attend the colleges to which I had been accepted. Even though I was the captain of my swim team and an honors student, my visa was not accepted. Eventually I was able to get a humanitarian visa to come back to Chicago. I pinned a lot of hopes for my future on the 2003 DREAM Act. It failed. I hoped again in 2007- to the same result. Ever since then I have only tried to do the best I can with my life, trying to have a balance between being happy, giving back to my community, and working for the passage of the DREAM Act.
I was there with the DREAM Act 5 in John McCain's office when three undocumented youth made history as the first undocumented immigrants commit civil disobedience and get detained with the aim of changing U.S. immigration law. I was also one of the DREAM Act 21 to get arrested, for the second time in U.S. history, on Capitol Hill in a mostly successful effort to get Congress shift towards taking up the DREAM Act this year (any and all help offsetting the costs of attending our court date is appreciated, by the way). How many more youth will have to detain themselves before Congress passes the DREAM Act? How many more lives have to be put on hold or lost to the shadows before our leaders act?
The time to pass the DREAM Act is now. Please join us.
Sincerely,
Tania Unzueta
The "DREAM Now Series: Letters to Barack Obama" is a social media campaign that launched Monday, July 19, to underscore the urgent need to pass the DREAM Act. The Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors (DREAM) Act, S. 729, would help tens of thousands of young people, American in all but paperwork, to earn legal status, provided they graduate from U.S. high schools, have good moral character, and complete either two years of college or military service. With broader comprehensive immigration reform stuck in partisan gridlock, the time is now for the White House and Congress to step up and pass the DREAM Act!
President Barack H. Obama
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue Northwest
Washington, DC 20500
Dear Mr. President,
My name is Tania Unzueta and I'm undocumented.
I have lived in Chicago since I was 10 years old. I came with my mother to join my father, who had found a stable job and a promise to legalize his status. Eventually our tourist visas ran out, and my family became undocumented.
For years we lived in a small basement, then a small apartment. When we moved here, my dad had been offered a job with the promise of regularizing his status through employer sponsorship, 245-i. Our family was going through that process when the workers began to organize a union, and asked for the support of my dad. He gave it to them, which resulted in his dismissal from his position, and an end to the sponsorship.
I too have tried and failed to regularize my immigration status. When I graduated from high school I went to Mexico to try to apply for an international student visa, so that I could attend the colleges to which I had been accepted. Even though I was the captain of my swim team and an honors student, my visa was not accepted. Eventually I was able to get a humanitarian visa to come back to Chicago. I pinned a lot of hopes for my future on the 2003 DREAM Act. It failed. I hoped again in 2007- to the same result. Ever since then I have only tried to do the best I can with my life, trying to have a balance between being happy, giving back to my community, and working for the passage of the DREAM Act.
I was there with the DREAM Act 5 in John McCain's office when three undocumented youth made history as the first undocumented immigrants commit civil disobedience and get detained with the aim of changing U.S. immigration law. I was also one of the DREAM Act 21 to get arrested, for the second time in U.S. history, on Capitol Hill in a mostly successful effort to get Congress shift towards taking up the DREAM Act this year (any and all help offsetting the costs of attending our court date is appreciated, by the way). How many more youth will have to detain themselves before Congress passes the DREAM Act? How many more lives have to be put on hold or lost to the shadows before our leaders act?
The time to pass the DREAM Act is now. Please join us.
Sincerely,
Tania Unzueta
Thursday, July 15, 2010
DREAM University!
On July 14, 2010, “the gates to higher education opened wide, as all those Dreams deferred are accepted and cordially invited to Washington DC to be the inaugural class of DREAM University”. Sponsored by United We Dream Network, and preceding the National DREAM Graduation, it is the kick off to a mass mobilization intended to pressure Congress to pass the DREAM Act before the August recess. The youth attending Dream University come from all walks of life, citizens, immigrants and undocumented, and to many, being there represents a hardship and a sacrifice, and indeed a risk. DREAMers came to the U.S. as children and grew up as Americans, and their only wish is to be allowed to fully contribute to the only homeland they know. Many of them dream of serving the military. Others would be teachers, nurses, policemen, doctors and scientists. But due to their immigration status, there is currently no way to make their hopes and dreams come true. DREAM University will provide attendees with the tools and strategies to lobby Congress and increase public support of the cause. If you would like to attend or participate, please contact carlos@unitedwedream.org. If you can not attend you can donate at ourdream2005@gmail.com. Please also take the time to sign the DREAM Act petition if you have not already.
PASS THE DREAM ACT NOW!
PASS THE DREAM ACT NOW!
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