Congress: Make Comprehensive Immigration Reform A Reality
As educators and concerned community members, we have witnessed for far too long the fear and distress our broken immigration system has caused our students, their families and our communities. We see these aspiring Americans every day in our classrooms and our schools. They are valedictorians, honors students, idealistic, hard-working youth, our friends and our neighbors.
Ours is the only country they’ve ever known. They, like our immigrant ancestors before us, are contributing members of our communities, committed to bettering their communities.
We believe common-sense immigration reform should:
- Address the millions of students and young adults who were brought here as children by their parents. America is strengthened by holding onto DREAMer students who love our country and are contributing to it.
- Preserve family unity. Families play a critical role in student success. Yet growing numbers of public school students live in fear that our nation’s immigration policies will break up their families, forcing them to choose between their country and their mothers, fathers, sisters and brothers.
- Create a realistic path to citizenship for the aspiring citizens who call America home. We need to ensure a fair process that takes into consideration what these new Americans contribute to our country.
By signing this pledge, I am signaling my commitment to tell Congress to act swiftly and in a bipartisan fashion to make fair and comprehensive immigration reform a reality at last.
Sign the pledge now by filling out the form below. All sections except for “Text Messages” are required.
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I feel that if so-called illegal immigrants live as law-abiding hardworking productive community citizens for five years,they and their children should be allowed to obtain citizenship without all the hassles.Afterall,how can a nation formed by rebels who left their homeland to “Discover America”,and then stole a nation of Africans to develop the New Nation,while killing off and tricking its Natives,justify having the audacity to call other folks “Illegals”.The only people who truly had a God-given right to America are the remaining Native American tribal descendents.Everyone else came from elsewhere ,either by choice or by force.
Posted 07/06/2013
http://www.EdVotes.org
It is NOT “so-called illegal immigrants”. They ARE in FACT “illegal immigrants! Your explanation is not only incorrect…it is also laden with falsehoods. If you are a teacher you should be especially ashamed of yourself for providing MORE MISinformation!
In addition…what’s the “first” thing those darling children (illegals) learned…was that laws of the USA evidently do NOT pertain to them!
Yes, I am especially passionate about this in part because I am related to — on my mother’s side – to some of the brave souls on the Mayflower whose reputations were/are not that of “rebels”!
As a second generation AMERICAN, I am also very proud and thankful that my paternal Grandfather (from Austria)and my paternal Grandmother (from Sicily) came to America via Ellis Island which was/is not only the “correct” way…it was the “LEGAL” way at that time!!)
And for the record, my maternal great grandmother is part Black Hills Indian!
Just say NO to any and all illegals!!!! If you don’t….you, too, will be sorry one day! Illegal aliens who continue to BREAK OUR LAWS to enter the USA and illegals — who BROKE OUR LAWS to enter the USA thanks to the corrupt politicians and others only in it for the money — NOT WE the PEOPLE — are so ready to “get”/”take” what is NOT rightfully theirs!
Do you NOT understand that these illegal aliens are stealing from rightful citizens — which includes previous, present, and future generations of “legal” AMERICANS! And you’re worried about illegal immigrants live as law-abiding hardworking productive community citizens for five years,they and their children should be allowed to obtain citizenship without all the hassles. Your statement is absurd….how can “illegal” and “law-abiding” be speaking about the same person(s)!
You, and anybody who agrees with the wholesale slaughter of our country, our freedoms — bought and paid for by PATRIOTS should get wake up and get educated.
You obviously have not done much researching and/or studying!
Get a life, you’re an immigrant. We all are. Even the Native Americans came from Asia. the whole world is in a constant state of change.
Joanne M. Saunders, you summed up the situation so eloquently. Thank you. This is an immigrant nation and to deny that is not only hypocritical but inhumane! This is a human rights travesty and must be changed rapidly and comprehensively! As a teacher I have witnessed too many hard working families contributing daily to our economy while receiving too little income. Everyone should have the right to live with dignity and respect–and to pursue their dreams.
Immigration reform is DESPERATELY needed in this country. And please…until you’ve studied the law and procedures, and been through the process like my husband and I have over the last 2 years, don’t make ignorant comments like, “All illegals should be deported” and “why should we reward people who came in through the back door?”
A pathway to citizenship for all undocumented people is fair and just. Although it is quick to judge how they came to this country, immigration is significantly harder now than it was when my great-grandfather came from Italy in 1914. Also, until you’ve been to or lived in a rural, impoverished village in a third world country, please don’t judge people who did anything necessary to escape from that and provide a better life for their children. Furthermore, penalizing the innocent children of immigrants is inhumane. They did not make the choice to come here illegally and know nothing but our country–who are we to deport them back to a place that is foreign to them?
My husband came to the USA undocumented in 2002. He was young, able-bodied, and eager to work, but couldn’t find much in his small mountain village in Brazil. Someone mentioned “the land of opportunity” to him, and after going to the US Consulate, he was denied a visa due to not owning property in Brazil and not being of some financial status. So he, and many others, came here through “the back door”. He has always felt guilty about this, but he didn’t have much of an option.
Since arriving in the USA, he has consistently kept a carpentry job, paid taxes with an ITIN number (yes–the IRS will take taxes from an illegal!), volunteered in our community, and has never gotten in trouble. Through our marriage and after enduring almost 11 months of separation due to broken laws that divide families during the process, he was finally given a green card last week and is a Legal Permanent Resident now. However, we do not forget the struggles of others who don’t have the opportunity that he did to become legal (ie. not married to American citizens, don’t have the $2,000+ we paid in immigration fees and we didn’t even use a lawyer, can’t physically be out of the USA for an extended period of time, etc.)
Unless you are a descendent of an American Indian, you are an immigrant or descendent of an immigrant. Thank God for the open arms of the Statue of Liberty welcoming all to these shores. Just because we got here first does not mean others shouldn’t be allowed in. The great courage and/or desperation that causes someone to leave their own country and travel so far should never be forgotten. I am the child of an Irish immigrant mother and Italian immigrant grandparents, my father was born here. And I am so proud of that.
I strongly support and feel it is high time we ensure a fair and clear path to citizenship for everyone.
God bless you. You are totally right. This country doesn’t belong to just one group and we should treat each other with compassion and kindness. The moment any person tries to have ownership of a piece of land and reject others it is not fare. You really hit the core of this whole issue. It is that simple.
I believe that 13 years is an excessive length of time to wait for citizenship. The Latinos who have come to this country have made a great contribution, and life here is better for all of us because of their work. Many of us would not be able to stay in hotels, eat fresh fruits and vegetables, and enjoy the many products their low wage work provides.
Why should the hard working immigrants that love their children and would come to a country that doesn’t speak their language and in most cases are looked upon as second class citizen be treated as the immigrants that come here looking for a hand out. I work in a hospital in the pediatrics unit and I see the immigrant mothers sleeping in a chair next to their children for as long as their children are in the hospital. I also see the fathers when they go to visit their children in their dirty uniforms and looking so tired from working two jobs. They may not speak English because as they have told me “there is no time to go to school. Most of these immigrants are humble people who want the opportunity to give their children a better life. After all isn’t that what we all want for our children? I do agree with those who say that if an immigrant breaks the law they should be deported back to their country and not be kept in our prison system. We should not have to keep them in prisons where so much money gets spent on their physical, medical and educational needs. I will sign the petition because like we say in Spanish ” No deben de pagar justos por pecadore”. ” The just should not have to pay for what the sinners have done” We all have the right to our opinions and this one is mine.
Go read the transcription from the Statue of Liberty. You will learn that our country believed in offering safe haven to the poor and downtrodden. If you know anything about U.S. and Latin American relations (i.e. our CIA’s involvement in the Guatemalan coup in 1954) you will agree that we have been less than good neighbors, and have really forced mass emigrations from these countries due to the civil wars and unrest that our government has been directly involved with (and not in a positive way).
So, in short, it is our fault most Latin American immigrants are here now. And immigration is the reason all of us anglos are here in the first place.
Don’t be a hypocrit of mass proportions. Support amnesty for these kids, and let’s allow them to be Americans, not “illegals” or “aliens” or whatever dehumanizing name ignorant folk give them.
It amazes me that you actually state that “law abiding behavior” is grounds to throw out the “laws” that are part and parcel of why this country WAS great!
You fool only yourself to think all these beautiful “smiling” faces will actually respect what you and others so readily want to “give” them…when it’s proven — day after day — how many want to nothing but change America to something other than it was “founded” to be.
Our Founding Fathers sought to protect us from just this madness…this lunacy….of illegal immigration.
Anybody who wants to allow these people to stay and continue to break our laws…will one day realize that this very “foundation” (breaking our laws) means our laws weren’t “meant” for those who entered the USA illegally!
You’ve obviously forgotten — or maybe never learned — from history!
I am an Anglo with a bilingual education degree, and I teach English to newly arrived immigrants. I have dedicated ten years of my life to helping the Latino community in my hometown. I was a very passionate supporter of every child’s right to an education, regardless of decisions made by their parents. However, I’ve recently changed my position and will not be signing this petition.
In the thirteen years since I graduated from the high school where I now teach, a complete cultural shift has taken place, and it is not a positive one. The population has changed entirely. About half of our students speak Spanish at home and more than that live in poverty. That in itself is not the problem. The problem is that I have watched for ten years as class after class of students has every opportunity to succeed handed to them, and very few students put in the work necessary to be successful. I have watched teachers ‘dumb down’ their classes, rather than fail half of their students. I know a number of students who will graduate without the reading and writing skills necessary to be considered functionally literate (many people commenting here illustrated this beautifully). More than 40% of new college students now need remedial classes before beginning their college coursework. This is all despite the best work and intentions of the very skilled professionals working in our schools, and all the pressure to perform is on them. How about requiring students to pass TCAP, or at least show a year’s growth, before promoting them to the next grade level?
Some of these same students have told me that they would like to kick all the white people out, turn the United States into Mexico, and that they don’t care if they learn English. These comments come as a slap in the face to someone who truly cared and worked very hard to stand up for them for years. And before accusing me of not having a good relationship with my students, please understand that they say these things to me because they believe that because I speak Spanish I will see things from their perspective.
Of course there are exceptions, the students who understand that they must work harder than everyone else to learn the language, overcome the obstacles, graduate, and go on to college, but they have been few and far between.
Let’s be realistic. We have 11 million or more people living in this country illegally, much more than the entire population of New York City. In theory, educating every child no matter their background sounds wonderful, but in reality, it is more than our system can handle. The same goes for health care and other services that not even our own citizens receive. My students have no papers, but can afford a better cell phone than I can. They buy Hot Cheetos with food stamps and bring them to school every day.
I would sign the petition if I thought we were truly giving a better life to people who understand that they have to work for it, but that’s just it. In many of these kids’ minds, they already have the better life: iPods and all the TV and video games they could ever want. There is no respect for this country behind their wanting to be here, and the negative consequences have become too great to ignore.
I teach children also that are non-native English Speakers. I teach them on the elementary level. My school has a lot of students that speak other languages. They have never said anything negative about the USA and almost all of my students are born in the USA and love America and see themselves as American. Very few have been home to visit their parents native countries. Their parents work hard to provide, most in construction or the service industry. We need to be kind to our students and help them to suceed in this country. Making generalizations and negative judgements will not help them suceed. No doubt, it is challenging but someone at some point helped someones family get a hand up. Lets all try to do the same for each other.
I understand you, but do not blame them, do not blame yourself, I am an educator, and Latina, 24 years here, I blame, the monster outside our homes and classrooms, called society and its values, it has changed and not for good! all the media propaganda, they send such wrong messages, (alcohol consumption, abuse, sex, drugs, violence etc.) a society that look for easy answers, easy and quick “remedies” to our problems, everyone promotes a “pill” to do this and that, check the “crap” on tv programs, internet, videos, movies, it makes me sick, I have raised 4 children , my youngest is 15, I always told them, that our tribe was different and our values different from the other ones, I was loving but strict in my discipline, few rules. and always volunteering at school and on top of my kids, for they are responsibility, I always question and ask, I passed that to them, They knew they were going to university,is my legacy,, do not give up, you are not alone, more people than you think, are beautiful, but think with an open mind, for the next generations, nobody has the truth, there is no one truth!!!!!
Stefanie,
Having no political inclinations at the moment, I just want to remind you that making scholars out of every child–immigrants and non-immigrants– has NEVER been at the heart of the Capitalistic agenda. Scholars, for the most part, do not pick vegetables and/or fruits, and, if they were to do it, their capacity to analyze and criticize would lead them to demand salaries and benefits that would surely tear the existing economic system down from its roots. So, having stated the obvious, let’s not kid ourselves, the system needs and wants low-skilled, uneducated people in order to continue its practice of economic exploitation. Although you may personally want to make successful scholars out of all immigrants, that is definitely not what the U.S. government (which is nothing but a puppet of the corporations that sustain its members) has in mind.
I cannot account for Stephanie’s experiences. However, her complaints about the educational system are not the fault of the ELL students. It is the fault of the system (and possibly NCLB). As she continues to complain about the fact that we cannot pay to educate the children or for the health and other services, she is assuming that undocumented immigrants do not pay any taxes. In that she is wrong. Many of these immigrants pay taxes through Taxpayer Identification Numbers (TINs), which they can get through the federal government. Additionally, they pay taxes on purchases and services, the amount depends on the state that they live in. Also, which is going to cost us more in the long run, not educating the children as they should be (and these are our children) or giving them no future and seeing where that leads? Most often it leads to a life of crime or living off of the system in some manner. As for health care, not taking care of medical problems when they are smaller medical issues allows the issue to become more costly and a much bigger issue. Preventative health care is much smarter and less costly for everyone. Why would we want to deny anyone health care? Aren’t we better than that? That sounds like a stingy concept of the United States as a nation in that we are not going to take care of others when we have the ability to do so.
Finally, for Stephanie to complain about what the kids have in comparison to what she has is not fair to the kids. She does not know what their lives are like at home nor what their families have. Further, have we not been raised to want better for the next generation? To pass judgment on the students is not fair to them. We, as educators, must educate them. We have to make them see the value in an education when they do not see the value and we have to make certain that they understand why an education is necessary.
Personally, I do not care if a student has a better cell phone than I do (and most do because mine is a basic phone), I just want them to excel. If I can help them with that, I am happy. We should want the same for our undocumented students. As it is, they have no hope of a future without citizenship, a social security number, the ability to get that higher education, and the ability to hope. (When Stephanie complains of students not wanting to work or make an effort, for some, this is a reason.) Let them dream. They deserve the opportunity. Remember, the U.S. is the land of opportunity.
Way to go Stefanie!
Do NOT be “sorry” for thinking of and obviously “honoring” the laws of what can once again be the greatest country in the world.
We The People…
This is a tough issue, there it’s good and bad to both sides. Too bad we can’t just keep those who appreciate the opportunities they have here and just send everyone who doesn’t somewhere else, illegal or not. Illegal entry into the country may be a crime but so are. murder, theft, espionage, terrorist attacks, IRS fraud, etc… But instead of “deporting” those convicted of these crimes we put them in prisons where they often get free opportunities like education and medical care that much of the law abiding population isn’t even able to receive. Unfortunately there is no easy solution to the situation.
I don’t understand why people who came here illegally should be given a pass when it comes to getting an education. Before we give money to illegals, we should at least give money to American citizens. This whole DREAM Act is ridiculous. I will not reward people for breaking the law.
My grandfather came to America ALONE at age 11 to find his father. He found him and never returned to his home in Italy. If it were not for his courage as a young immigrant my mother, my self, my children and grandchildren may not be American citizens.
We are ALL decendents from immigrants the only true Americans are the indians. Immigrants are not lazy. They are hard workers. My grandfather worked as an apprentice butcher and later owned his own butcher shop. He could not read or write (except to sign his name) He learned english even though it was hard at times to understand him. 🙂 He was not a rich man. My mom said he gave away more than he sold! I have such loving memories of him.
I am proud to be the decendent of an immigrant from Italy and will work hard to get immigration reform passed for others.
America was founded on grounds of liberty and equality for everyone. United States has become a strong nation because of all the hard labor of immigrant workers and their families. Some people refer to immigrants as “criminals”. Criminals are people who steal, commit murder, and/ or other crimes. Immigrants are forced to leave their countries in search for better future for their families, which is something anyone..and I do mean anyone would do if they were on that position. Plus in a way or another we are all paying taxes. Everytime we purchase a product, go to the market, and even when we pay our bills. In addition, I believe that no child should be denied the right to have an education just because of their immigration status. Anyone should have the same opportunity to live the American Dream if they are willing to work hard to archieve it. Please contribute on helping us to make the Reform become a reality.
Honestly, I think it’s stupid that many people are against immigration reform. Do you need to be reminded of how this nation was founded on the backs of slaves and the blood of the Native American population. If you are not Native American you immigrated here at some point. However, there was no one to say it was illegal then. And that b******t about ohhh they’re taking our jobs is crap! Immigrants typically work on the high or low end of the jobs available whereas many Americans occupy the jobs in the middle. And to those if you who say “well my family came here legally and were doing just fine”, we’ll I got news for you! This isn’t the 60’s this is 2013 and the world is different. It was easier to immigrate back then.
Si Se Puede!!
I have many friends who are immigrants… I know how they suffer. It’s tough!!!
Caitlyn god bless you and your family, we need more people to think like you, that would make a better America
My name is Raul Gonzalez and I was born in Tecate, Mexico. I came to this country at the age of 2 years old and lived most of my school years as an undocumented immigrant. It was a very difficult life as we were in constant fear of being caught and deported by the border patrol, whom back in the 70’s and early 80’s used to do raids in the small community of Woodlake CA where I grew up. I lived through the trauma of having my father, the sole breadwinner in our home, deported on at least 3-4 occasions though out my childhood. I always felt my heart sink into anguish when we were asked to come drive home his pickup which had been left behind out in the field where he had been picked up. Despite the hardship, my father always instilled education as the way out of this life of poverty. He was the “original” DREAMER who was the visionary who could see his undocumented children grow up to be productive and participating US citizens in this great country! My father had the notion that if we earned a degree as doctors, lawyers, engineers or teachers, this country could not possibly still deport us even if we were illegal. At the age of 15, my life changed through the Amnesty Act of 1986. It was through this legislation that my family and I gained our legal status and eventually permanent visa status. Five to six years later we were eligible to become naturalized citizens of the United States of America. I have since become a citizen and very active advocate for my community in the area of Education.
I am currently the CTA Minority at Large, an elected position tasked with recruiting ethnic minorities into CTA. I am also the Chair of the CTA Hispanic Caucus as well as Co-chair of The Ethnic Minority Affairs Committee for CTA. My role in the association is to advocate and lobby for equity and equality for all students and teachers of color, as well as students and teachers in general. I have been to Washington DC and lobbied Congress on numerous issues relating to education. My most recent assignment was to attend the Immigration Reform Rally in Washington DC where I spoke with the offices of Diane Feinstein, Barbara Boxer, Tony Cardenas, and Judy Chu. Lastly, I had the privilege of attending The California Democratic Convention as a delegate for my Assembly District. There we helped pass a couple of resolution on education. This summer I will be a California delegate for the National Education Association Representative Assembly where I hope get resolutions and by-laws that are promote Comprehensive Immigration Reform.
You shouldn’t have been here in the first place. I feel absolutely no sympathy to you or your family. The real tragedy here is that your father was able to get back into the US multiple times.
NO citizenship
Let the children of illegl immigrants return to parent country and apply for entrance to the USA.. BE Fair
“Fair” do you think it’s fair for a child to grow up in America, speak English, go to school, make friends, become used to all American customs and way of living and then abruptly rip them from the only home they’re ever known and deport them to a country completely foreign to them? I believe you have a lot to learn about what is fair.
Henry i think you and your Family should go back to Europe too, i’m sure you have an European background
Henry easier said than done. Please become familiarized with the process to apply for entrance to the United States. It could take as many as ten years to be able to obtain legal residency. Would you be willing to wait that many years? Also, you must have finanacial stability to be able to obtain residency. There are certain conditions that need to be met. If you have a US Citizen child, he or she must be 21 years old to request residency for his or her parents. I could go on and on with so many road blocks in place.
By the way, you misspelled illegal.
Antonio
I am a concern parent and registered voter, I live in the City of Inglewood, a minority and low income community, I volunteer for the community and help immigrant parents with his/her child. They, also, live in fear in the City of Inglewood. Many elementary kids live in fear, we do need to preserve family unity “Families play a critical role in student success. Yet growing numbers of public school students live in fear that our nation’s immigration policies will break up their families, forcing them to choose between their country and their mothers, fathers, sisters and brothers.” In addition, many immigrant parents are not able to vote or his/her voices heard in the Inglewood Unified School Board (IUSD) Meetings. Many parents speak up, but nothing is done. Every year resources are taken away such as tutoring for ESL students, students do not eat lunch because they easily get sick, classroom sizes keep growing 1/38 ratio. In this community we need help to give the education to the children. We need representation in the City of Inglewood…
My parents are immigrants and if they were not able to come to this country I would not have been afforded the opportunity to attend public schools, graduate from a public college, and pursue a higher education degree!
I’m supportign immigration reform because I think every human been deserve a second chance a chance to raise their family in an enviroment free of fear,of course it has to be requirements to cualified but most of the candidates fullfil them they have been here for many years working hard and paying taxes,obeying laws and as in every society there are some bad aples but please don’t generalize,some of them may not speak english but how in the world they are going to studie if they can’t afford to go to school if they live in fear,having low salaries,relegated to a second class society.passing a comprehensive
immigration reform will lead to this people to send their kids to college to get better jobs,salaries a chance to buy houses,cars,etc,etc.and therefore to a fast recovery from ouer bad economy and they will be able to moves around like you and me making this country a better place to live.I used to be one of them I’m proud of my ethnicity but now I belong to this society because some one decide to give me a chance and every day I’m thankfull .
You’re a teacher? With that grammar and spelling, it’s amazing that you became one…
If this immigration reform passes it would be a great not only for me, but for many other young immigrants who were brought here by their parents at a young age. I was brought here by my father when I was only ten years old, I didn’t spoke English and certainly wasn’t able to put it down on paper, now ten years later I hope and pray that an immigration reform passes , so my self and millions of young immigrants can benefit from it, I’m not looking to get money of the government, in the other hand I’m looking to become somebody in this country, my life long dream is to become a police officer, and the only thing stopping me from achieving that goal is an immigration reform, In order to become a police officer in many states if not all one of the many requirements is that one has to be a citizen of this country, which to this day I’m not, to the people who read this, I’m asking you to lend me and millions a hand to become somebody in this country, not all immigrants are drug dealers or killers I my self want to be a sworn officer and help out people in my community and state, so what do you say help me so I can help you.
In my many years of teaching in California, nothing as stirred my heart as much as the families that live in fear of being deported or separated due to legal status issues. To “throw back” a child to Mexico who has only memories of living in this country, or sending a father or mother away is so tragic. I have had students who never go on field trips because the parents fear if immigration came the family could become separated. Parents pay for car insurance, but it is invalid because they are not allowed to hold licenses, so if there is an accident there is no coverage. Most parents I know are working on English skills, and if they had not been law abiding, they would already not be in this country anymore.
What is often misunderstood is that many of our U.S. policies towards Mexico in particular has caused this immigration in the first place. While a new immigration process is hammered out, let’s not deport these families that are just trying to make a living and better themselves.
The solution is simple–only deport those immigrants both legal and illegal who are felons for serious crimes relating to large scale drug manufacture or import, or violent crimes (murder, rape, assalt, etc.)
At this moment a 10th grader in the IB program might be send back to Mexico because his dad a Chemical Engineer does not have a job. The company who hired him decided not to renew his contract. Therefore immigration does not want to renew his VISA. A great student with a bright future is in risk in the state of Florida. Please help
ALL young people deserve a chance!
true, all young people deserve a chance!!
Regarding your “sign a petition” in this website:
I am confused. What is initially presented to us as a petition it later become a pledge…; “By signing this pledge, I am signaling my commitment to tell Congress to act swiftly and in a bipartisan fashion to make fair and comprehensive immigration reform a reality at last”
Please be clear. If I sign the petition, are you telling Congress to act? Or, am I just “pledging” to do it myself independently? Who is doing what?
Modesto Llanos
I agree with this reform, but I’ve seen an unintended consequence already that concerns me. We need to be sure that families, not just children are granted citizenship. Because of various reforms, this year a student of mine (a junior in high school) was able to achieve citizenship while his parents have remained illegal. Now that this 16-year-old is legally able to work and he has dropped out of school to work full time and support his family. A high school education and college are no longer an option for him. He is taking full responsibility for his family.
I applaud NEA’s leadership for supporting an immigration reform that is fair. People need to understand that the immigration system is broken and is extremely hard to fix the immigration status of many families. These immigrant families have been helping sustain the economy of the United States by working tirelessly in jobs that nobody wants to do. They pay taxes every single day when they shop, pay their bills,etc.
An immigration reform will help the government with national security because they will know who is here. The families will have to go through a series of background checks, digital prints and medical exams. An immigration reform will also give many immigrants the opportunity to come out of the shadows and stop leaving in fear.
As a teacher and the vice president for certified employees of my local chapter (Education Austin) I support the Immigration Reform because many of our members have families that have one or two members that are undocumented. They need an opportunity to live the American Dream as families. I came to the US twenty years ago and my sister is still undocumented. The legislators, senators and President Obama must work together to make sure an Immigration Reform becomes a reality.
I’m sorry I don’t agree with this reform policy as it is. Maybe I don’t know the whole thing, but from what I understand, just changing the status of someone from illegal to legal due to the number of years they’ve been somewhere doesn’t sit well with me (and is wrong).
What I could agree to as a citizen is to document a fair amount of community service hours that a person has contributed to our nation under an approved organization to aquire status, learning english proficiently and of course, demonstrated law abiding behavior. I believe many citizens could agree to a similar compromise.