Presentation Transcript

1. Children at Risk!

   The Negative Social Developments that face children of Illegal Immigrants.
2. Immigrant Births in the U.S. Source: 2010 U.S. Census Bureau. Shortlink: http://goo.gl/N5lwM
3. “…a recently published study of the early development of children born to illegal immigrants in New York City suggests that… even though the children have citizenship and live in an immigrant-friendly city that offers them a wide array of services, many are still hobbled by serious developmental and educational deficits resulting from their parents’ lives in the shadows…” Kirk Semplereports in the New York times “Illegal Immigrants’ Children Suffer, Study Finds” May 20, 2011. Shortlink: http://goo.gl/35kK8
4. Illegal Immigrant Children Born in the U.S. Source: The Pew Hispanic Center www.pewhispanic.org/census-2010/
5. Demographics of Hispanic Families in the U.S. “About 5.5 million children in this country have at least one parent who is an illegal immigrant… Among them, one million children were brought here illegally by their parents, while about 4.5 million are United States citizens because they were born here. In all, about 9.5 million people live in “mixed status” families that include American citizen children and unauthorized immigrants…” Julia Preston reports in in the New York Times “Risks Seen for Children of Illegal Immigrants” September 20, 2011. Shortlink: http://goo.gl/QZnrx
6. Should Illegal Immigrant Children be Entitled to Public Education? “A new Alabama immigration enforcement law requires schools to ascertain the immigration status of students at registration. Since the announcement, officials have noticed that 5 percent of the state’s Hispanic children are absent from classrooms.” Susannah L. Griffee reports in the New York Times, “Are Children of Illegal Immigrants Entitled to a Public Education?” October 6, 2011. Shortlink: http://goo.gl/F4N4s
7. The D.R.E.A.M. Act The Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors Act was first proposed in August of 2001. The purpose of this Act was to provide conditional permanent residency to certain illegal immigrants who are deemed to be of good moral character and have graduated from high school. Recently, this Act has been on the Senate’s menu again. According to Peggy Orchowsky of US News, the DREAM Act is “a narrowly tailored, bipartisan bill that would provide immigration relief to a select group of students who grew up in the United states but are prevented from pursuing their dreams by current immigration law.” Peggy Orchowsy of US News, in her article “Children of Illegal Immigrants Caught in Education Politics Crossfire” (shortlink: http://goo.gl/bNkBm)
8. Conservative Thoughts of the D.R.E.A.M. Act “If their parents are undocumented or in immigration limbo, most of these young people have no mechanism to obtain legal residency even if they have lived most of their lives here.” David Chu, Bush Administration Undersecretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness “Our minorities are not getting educated well enough now. Fifty percent of our minority kids are not finishing high school. We’ve got to invest in education. We should use the D.R.E.A.M. Act as one way to do it.” General Colin Powell, Bush Administration Secretary of State Quotes obtained from “America’s Voice.” Shortlink: http://goo.gl/WIK6z Pie Chart information obtained from an article by Paul Steinhauser of CNN “Poll: 54 Percent Support DREAM Act.” December 10, 2011. Shortlink: http://goo.gl/Il8fQ
9. Common Questions About the D.R.E.A.M. Act Who is eligible? Students who entered the U.S. before the age of 16 and are under 35 years of age Has been living continuously in the U.S. for five consecutive years Has obtained a High School Diploma, GED, or has been accepted into college. Demonstrates good moral character Is not guilty of any crimes
10. Common Questions About the D.R.E.A.M. Act Why is D.R.E.A.M. necessary? Immigrant students who currently graduate from High School virtually have no options. They legally cannot get a job, join the military, or even attend college in most states. Why can’t they just get Green Cards? Due to current laws, students cannot obtain green cards because their immigration status is based upon that of their parents’. If their parents are here illegally, they have no options.
11. Common Questions About the D.R.E.A.M. Act How many students would benefit? Estimates state just over one million. About 350,000 students would be immediately eligible, and another 750,000 would be eligible within the next year. Will students be eligible for federal loans? Yes. Though current law prohibits them from obtaining federal student loans, D.R.E.A.M offers them the ability to obtain loans and become eligible for work-study programs. They would not be eligible for Pell Grants or other federal grants however. Source: Justice for Immigrants. Shortlink: http://goo.gl/6WRRE
12. How Much Will All of This Cost in Taxes? Source: Center For Immigration Studies. Shortlink: http://goo.gl/c4dp7
13. Conclusion There are many ways you can help get involved with this national crisis. These children are U.S. citizens who didn’t have a choice in their parents’ actions. Among the many ways to get involved, you can vote for the D.R.E.A.M. act and help your friends and families understand what is is and what it means. You can also volunteer at your local elementary schools to help our younger young children learn how to read and write in our foreign language. But most importantly, we need to open our hearts and minds and lay aside our personal prejudices.