As an undocumented student attending UCLA, Susan said she is hoping an immigration reform proposal currently being considered passes this year ““ as her ability to get a job after she graduates depends on it.
“I’m graduating this year ““ I can’t even get interviews for anything,” said Susan, who spoke to the Daily Bruin on the condition that only her first name be printed because of her undocumented status.
In addition to a variety of other changes to immigration law, the bill contains the Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors (DREAM) Act, which would make it easier for undocumented university students to gain citizenship and make them eligible for financial aid.
The bipartisan immigration agreement was reached between key legislators and the White House.
The agreement calls for increased border security, but undocumented immigrants currently in the U.S. could obtain a “Z visa” that would ultimately allow them permanent residency, provided they pay fees and $5,000 in fines.
The process of obtaining citizenship could take between eight and 13 years, and would require the heads of households to return to their home countries first.
The U.S. Senate agreed Monday to wait until June to act on the immigration reform bill.
And while there is support for the proposal as a means to provide undocumented immigrants an avenue of gaining citizenship, there is also opposition from those who believe the fines for gaining legal status are prohibitively high and are concerned about a policy that is too much like amnesty.
Victor Narro, project director at the UCLA Labor Center, said he believes the proposal will impact both documented and undocumented immigrant students.
“The very least this country can do is give (undocumented students) the opportunity to be part of the American dream ““ that’s why it’s called the American dream,” said Narro, who is also a guest lecturer in the Chicano studies department.
Susan came to this country with her mother when she was 8 to join her father and brother, who were already here.
Susan said she strongly supports the DREAM Act.
Because Susan came to the U.S. at an early age, almost all of her memories are in the U.S.
“(Critics) say, “˜Why don’t you go back to your own country?’ and we say, “˜What country? I don’t remember any other country but America,'” Susan said.
The DREAM Act would provide a way for undocumented students who came to the U.S. at a young age to become citizens and would ensure that they pay in-state tuition rates.
Undocumented students in California are already guaranteed in-state tuition rates by Assembly Bill 540, Narro said, adding that there is a separate California Dream Act in the State Assembly which would make undocumented students graduating from California high schools eligible for financial aid.
Narro said many students who are legal residents will also be affected because the legislation would affect their families.
“For those students that do have legal status, or are U.S. citizens, what’s happening in Congress more likely will impact their immediate family members, which is another burden that they have to carry with them,” he said.
Critics of the proposed bill say the fines could be prohibitive for many families.
“A $5,000 penalty, considering the types of jobs that these families do, will make it very hard for these families to be legalized,” said Matias Ramos, director of IDEAS, which stands for Improving Dreams, Equality, Access and Success, a UCLA campus organization that promotes higher education among immigrant students.
“But at the same time, I do recognize it’s a good first step considering what the discussions were a year ago,” he said.
In a break with current immigration law, the proposed legislation would favor job skills over family relationships in deciding which applicants are granted legal entrance. Spouses and young children of a U.S. citizen would still be allowed to qualify for a green card, but more distant relatives would not.
The proposed bill in Congress would also make it difficult for relatives of U.S. citizens who recently gained their citizenship to immigrate.
Applicants without direct family ties would be evaluated using a point system that takes into account education, advanced skills, English proficiency and experience in high demand jobs.
The bill also calls for a temporary guest worker program under which workers would be allowed to stay in the U.S. for two years before a mandated one-year return to their home country. Participants in this program would be able to renew their temporary worker visas twice.
Some members of both major parties have criticized the bill ““ conservatives deem the proposed pathway to citizenship as too similar to amnesty, and liberals object to the proposed bill as unfair and unworkable.
Student political groups on campus reflect some of these criticisms.
David Lazar, chairman of Bruin Republicans and a former Daily Bruin columnist, said members of his club have wide-ranging views on the proposed legislation.
Some members of Bruin Republicans “see the illegal immigrants who are here as people who have deliberately violated our immigration laws,” Lazar said.
Lazar said others in Bruin Republicans support the proposed bill because they do not view deportation as a feasible option, given the large number of undocumented immigrants.
Curtis Whatley, media relations director for Bruin Democrats, also said there are diverse opinions on the immigration bill among members of his club. Whatley said he personally objects to the temporary worker program.
“It really seems like an exploitative relationship where you’re just bringing people in to work for you for a couple of years,” he said, adding that he does see merit in other parts of the bill.
With reports from Bruin wire services.