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DAP Forums > DREAM Act > The News Room

Deportation delayed for St. Mary's graduate

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#1
06-10-2009, 04:44 PM
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It is always sad when a Dreamer is on the ropes facing deportation.It is my hope that highlighting their story here can aid or benefit them in some way.At the very least,a positive comment in defense of their actions should be posted here.
Quote:

Benita Veliz can stay. For now.

On Wednesday morning, a federal immigration judge granted the St. Mary's University honors graduate a three-month continuance, temporarily staving off deportation to Mexico.

An unauthorized immigrant, Veliz was jailed in January after a traffic stop.

The continuance also gives the 23-year-old Veliz more time to lobby for the DREAM Act, a law that would carve a path to citizenship for some unauthorized immigrants whose parents brought them here before age 16.

Veliz's parents brought her to San Antonio on a tourist visa when she was 8 years old and never left. Veliz worked doggedly in school, graduating valedictorian of her class at Jefferson High School in 2002 and later from St. Mary's University.

Under the proposed law, immigrants must serve in the military or earn a college degree to stay permanently.

“My future is still uncertain but I am very grateful for this time,” said Veliz, who was all smiles after the short hearing. “I have never lost hope that there will be a change in immigration law.”

According to Veliz's lawyer, Nancy Shivers, there is no reasonable way for Veliz to earn residency or citizenship. She has no family members who can petition for her to stay. If she returned to Mexico, Veliz would be barred from returning to the United States for at least 10 years.

Or she could marry a U.S. citizen.

“It speaks a great deal to her integrity that she has not gone out and gotten married so she could stay here,” Shivers said. “The DREAM Act or some form of comprehensive immigration reform really is her only hope.”

As a last resort, U.S. Rep. Charlie Gonzalez has agreed to file a private bill on Veliz's behalf. The bill would not grant Veliz residency, but would delay deportation, Shivers said.

With a supportive president and Democrat-controlled Congress, DREAM Act supporters are hopeful the stars will align for passage this year.

But critics say the law has major kinks.

For instance, it does not require immigrants to prove how long they have been in the country, something that would be fairly easy to do through school records, said Roy Beck, president of NumbersUSA, an organization that aims to reduce the number of immigrants.

Also, those who benefit from the DREAM Act could petition for other family members to stay, tipping off chain of migration, Beck said.

“We should not allow them to bring any relatives in,” Beck said. “It should just be for the kids.”

According to Beck, DREAM Act supporters are using the law as a Trojan horse for a broader amnesty program, a tactic that is not helping Veliz.

“She has a compelling story. She is close to the perfect example,” Beck said. “People concerned should come up with legislation that is limited to the compelling cases. There is a DREAM Act I can envision us not fighting.”

Veliz agreed that the law is imperfect, and hopes lawmakers tweak the bill to gain broader support.

From her perspective, she has done everything within her power to be a good citizen and needs relief from Congress.

Veliz volunteers and works as a secretary at her church. She does not have a social security number, but pays taxes through an Individual Taxpayer Identification Number, or ITIN.

She does not have a driver's license, but has auto and health insurance. In other words, she is not “mooching off the system,” said family friends Randy and Debbie Boggs.

“She is just a delightful person,” said Debbie Boggs. “She is doing everything she can to be an outstanding citizen, only we won't let her.”

When Helotes police pulled Veliz over in January for allegedly rolling through a stop sign, the officer asked why she did not have a driver's license.

She told the truth. Her confession landed her in jail.

Veliz called her best friend Rachel Perez sobbing uncontrollably. Perez raced to the jail and was there when Veliz walked out the back gate with her belongings in her hand, “just like in the movies,” Perez said.

“It was like slow motion, we were running toward each other and hugging,” Perez said.

When Veliz left the courtroom Wednesday, Perez again caught her friend in a jubilant embrace. The continuance meant Veliz would be at Perez's wedding in September. And she could try on that strapless, rust orange bridesmaid dress.

“This is where my life is. I don't know anyone in Mexico,” said Veliz. “What's going to make up for not being at your best friend's wedding? That is irreplaceable.”
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#2
06-10-2009, 04:52 PM
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I hope everything works out for her and us as well. er story is more proof why this cant wait any longer.
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#3
06-10-2009, 04:57 PM
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dreamactmass
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For instance, it does not require immigrants to prove how long they have been in the country, something that would be fairly easy to do through school records, said Roy Beck, president of NumbersUSA, an organization that aims to reduce the number of immigrants.


Not true, right????
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#4
06-10-2009, 05:13 PM
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Bruinman
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they need to put in a provison in DREAM ACT specifically barring beneficiaries from being able to sponsor family members. that would satisfy quite a few people who are on the fence.
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#5
06-10-2009, 05:24 PM
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Joined in Jun 2009
165 posts
ThespianDreamer
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Quote:
Originally Posted by dreamactmass View Post
For instance, it does not require immigrants to prove how long they have been in the country, something that would be fairly easy to do through school records, said Roy Beck, president of NumbersUSA, an organization that aims to reduce the number of immigrants.


Not true, right????
According to the bill, the alien must be present in the USA for 5 years. DHS requires proof of everything. That statement is incorrect.
Last edited by ThespianDreamer; 06-11-2009 at 02:32 AM..
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#6
06-10-2009, 05:38 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Bruinman View Post
they need to put in a provison in DREAM ACT specifically barring beneficiaries from being able to sponsor family members. that would satisfy quite a few people who are on the fence.
that might just do it
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#7
06-10-2009, 07:04 PM
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Bluestar
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Bruinman View Post
they need to put in a provison in DREAM ACT specifically barring beneficiaries from being able to sponsor family members. that would satisfy quite a few people who are on the fence.
That is called creating second class citizens/residence and that is unconstitutional. You need to amend the constitution for that kind of law to be passable.

If you get it passed without amending the constitution first, then when the courts call it unconstitutional you are back to being undocumented and if you do amend it, you are basically creating second class citizens/residences.

From your post, i can guess you either did not know that and blurted something out with your limited knowledge or you knew about it and just simply did not care.


P.S. Have you ever heard of civil right act of 1964?
Last edited by Bluestar; 06-11-2009 at 04:23 AM..
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#8
06-10-2009, 07:11 PM
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YesWeCan
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Bruinman View Post
they need to put in a provison in DREAM ACT specifically barring beneficiaries from being able to sponsor family members. that would satisfy quite a few people who are on the fence.
Unconstitutional.
Good try though.
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#9
06-10-2009, 08:28 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Bluestar View Post
That is called creating second class citizens/residence and that is unconstitutional. You need to amend the constitution for that kind of law to be passable.
wrong. ending family based immigration for DREAM ACT is not unconstitutional. in fact, the constitution itself does not address anything remotely related to immigration other then the fact that person who is born in US soil has full right to be bestowed with citizenship.

oh let me ask, how does forbidding a dreamie from sponsoring his/her family member create a second class citizen? oh, do you mean your moms, dads, siblings will remain undocumented and so end up being second class citizens? is that what you're saying?

holy shit, what are we right now? supreme court should be all over this, fact that 12 million people residing in the US illegally and living as second class citizens right now is unconstitutional! omg! but but but...how can they let something so unconstitutional go unresolved for so many years? its unconstitutional!! little babies with citizenship have to part with their mothers who are undocumented. its unconstitutional!! how can this happen? how?

this is not a matter of constitutionality, its a matter of flaws in the immigration system.

rofl. do you even think before you say stuff out?

Quote:
From your post, i can guess you either did not know that and blurted something out with your limited knowledge or you knew about it and just simply did not care.
you accuse someone (who actually happens to have studied immigration policy in law school) about something you have no clue about. LOL

the constitution does not govern immigration. matters concerning immigration have its own set of laws, which started with the Naturalization Act of 1790 that limited citizenship to only white people. since then, US immigration was based on national-origin quotas. then the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965 got rid of national-origin quota and replaced with "regional system" where certain number of visas are allocated per hemisphere, with no more than 20,000 per country. however, this act provided unlimited number of visas for family reunification but later imposed numerical quotas to certain categories of family based immigration. thus, the current US immigration has grown largely to be family-based.
current family based immigration system is a product of two centuries of evolution of US immigration policy shaped by triad of socio-ethno-economic affairs, not by interpretation of the constitution. the fact that many people are repulsed about shifting to merit based immigration system thats been suggested is not because its "unconstitutional", but because it strikes nerve to family core values that americans pride in.

learn your history, then talk.



Quote:
P.S. Have you ever heard of civil right act of 1965?
yeah, ive heard of it. i dont know why you bring up random stuff that is totally irrelevant. rofl. civil right act of 1965has no clause that relates to immigration and so a provision that would ban family sponsorship for immigration purposes does not violate any section of civil rights act of 1965 LOL.

while we're on the subject about bringing up random acts, have you ever heard of Child Safety Act of 2005? i guess you can argue that banning Juan from sponsoring his little sister Maria would be unconstitutional and violates the child safety act. LOL.
Last edited by Bruinman; 06-10-2009 at 09:30 PM..
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#10
06-10-2009, 08:34 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by YesWeCan View Post
Unconstitutional.
Good try though.
wrong. learn your history.
good try though.
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