Students turn out at UH-Downtown for DREAM Act rally

Dozens of people rallied at the University of Houston Downtown Thursday in support of the DREAM Act, which would open a path for citizenship for undocumented youth who attend college or join the military.

“I am undocumented, I am unafraid and I have the right to dream,” was the slogan shared by four students who turned out for the event, where they publicly revealed their status for the first time.

Wendy Ramírez said she came to the United States 12 years ago. She started dreaming about going to medical school when her father had an accident. As she got older, however, she realized the implications of being undocumented.

“People treated me with contempt,” she said.

She became aware of the seriousness of her situation when a high school counselor explained that there would not be financial aid for her to go to college since she was in the country illegally. Despite the odds, she persevered, and with the help of another counselor, is now a student at UH- Downtown.

“I refuse to give up my dreams,” she said, asking that others judge her on the “qualities I possess,” instead of the documents.

Thursday’s rally was part of the National DREAM Act Awareness Day to raise awareness about the proposal, first introduced in the Senate in 2001. The local event was organized by FIEL, an immigrant youth advocacy organization in Houston. The bill would provide conditional permanent residency to some undocumented students who entered the country before the age of 16. Those who go to college or join the military would have a chance to become U.S. citizens.

The bill has so far failed to garner enough support in Congress for passage.

Isaac Valdes, who came illegally to the U.S. seven years ago, also told his story at Thursday’s event, which drew about 60 people. He said he hasn’t been discouraged by any barriers to a higher education and is studying applied mathematics at the UH-Downtown.

He recently was named “Leader of the Year” at the university and he also does tutoring. He said he doesn’t regret being in so many activities or the few hours of sleep or the limited social life he has. “My pain,” he explained, “is to have to say ‘no’ to the opportunities that I am offered day after day.”

State Representative Armando Walle, D-Houston, who attended the rally, said that he was there, “fighting for the rights of people who don’t have a voice.”

“They (the kids) didn’t have to give their testimonials, but they’re unabashed and they want to bring a personal story to the issue of the DREAM Act, because it’s not just about numbers or data, these kids want to succeed,” he said.

http://blog.chron.com/newswatch/2012...eam-act-rally/