Lofgren dreams of reform for immigrant students in U.S.

Ianus · 02-04-2011, 05:20 PM

The leading Democrat of the House Subcommittee on Immigration give her take on Dream act's immediate past and future.

Quote:

Though the House of Representatives passed the bill last December, it was blocked by filibuster in the Senate.

Lofgren, the senior Democrat on the House Immigration Subcommittee and one of the bill’s chief proponents, lamented the fact that the bill has not yet been enacted into law. She referred to the illegal immigrant students that the DREAM Act seeks to naturalize as “de facto Americans.”

“When I think about this bill not passing, I think about these young people who have done all the things they were supposed to do, who stayed in school and got good grades and played by the rules,” Lofgren said. “And now the country they grew up in is not theirs legally, and they have no prospects for the future.”

Throughout her speech, Lofgren strove to address misconceptions and arguments often put forth by opponents of the bill.

“It is common to hear horror stories about the negative impact that immigrants could have on our society, but if you look at the statistics, immigrants are more law-abiding in general,” she said. “They have higher rates of entrepreneurship, and they are more active in small business development than Americans born here.”

Lofgren was pessimistic about the bill’s prospects in the immediate future, pointing to the Republican majority that took office in the House in January and that immigration has recently become a polarizing topic.

“This is one aspect of immigration reform on which we really should all agree, a bill whose roots are in fact bipartisan,” Lofgren said, adding that John McCain, among other Republicans, was a co-sponsor of the bill in 2001. He later withdrew his support in response to the changing political climate.

“There are some who feel this is a divisive issue that can be used for political advantage,” she said. “That is not helpful in terms of facilitating an honest political process.”

Yesterday’s talk was organized by the Stanford Immigrant Rights Project (SIRP) and co-sponsored by a number of other student groups.

“I hope students were able to take away a comprehensive understanding of the complexities of immigration politics, but more importantly, a sense of urgency to learn more about the issue and take some action,” said Alexandra Salgado ‘11, a SIRP member.

Alex QA · 02-04-2011, 07:00 PM

What a waste of time , neither the dems or GOP will move a finger this year on immigration , it's all talk mumbo jumbo ,fuck them all, if you want papers take action yourself to improve your own situation find a loophole in the system but don't sit around waiting for these old bastards to help you because they won't , take charge or your own life while your still young .