The Dream Act Starts with You
First court appearance
This post is part of a series, please click here to read the older post.
As I walked out of the jail, confusion took over my mind. I did not know where I was or how to get to my original destination, University of Rochester. I called a few friends to orient myself. We discovered that I was in Auburn, NY. One of my friends immediately got in touch with a minister of Uniterian Universalist Church in Syracuse who offered to take me in for the night and drive me to Rochester the following day.
The next day, before driving me to Rochester, the minister helped me recover my confiscated belongings which were being held at the ICE building in Syracuse. A man brought out a big tarp white bag with all of my belongings in it, including my college diploma. After leaving the building, we departed for Rochester.
Along the car ride, I looked through the documents that I was given when I got out of jail. There was the Notice to Appear which had been given to me by the Border Patrol. There was no date assigned for a court hearing. In about two hours, the minister dropped me off in front of an apartment I had secured a few months before.
Later that summer, about three months after being bailed out of jail, I was summoned to my first court appearance. I got the notice by mail one afternoon after coming back from classes. Not knowing what to expect really frightened me. A friend from Chicago offered to drive me to Buffalo, since after riding on the Greyhound bus in May, I was reluctant to endure another encounter with Border Patrol agents.
I expected that the judge would order me deported on the spot at this hearing. That did not happen. I would later discover that in a “master hearing” the immigration judge evaluates incoming cases and determines the next steps in the removal proceedings. As my friend and I entered the court room, many other immigrants and their lawyers also entered the same room. The judge, a white man in his fifties, dressed in a black robe, came into the room, everyone stood up, and he made a hand motion to indicate we were allowed to have a seat.
Those who had lawyers were dispatched by the judge first. After that, I was called to the stand. The judge asked me if I knew why I was there and I replied, “Yes, your honor.” After taking the oath to tell the truth, he addressed the fact that I did not have legal representation. He asked me if I wanted to seek legal counsel before proceedings, and I said, “Yes, your honor.” As he searched through my file, he noticed the documents that Border Patrol had tried to make me sign, including the Warrant of Arrest. While looking at the papers, he asked with an angry tone of voice, “Why didn’t you sign these documents?” I replied, nervously, “I was confused.” At that point, he set another appointment in the calendar and proceeded to the next case. My friend and I left the courtroom.
As soon as we exited the building, my friend noticed I was unable to say a word. As I got into the car, I suddenly began to cry, unable to stop for several minutes. At the moment, I didn’t know why I cried. Maybe because I was happy that I had more time with my family, or even perhaps because the possibility of continuing to work on my master’s degree, or maybe because I left the court room with more uncertainty than I entered with.
(Come back tomorrow for the next part)
Orange Suit
This post is part of a series, click here to read the previous post.
My journey to start on my graduate degree was interrupted. After being detained and questioned by Border Patrol, I was taken to a county jail. At the jail, I was stripped of my belongings and given an orange suit, a bit too big for my size, undergarments, socks, and sandals. It was hard not to think of how many people have worn these before. As I was being taken to my cell, I received a few comments from the guards, such as their belief that my college ID was surely fake, since in their worldview, all illegal immigrants are criminals of some sort. I dared not to respond because of my fear that everything I said could make matters worse in unimaginable ways.
As the bars closed behind me, I had lost any hope of continuing toward my goals. I was sure that I would be deported to Mexico any day now and that I would not see my family again for ten years. My fears were based on the uncertainty of what was to come next. I tossed and turned during that night, my heart was palpitating. I tried to calm down, but my mind wasn’t letting me. I woke up to the call of the guards, who were ready to provide me with some plain cereal and a milk carton for breakfast.
Later that morning, I was allowed a fifteen minutes phone call with my family. They too were not sure about what was to do next. My older sister assured me that she would try her best to get me out of jail as soon as possible. It was chaos.
While my parents were trying to work out a course of action, I was trying to get used to my new environment. I dreaded waking up every morning. It was so cold inside the jail, since it was still May in upstate New York. The mattress I slept on was thin and was only good for inflicting my body with aches at night. I was only let out of my cell to shower and eat in the cell pod’s aluminum table.
By the third day, my heart was no longer racing at night and I was used to the daily routine of breakfast, lunch, and dinner, accompanied by comments from the guards about the American jobs that I’ve allegedly conspired to steal. My family members were doing better as well. On the fourth day, they found out that I could be released if they paid a bond of $5000. Two questions remained. First, how would they raise so much money? Second, how would they approach the local ICE office?
One of my relatives suggested that my parents to turn to an organization in their community, Southwest Organizing Project, to talk about the problem of approaching ICE. The organization has a program in which volunteers pay the bail on the family’s behalf. My sister went on the phone for the next three days straight, calling friends and family to lend us a hand in coming up with the money. On the seventh day, after I finally appeared in the system, my family was finally able to post bail.
On that day, early in the morning, a guard appeared, strolling along the cells, “Juan Ramirez. You are being released,” he called out into the corridor. Upon hearing his words, I froze. He stopped in front of my cell and said, “Do you want to stay here or what?” Horrified by the idea of staying there any longer, I jolted to my feet, gathered the sheets and followed him, shaking. The guard asked why I looked so frightened, since I should feel happy that I was being released. I responded solemnly and without hesitation, “Because this is only the beginning.” He did not understand what I meant by that.
(Read the next post of this series tomorrow.)
Detainment
On a Sunday much like today I was walking across the stage to receive my bachelors degree, tomorrow I would find myself in handcuffs.
I was on a Greyhound bus on my way to start graduate school. As an undocumented student, I’ve heard about the risks of traveling, but I chose to do it anyway. I was determined not to let fear stop me from achieving my dreams.
It was noon when the bus stopped, pulling me awake. Instinctively, I looked out the window to see where the bus had stopped and I saw men in green uniform. They made their way to the bus. Nervously, I decided to call a friend to strike up a conversation, hoping that the agents would let me be. As I talked on the phone, I saw the agents asking the other passengers if they were US citizens and for their IDs to prove it. I continued talking to my friend -- describing how well the trip was going. The stop was Syracuse, NY, the last stop before Rochester, my destination.
Eventually, the agent made his way to me, tapped me on the shoulder, to get my attention while I was on the phone, and asked, “Excuse me, sir, are you a US citizen?” I took the phone away from my ear but did not hang up while I remained silent. He asked for my ID. I gave him my college ID. He again asked, “Are you a US citizen?” I stood still, holding the phone in my hand. Moments later, I was getting a hold of my belongings before stepping off the bus with the agent. I felt every one’s eyes on me.
I tried my best to remain as silent as I could when the agents questioned me in the bus station. I repeatedly asked to speak to a lawyer, but my requests were ignored. Eventually, without asserting my rights to remain silent, I revealed that I was not a US citizen. Soon I was handcuffed and taken to the Border Patrol headquarters in Oswego, NY for further questioning. Throughout the questioning process I tried to reveal as little information about me as possible, such as my name. One of the officers told me that I could be taken to a detention center for more than nine months as the result of my unwillingness to speak. With the terrorizing idea of being jailed for nine months, and in a lapse of good judgement, I decided to give the agents more information about myself.
I was allowed to make some phone calls after Border Patrol agents finished questioning me. I called friends and relatives to let them know of the situation I was in and to share my alien registration number so that they could find where I was being held. Within the hour, I was handcuffed again and taken to a county jail on a Border Patrol vehicle.
Today, I am aware of what I should have done after consulting the ACLU’s materials on knowing my rights. According to ACLU, you have the right to remain ABSOLUTELY silent and assert your rights when encountered by an immigration official. It is of utmost importance that if you do speak, you do not lie about being a US citizen. If you do, that will disqualify for any kind of legalization or future immigration relief. Although I did speak, I did not lie about being a US citizen.
In my situation, as soon as I stated that I wasn’t a US citizen, Border Patrol has the right to ask for my immigration papers. Since I did not have them, that gave them further evidence that I was in the country illegally. Nevertheless, I failed to remain silent until I had a lawyer present by answering some questions about me. When one is in a similar situation, the ACLU recommends, “Always remember that even if you have answered some questions, you can still decide you do not want to answer any more questions.” Assert that you need to consult a lawyer before answering any questions.
In the next post, read the continuation of my story as I write about my experience at the county jail.
The week in Dream Act - Dec 5th, 2010
Last week was an eventful time for the Dream Act. The vote in the House of Representatives was delayed to this week. Sen. Reid was quoted about his intentions to bring the bill to the Senate floor this week. Finally, in an effort to get the Republican vote, as well as some conservative democrats, Sen. Reid introduced some significant changes into the bill.
Changes to the Dream Act
It has been speculated that there have been no less than five versions of the bill. Hence, any information regarding the contents of the final bill, as it will be voted on, should be take with a grain of salt until the text of the bill is available. Following are some likely changes.
The language that “Eliminat[ed the] repeal of the in-state tuition ban” is likely removed from the bill. There is an existing federal law that bans in-state tuition for undocumented immigrants, but the law is being challenged as unconstitutional, which is why there are in-state tuition for undocumented students laws in some states. Removal of the in-state tuition language will get us more votes and decrease the misinformation about the bill granting special tuition breaks to undocumented students.
Other changes might include paying back taxes, extension of the conditional residency status to 10 years from 6, and the return of the age cap -- you must be under 30 years to qualify. (AILA)
House
The House was set to vote on Dream Act last week, however, on Thursday Rep. Gutierrez (D-IL) announced that they had run out of time. Delays in the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) were to blame. The CBO eventually estimated that the Dream Act will reduce the deficit by $1.4 billion dollars. The House vote will be held this week. (Hill)
Senate
Sen. Reid announced that he will file the cloture motion on the Dream Act tomorrow, placing the actual cloture vote on Wednesday Dec. 8th. The cloture vote is procedural and necessary to eliminate the possibility of a Republican filibuster. Another, and final, vote must be held after the cloture vote for the bill to pass the Senate.
Sen. Reid intends to tackle the Dream Act along other similarly sized measures before taking on larger measures, such as the Bush tax cuts, the week after. On Saturday, Sen. Reid claimed that the decision to file motion for cloture on the Dream Act and other measures has been reach in agreement with Republican Leader Mitch McConnell (Ky.). (Hill) However, Republicans have vowed to block any vote brought up before the Bush tax cuts. (Politico) This sets us up for the possibility that Sen. Reid will file for cloture on Monday, with Republican agreement, only to see the vote fall to a Republican filibuster on Wednesday handing the Republican party another victory. Call and email Sen. Reid:
Pick up and dial: (202) 224-3542
“Sen. Reid, we’re paying attention to the Dream Act. We fought to witness a victory, not to witness another filibuster.”
Currently, the Senate is scheduled to adjourn on December 17 for Christmas recess.
White House
The White House hosted conference calls and a web chat to answer questions about the legislation. (The White House Blog) The White House blog has not reported that Pres. Obama made personal calls to legislators who are on the fence about the bill. On November 16th, Pres. Obama has promised to make personal calls when the Dream Act is up for consideration. Call the White House to ask that the President himself picks up the phone, as promised.
Pick up and dial: (202)-456-1111
“I urge President Obama to keep his promise and place personal calls to legislators to vote YES on Dream Act this week.”
Dream Act in Congress this week!
Next week the U.S. Senate will vote to attach the Dream Act as an amendment to the Defense Authorization Act. This is our chance to pass the Dream Act now! Take the next ten minutes to make yourself count by calling the following key senators:
Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) email
Sen. George LeMieux (R-Florida) email
Sen. Olympia Snowe (R-Maine) email
Sen. Scott Brown (R-Massachusetts) email
Sen. Mark Pryor (D-Arkansas) email
Sen. Ben Nelson (D-Nebraska) email
Sen. Robert Bennett (R-Utah) email
Sen. Sam Brownback (R-Kansas) email
Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-Texas) email
Dial 1-888-254-5087. If busy, call switchboard directly at 1-202-224-3121. Ask to speak with one of the senators on the list and you will be transferred.
Say or leave a message:
"Hi, I am calling to ask that Senator _______ vote for the DREAM Act amendment to the Defence Authorization Act. It is the common sense approach to revitalizing the economy and strengthening our armed forces."
Make no mistake, every single call counts!
Spread the word with your friends and family.
