Dreamers continue to wait
I have always loved helping people and educating students, and as a sixth-grade social studies teacher I get to help the children of this community shape and eventually achieve their American Dream.
My own path toward the American Dream was difficult. I’m a “Dreamer,” an undocumented immigrant who came to Oklahoma from Mexico when I was just shy of 2. In 2012, the federal government created a program called Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA. However, last fall my dreams started to crumble. The Trump administration announced it would shut down DACA on March 5, 2018. The president asked Congress to replace the program with something that would give the Dreamers the chance to earn citizenship.
It’s now been six months and America is still waiting for a resolution.
About 85 percent of U.S. voters believe Dreamers should be able to stay permanently in the United States. Furthermore, Dreamers contribute their talents and skills to the American workforce, making the economy stronger and strengthening our middle class through their economic contributions. Dreamers contribute $7.5 million in state and local taxes each year.
To make sure my fellow Dreamers and I can continue to contribute, Congress needs to quickly pass a bill such as the Uniting and Security America Act, or USA Act, which would offer us the chance to earn U.S. citizenship. This bill also would provide additional funding for border security.
A small group of lawmakers wants to add language to the USA Act that would cut legal immigration into the United States. Few Americans support that idea and the longer Congress pursues this notion, the longer it will be before we have a permanent solution for DACA.
I want to pursue my American Dream and to keep helping students pursue theirs. I love teaching my kids and seeing their minds and hearts develop. It is heartbreaking being unable to tell them whether they’ll be able to come back and visit my classroom or if I’ll be their teacher next semester out of fear that my protections will expire. I hope our leaders in Washington will give my students and me the certainty we need by passing a long-term legislative solution to protect Dreamers.
Ledezma is a sixth-grade social studies teacher at Santa Fe South.