Issue link: http://educator.cta.org/i/297225
The Capistrano Unified Education Association member asked some of his friends to contribute to a college fund for Aida, who is now 22 and raising her younger sisters while attending community college to study nursing. He sponsored a prayer breakfast at his church with the theme "God is Undocumented" and asked four undocumented students to speak to the congregation. "There wasn't a dry eye in the building. It was really powerful." Since then he has participated in marches, visited his congressman, and worked on behalf of immigration reform, because he believes it is the right thing to do. During his economics class, he brings up "myths" about immigrants, such as the misconceptions that they are taking jobs away from others or are criminals. He points out that Dowell Myers, a demographer at the University of Southern California, recently published a report that four out of 10 home- buyers are Latino and that most immigrants learn English, get jobs and contribute to society. According to a recent CNN International survey, the majority of Americans believe the government should legalize the status of those who are undocumented instead of deporting them. "We are making progress at the state level, but we have a long way to go when it comes to immigration reform," says Montaño. "For one thing, access to affordable health care is still lacking. But immigration is a national issue — and many of us are looking forward to the Obama administration being able to pass a comprehensive immigration policy." The recent focus has been on college students and contributions they can make to society if and when they become legal, she observes. "It's a good place to start. But we must remember that students are mem- bers of a family with siblings and parents. It's time for everyone to come out of the shadows." • Dreams Alliance: AB 540 Allies Group — dreamsalliance.org • Dreams To Be Heard Student Club — www.dreamstobeheard.com • California Dream Network — www.cadreamnetwork.org • UCLA Labor Center — www.labor.ucla.edu • Asian Pacific American Legal Center — apalc.org • Clergy and Laity United for Economic Justice (CLUE) — cluela.org • Los Angeles County Bar Association: Immigration Legal Assistance Project — www.lacba.org/ilap For a complete list compiled by CTA members, visit www.cta.org. Resources to help DREAMers and inform educators VIST THESE LINKS TO FIND MORE INFORMATION AND LEARN ABOUT DREAMERS. Tom Airey sponsored a prayer breakfast at his church with the theme "God is Undocumented" and created a college fund for Aida Gonzalez, who is raising her younger sisters while attending community college to study nursing. center will be the fi rst of its kind in the 23-campus CSU system. Montaño has nothing but admiration for her undoc- umented students, who sometimes support parents and siblings as the "breadwinner" of the family. "I am amazed at what they are capable of doing. Many of them have become peer counselors and have stepped up to help others. They are not just DREAM- e r s , b u t a l s o d re a m e r s i n s p i r i t , w h o a re b r i l l i a n t , working hard to improve their schools and learning English as a second language." Need for immigration reform When Tom Airey asked student Aida Gonzalez what she planned to study in college, there was an awkward pause. She confi ded that she didn't know if she could even go to college because she is undocumented. "I felt just devastated," says the economics and world history teacher at Capistrano Valley High School. "And just understanding the injustice made me want to do something about it. To me, it humanized the situation and showed that not all of my students have the same opportunities to make a college or career happen. They are vulnerable and can be deported. DACA is just tempo- rary. We need real immigration reform." www.cta.org 29 A P R I L 2 0 1 4 Educator 04 Apr 2014 v2.3 int.indd 29 4/15/14 12:04 AM