California has blazed the trail in a variety different sectors including immigration, naturalization and acquiring citizenship. Washington D.C.’s announcement not to pursue ‘low priority’ immigrants for deportation and instead focus on finding and expelling ‘illegals’ who have been convicted of crimes or pose a threat to national security, was greeted with joy by many illegal immigrants in California.
“Because of [that decision], I can now concentrate of my studies and work even harder,” said a 25-year-old field worker who should soon earn his diploma. He attends California’s Farmworker Institute for Education and Leadership Development’s Adult Charter School and hopes to go to college.
With respect to ‘low priority illegals’, the Federal ‘Dream Act’ puts into play a three-pronged approach: First, illegal aliens who entered this country as innocent children are to be treated with leniency. Second, illegal aliens in general are encouraged to get an education and obtain an official work permit. Third, the Feds are about to commence a case-by-case review of over a quarter-million pending deportation cases.
Separate and distinct from the Federal ‘Dream Act’, California has blazed its own trail. In addition to private initiatives, such as the adult charter school named earlier, the state has set up the ‘College Dream Fund.’ For tuition-fee purposes the California State Universities treat illegal aliens as state residents.
As favorable as these developments are, some people are bound to fall through the cracks. Many foreigners come to this country with the ‘dream’ of obtaining citizenship, only to see it turn into a nightmare because of some minor technicality. To successfully navigate trails and skirt their pitfalls, it is often a good choice to enlist the services of an attorney who is educated in the many facets of Immigration Law.
Source: The Bakersfield, “Education advocates, students heartened by immigration decision,” Jorge Barrientos and Jason Kotowski, Aug. 18, 2011
