New Policy Gives Illegal Immigrants Job Opportunities
By Quinnee Valenzona
Filipe grew up in the Bay State, and had achieved his dream of going to UMass Boston. But because he is an illegal immigrant and was forced to pay the higher out-of-state tuition, he had to stop going to school in the past year after just three semesters.
“It sucked paying $45,000 for school. It put me in debt,” said Filipe, who asked that his last name not be used because of his immigration status.
There are countless others like Filipe. In the past 25 years, trying to find some sort of compromise over the issue of illegal immigration has been a difficult task. But in June, the Obama Administration announced a new deportation policy that will stop the deportation of young illegal immigrants. This policy has the potential to allow undocumented immigrant students to afford higher education.
The Obama Administration’s new policy states that illegal immigrants under the age of 30 who had been brought to the United States before the age of 16 and have stayed here for five years can apply for work permits and driver’s licenses.
With it being an election year, some undocumented immigrants are skeptical of the policy – that this is just a ploy to gather votes, but many others still support it. A poll conducted by Quinnipiac University shows support for Obama has surged in the Latino population.
“It would get Latinos who usually wouldn’t vote to do so,” said Filipe. “ I have friends who are registered Republicans who will vote for Obama because of this.”
Those who obtain their driver’s license will be able to go about their daily routines more efficiently.
“Instead of spending 4-5 hours a day commuting, I could use that time to advocate for these issues or do community leader work,” said Filipe.
A former Chelsea High School student who graduated as salutatorian of his class and asked to remain anonymous, pondered how the executive action could have affected him.
“I never really thought about college before. It wasn’t until I got to high school that I started to get worried. I mean it was the next step right?” he said.
When his status was uncovered, he went from a high school honors student to being deported to his home country of Costa Rica, where he hasn’t continued his education.
However, 26 years ago, undocumented students would not have had any hope at all to continue their education and lead successful lives. The Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 mandated employers to check the immigration status of their employees and it made it illegal to hire or recruit undocumented immigrants.
In recent years, efforts have been made to improve the lives for illegal immigrants, but there have also been obstacles. The DREAM Act, which fell before the Senate in 2010, would have allowed illegal immigrants a path to citizenship. In April of 2011, the Arizona Legislature passed a law that allowed police to check the documentation of any persons they have thought to be an undocumented citizen. Recently, that law was taken to the US Supreme Court, where it was reviewed and partially upheld.
The Obama Administration has had a steadily rising deportation rate until recently. In 2011, more than 390,000 illegal immigrants were deported compared to 2007, when it was a little more than 291,000, according to research done by the Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Now with the new policy in place, this number should begin to decline once again as undocumented immigrants have now been allowed a legitimate, although perhaps not permanent, path to a successful future.