Top Arizona DREAM Moments of 2012

The end of 2012 is a great time for reflection on the events that changed the lives of approximately 80,000 to 100,000 immigrant youth in the state.  There will be other lists for top moments at national level but these are our Arizona’s best.

1.-DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals).  It wasn’t because one day President Obama decided to be nice with the embattled DREAMers.  It was a calculated political move plus the result of DREAMers across the nation pressuring POTUS. The ADAC participated in the Right to DREAM Campaign, protesting in front of ICE’s offices and engaging the White House through social media. Efforts came on different fronts, using different tactics. 96 Law professors across the nation signed a letter to President Obama stating “Yes, You Can” give reprieve from deportation to DREAMers in response to President Obama's  reluctance to use his executive powers to alleviate the  DREAMers' situation . More on the letter to President Obama  here.  Arizona State University Professor Evelyn Cruz was one of the signatories to the letter. This “DREAM Act light” was the most significant victory in the immigrant rights movement in a generation.

2.-In State Tuition at Maricopa County Community Colleges.  One of our biggest victories. Legal Department and authorities at Maricopa County Community Colleges District (MCCCD), one of the largest colleges systems in the nation, were quick to find legal justification to offer In-Sate-Tuition to DACA grantees.  This move was in spite of Jan Brewer’s executive order denying Arizona IDs and Driver’s licenses to DACA grantees.   MCCCD kept the list of documents for in-state-tuition that was in place since the times of Prop. 300 implementation.  Governor Brewer, in an authoritarian move, changed the list of documents for granting Arizona State IDs and Driver’s Licenses eliminating the working authorization (I-766).

The quick and resolved response from MCCCD authorities came thanks to the intense protesting and scrutiny  the previous implementation of out of state tuition policies got since April 2011.  Long story short, we DREAM advocates put pressure on MCCCD in public and many, MANY, private meetings to show our displeasure on the disappearance of all reasonable tuition fees for immigrant youth. Here is an article on the series of protests by journalist Gregory Pratt.
The tuition hike came with subsequent collapse of the enrollment of undocumented students and the near collapse of some programs.

MCCCD was able to turn around the situation, find common sense, courage and offer a hopeful alternative for higher education that will benefit Arizona's future work force.

3.-The Arizona DREAM Act Coalition v Janice Brewer.  In an effort to pander to the GOP mostly white, old extremist base Gevernor Jan Brewer eliminated the work permit given to DACA beneficiaries from MVD’s list of valid documents for Driver’s Licenses and IDs.   Jan did it not for electoral benefits but for future personal economic gains (the afterlife of wagging-finger-at-the-tarmac Governor signing books and juicy speaking engagements). Even more distasteful, she issued her executive order the same day DREAMers celebrated USCIS launching of the DACA process on August the 15^th, 2012.   ACLU Arizona came to the rescue and slapped a lawsuit along with ACLU National, MALDEF and NILC with the Arizona DREAM Act Coalition et al as plaintiffs.  Members of ADAC, among them CADENA, SUFFRAGE, I DREAM, QUIP and others participated defining the lawsuit. The move was highly anticipated. The authoritative action (we call it bullying) against young people found complete silence from GOP figures at local and national level. Here is an article from Terry Greene Sterling on the issue. Now Michigan DREAMers are following our footsteps filing a lawsuit in their state.

4.- No DREAM Deferred-NDD.  With more than 1000 DACA applications submitted through the workshops and countless orientation for DACA applicants, NDD Coalition deserves a spot on the greatest Arizona DREAM moments of 2012. NDD is an all volunteer and free service to young people coordinated  by DREAMers from ADAC with the invaluable professional help of AILA Lawyers plus other partnering community organizations.  Great collaboration and team work in spite of the monetary  limitations.

 5.- Dulce Matuz, One of the 100 More Influential Persons in the World by TIME Magazine.

It was a great recognition of Dulce Matuz’s leadership (an ASU electrical engineer graduate and Carl Hayden Falcon Robotics alumna) but also national recognition of the DREAM Act movement en Arizona.  She is the first to point out the volunteer work and many sacrifices of all the active members of the movement who contribute to her effective leadership. 

Bonus top moments!

GED enrollment for DACA applicants. Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals came, for DREAMers who had not completed High School, with an opportunity to engage in education though enrollment on GED programs.  In spite of the many challenges this subgroup confronts it represents hope to young people to attain legal presence, work permit and a platform where they may construct personal educational improvement.  It would benefit individuals, families and the overall community.

Civil Rights Center-Department of Education Federal Complaint Against MCCCD. The tuition hike mentioned on top moment number 2 brought scrutiny from community members and specially Silverio Garcia of the Civil Rights Center.  MCCCD was treating Undocumented Charter High School students like community college students and submitting them to  harsh immigration-education policies. K-12 students are protected from legal status inquiries. CRC opened the door for the Department of Education to intervene.  Ruling is still pending but it was a great experience in advocacy, tools we can use in the future and returning some power to the community. Here is an Arizona Republic article on the issue.

Undocumented Youth on Time Magazine.

 American Citizens in waiting article featured amazing Arizona advocates Erika Andiola and Christian Lira among the national stars line up.  Another signal the DREAM Act movement have reached the notoriety from a little known legislation back in the day I started to advocate. Click for the TIME magazine cover and article here.

Don't Let Them Behind.  465 dollars can be a lot of money for immigrant youth, limiting for some the opportunity to apply for DACA.  Fortunately an anonymous donor contacted Chicanos por la Causa to start a fund  providing the USCIS- DACA application fees for DREAMers in need.  CPLC is reaching out to the community to grow the fund. I have been privileged to participate in the creation of the effort and witnessed DREAMers getting their checks to USCIS for their application. However, there is a lot of need for more funds like this to be created around the country. Start one !  Click here to donate !

Happy New Year 2013!

Great Moments in 2011

I corresponded some years ago with "Franko Music", a DREAM act student who wanted information on the Legislation. Years later a friend of his tells me he is in detention. His "crime": not to set a foot on the ground (a complete stop for a motorcyclist) in an intersection. Dulce Matuz, ADAC Chair and I, go around Maricopa County Sheriff Office and ICE- Phoenix to see where he is being held while making calls to coordinate a quick campaign. Genie Zavaleta works the connection with DC. State Legislator Catherine Miranda contacts local ICE officials.

Before attending CPLC Esperanza Awards (all decked up) we get the word he would be released. (Don't even have time to write a constant contact e-mail and start a campaign). Franko is released the same day of our intervention.  You can see Franko here at time of his release.  I always wanted to liberate persons in high heels.  


Tucson DREAMer.

Great team work saves Juan Manuel Munoz from deportation.  Lawyer Jose Penalosa,  always  ready to help DREAMers, provides all the professional help. Thanks to advocates Matt Matera, Yadira Garcia and friends in Tucson we coordinate a quick case.  
I felt so honored to have Congressman Grijalva's office monitoring the situation and offering help.

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During 2011 I was happy to  continue supporting  DREAMers initiatives like Carla Chavarria's  I DREAM  Campaign and Angelica-goes- to-Washington with press releases and pro-bono work by Critical Mass Communications, LLC.

This is More on Carla's  I DREAM  Campaign.

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How can I forget? I owned Paris for two and half weeks ! Thanks MEGA.

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Complete sadness: Maricopa County Community Colleges  (MCCCD) raised their tuition, pricing out DREAMers and some citizens out of higher education. Yes, part of the Pearce legacy. More damaging, they plan to implement an obscure law HB2008 full extent, full force, extreme interpretation. Thanks to hours and hours of pestering the Board, Chancellor and Machiavellic general counsel, Lee Combs with my friend Daniel Rodriguez we managed to tone down some of the implementation of HB2008 (like asking the immigration status of students riding vans to student' congresses). Next semester 5,000+ students dropped out of the Maricopa system. 

If you ask Mr. Combs, he will deny  he intended to ask MCCCD student's immigration status " on a case by case scenario". 
To this date, the press, nobody cares about it. #couldhavebeenevenworse.

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ADAC protests the Maricopa County Community College Boards for pricing out DREAM Act students taking 1 to 2 hours. I run a national campaign to ask the Chancellor to re-consider. Great help from Jackie Mahendra and team from Change.org.  At least we take it national and it is not an unknown pain. Sadness, anger. 

Students paid good money for their education. They will take their money other place. A grear option is State Legislator Catherine Miranda's Manzana Foundation partnering with the Navajo Technical College. 
Potential lost estimated for MCCCD: FTSE 2,265 Revenue $3,222,777.00 ( I think it is even more as now).

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Thanks to educational devastation created by  MCCCD's  Legal Counsel Lee Combs, we kind of figure out there were a lot of things going wrong at the Community Colleges. I replicate the craft of the journalists (my friend Gregory Pratt comes to mind) and I start requesting information to MCCCD invoking Freedom of Information Act (FOIA).  It opened a new world of possibilities and learning. POWERFUL tool. Now, I know too much (I should be killed). #Iwanttoknowmore! BUT #nobodycares!

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Carl Hayden Robotics continues kicking robotic butt. So honored to work on their press releases and know in advance how they are going to be profiled on the media. Very proud of student leader Maria Castro (profiled in a CNN special) Dulce Matuz (a robot named after her- welcome to the club!) and all the past, present and future Falcons.

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I got a phone call. An ASU student's best friend is in detention. Did an intensive research in a matter of hours. Great, beautiful young lady. Got really upset since she was about to get transported to Florence or other of the detention holes (I know what might happen there.  If you do not know, read this study by UofA).I get determined to get her out QUICK. Sent my constant contact online petition. Great help from Mohammad Abdollahi to make the petition GO NATIONAL. Nallely is out by the evening. (Michelle Dallacrose has been gaining weight ! Haha).

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Starting 2011, we were able to save Pedro Gutierrez from deportation thanks to Mohammad Abdollahi,  Lawyer Mo Goldman, the great ADAC and Pedro's mentors. Here is one of the many media clips on Pedro and the awesome PR job.
So honored to have coordinated the campaign (even when I was shivering with fever and the flu).

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I'm looking forward 2012 for more advocacy and great times !
Good bless you all, dear readers!

Why Ban When You Can Price them Out???

It is like an euphemism. Do not ban undocumented students from Higher Education just price them out. On the day Community Colleges classes start in 10 institutions in the Metro Phoenix area, members of the Arizona DREAM Act Coalition and Education Advocates mark with sadness the elimination of affordable tuition rates for out of state students.

Last March Maricopa Community Colleges District (MCCCD) approved a tuition hike close to 230% targeting “Out of State” individuals including, but not exclusively, undocumented students which already made countless sacrifices to pay for one or two classes each semester.

MCCCD is one of the largest Community Colleges systems in the nation.

“Out of State” students taking six credits hours or less (one or two classes) paid last semester 96 dollars per credit but under the new policies implemented, MCCCD is charging 317 dollars per credit or about 1000 dollars per class even if they take limited schedule. Students taking more than six credits have been already paying triple “In State Tuition” for years already.

Before the tuition hike 1 to 6 credit hours was the little window of opportunity for affordable higher education undocumented students had in one of the largest community colleges systems in the nation.

Beside the tuition hike, MCCCD voted for a harsh interpretation of laws that require the reporting to ICE and DHS of undocumented students by the institution that students are supposed to trust. The financial and admission department’s personnel are forced to report on the immigration status of the students if they disclose it. The powerful and influential Legal Counsel threatens jail time to not complying personnel.

The process in which these changes were implemented was done in secrecy, with original implementation taskforces disappearing and other political interest groups supplanting a cross-section of the departments that deal with enrollment.

The implementation of these measures is contrary to the financial health of MCCCD because they will lose income from thousands of students dropping out and now it takes more personnel time to check on the paperwork of ALL students. Also new forms have been printed, new processes established and hasty personnel training given to have the appearance of compliance also adds to the costs of implementing flawed policies.

The MCCCD board has, in short, betrayed its own mission of providing access to higher education.

The new policies are also affecting programs that MCCCD had in partnership with K-12 institutions including ACE, dual enrollment, and its own charter schools, which prepared students to move into post-secondary education. The reporting issue is also present in these environments, possibly violating Federal laws.

This situation we live in Arizona is contrary with the well-being of the State. Our State will not have a globally competitive workforce if higher education affordability is eliminated for thousands and thousands of students.

What happens in Arizona is also a cautionary tale of the spreading tentacles of a battery of immigration laws passed over a period of time.