Undocumented at Stuyvesant

Stuyvesant has long been known to have an exceptionally large immigrant student population. A recent survey done by the Spectator revealed that approximately 74 percent of the current freshman class is either an immigrant or a child of immigrants. This makes our current political climate particularly sensitive for Stuyvesant students, especially in light of all of the rhetoric against immigration by the Trump administration. Unfortunately, this negative attention has silenced many students. The truth is that an issue that affects one student in our school affects us all.

What is DACA and who are the DREAMers?

Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) is an American immigration policy proposed by former President Barack Obama in 2012. It is designed to help immigrant children who arrived in the United States illegally by protecting them from deportation and providing a work permit for two years. In order to qualify for DACA, immigrants must have entered the U.S. before their sixteenth birthday and lived here since, be a student or high school graduate, and remain in good legal standing. DACA does not provide an opportunity for citizenship or any sort of federal funding/welfare.

As of 2017, around 800,000 immigrants are protected by the program. These immigrants are also known as DREAMers, named after the DREAM Act bill first introduced in the Senate in 2001. This Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors Act was a proposal for a process that would grant immigrant minors conditional residency in the U.S. for six years. Following graduation from an institution of higher education or service in the military, and a demonstration of good moral character, immigrants would be able to apply for permanent residency. Though this bill was estimated to benefit over two million immigrants, it failed to pass in the Senate. Immigrants under DACA (which was passed, in part, as a response of the failure of the DREAM act) were coined DREAMers.

Why is DACA so controversial?

Those who oppose DACA claim that allowing immigrants with a deferred status to stay would transfer valuable resources, time, and money away from legal residents. This includes services such as health care, education, and even printing driver’s licenses. However, this concern turns out to be unfounded. By purchasing cars and homes and starting their own businesses, DACA recipients end up pouring revenue back into the states. On another note, many Republican leaders see the DACA program as Obama overstepping his executive power, since the policy did not go through Congress.

What does Trump have to do with DACA?

Following an extreme anti-immigration stance during his campaign and pressure from Republicans to rescind DACA, President Trump ended the program at the beginning of the month. No new applications are being accepted, and those who are currently under protection risk deportation starting March 2018. Trump did, however, pass off the responsibility of protecting the DREAMers off to Congress, tweeting, “Congress now has 6 months to legalize DACA (something the Obama Administration was unable to do). If they can't, I will revisit this issue!” This provides hope that legislation will be able to recover some of these protections.

What rights do undocumented immigrants have?

Undocumented immigrants are entitled to the same basic Constitutional rights as citizens. However, undocumented immigrants cannot obtain driver’s licenses in most states, nor can they vote or receive financial aid for college.

But all immigrants — documented are not — are entitled to be treated the same as citizens in our country are. They deserve our respect, kindness, and sympathy. Though as high school students, it is not in our power to pass legislation that will soften the stigma against these people, we should take it upon ourselves to speak out against misinformed stereotypes and treat all people with empathy and respect.

Interview

To humanize Stuyvesant’s undocumented community, we sent out a form to solicit anonymous interviews. This was the only response we received, which speaks to the precariousness of these students’ situation.

What is your current immigration status?

My parents came as foreign students and we got the [...] visa for it and if my parents get the visa then their children get the visa automatically. The visa got expired because my parents couldn’t afford to go to school and that’s why we’re currently undocumented.

Are you currently under DACA?

I came to America in 2011, so I’m not qualified for DACA.

Did you always know your status?

Yeah. Mostly because my parents cannot speak English that well, and I was the one who had to translate all the documents for them. Also, I’m the oldest person among the siblings and I have to take care of everything.

Why did you come to the U.S.?

The direct reason we came to America was because my dad was having a business and it didn’t go well and [he] was seeking new opportunity in a new land. In the long term, it would be for our education (for me and my siblings)...Since I’m undocumented now I don’t know if it that will happen.

What was your personal experience adjusting to the US?

I was really nervous on the first day of school. I did not understand half of the words my teacher and friends were saying. I went to a school in [another state] first and my friends there were really nice and were really friendly to me and were trying to get me to adjust to a new way of life. But then I moved to a new town and had to go to a new school, which was a lot harsher for me because people there were less friendly. There were a lot of times I would stay by myself during lunch. It was kind of hard… I moved to New York after one year in [another state]. I still remember the last day of school before moving to new York – I was on the school bus and there was this girl who was sitting in the back and … she yelled “I'm glad she's going” and I was sad.

How does the current political situation concerning immigration affect you?

DACA was the one way I could get a job and travel outside of America. If DACA still existed, they could have updated the year when you could come. Right now, you could get DACA only if you immigrated before 2008.

What is your opinion on the removal of DACA and the current political situation?

As the undocumented, we pay close attention to news about immigration and law changes, and I was paying attention to election day. I personally didn’t believe Trump would be president, and it was kind of like the end of the world I guess. I mean, that’s why I believe if Clinton became president it could have been better for us, even I could eventually gain citizenship I could at least hope of getting DACA and there is no hope for me right now to live in America. I’m trying to go to college but there's no way for me to afford it unless I become a citizen or at least a permanent resident. So that’s what I'm stressed about right now.

How do you feel at Stuyvesant as an undocumented immigrant?

It’s more diverse and more accepting. And I bet most people at Stuy don't like Trump. But I feel like there’s still a subtle tension that if I confront that I’m undocumented they would see me differently. This actually happened two days ago… Something came up and most of my friends knew I didn't get my citizenship yet and one of my friends actually asked, are you undocumented? And I guess I lied that I have green card and that wasn’t the first time I was asked that question and that’s usually how I get through those questions. Some of my closest friends knew I was undocumented but they didn’t really see me differently and they said they would try to help but I don’t know how they could help me… I talked to my guidance counselor about it and she was really accepting and she showed me a way: there’s a thing call BOLS – it’s volunteers of legal service, they provide lawyers to consult with undocumented people of how they can find a way to get out of their status. And my guidance counselor was really helpful and I actually went to the office and I met one of the lawyers and we talked about it and she was trying to help me but she said there's no way we can help you at this moment because of the laws and the status that I'm in.The biggest concern I have right now is trying to get to college. Undocumented people cannot have FAFSA or financial aid so that's why I have to talk to my Guidance Counselor more and with my College Counselor more.

Final statements

I just want to say that it can be anyone: your neighbors, the cashier you meet in your grocery store... To the undocumented people I want to say that I felt like I was alone, that our family was the only one that was struggling with this problem, [but] now that a lot of people are standing up because of the extermination of DACA I have more hope for it and hopefully I can gain my way through college and eventually [get] a job and [settle] better in America because that's the whole reason I came to America.

Resources for Undocumented Students

https://www.ilrc.org/living-united-states-guide-immigrant-youth

https://www2.ed.gov/about/overview/focus/immigration-resources.html

For college applicants: http://www.onlinecolleges.net/for-students/undocumented-student-college-guide/

Undocumented Youth Led Organization in NYC:https://www.nysylc.org/what-we-do/

Resources: https://www.nysylc.org/college-info/

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[a]This can be moved online. Rather, add in a large font "If you or a loved one are undocumented, please visit stuyspec.com for a list of resources."