DREAM Relief Day brought thousands of undocumented youth to Navy Pier Aug. 15 to apply for deferred action.
U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill.; U.S. Rep. Luis Gutierrez, D-Ill.; and Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel and other dignitaries joined the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights (ICIRR) to help the thousands obtain opportunities to temporarily live, work and become educated legally in the United States.
The historic and celebratory day came about when the Obama Administration announced June 15 that it would offer many undocumented youths the opportunity to apply for The President's deferred action initiative, which allows them to be protected from deportation and eligible for work permits, driver's licenses, and other basic rights.
This first-ever effort welcomed applicants along with supportive family and friends. Lines wrapped around the building at the start of the day at and continued inside the building the rest of the day. With numbered folders in hand, eligible applicants waited to enter the ballroom.
"To see these many students come out, it was an emotional experience for me and for a lot of people who came in because these students in many ways symbolize the American dream for their parents," said Lawrence Benito, CEO for ICIRR.
Workshops focused on immigrant and worker rights with a college resource fair involving DePaul University, Loyola University, Northern Illinois University, Northeastern Illinois University, City Colleges of Chicago, University of Illinois at Chicago and the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign to kick-off the day. The seemingly endless lines then led to the ballroom, where DREAM Act-eligible youth could sit down to receive assistance with completing applications and get complimentary information.
According to ICIRR, more than 7,000 youth pre-registered to participate through the DREAM Relief website, DREAMrelief.org, with 600 volunteers helping them. Added into the mix were more than 50 attorneys and legal workers from the National Immigrant Justice Center who provided free consultations. ICIRR stated they provided full-service assistance to 1,500 DREAM Act-eligible youths.
Speakers gathered on stage to praise participants and their families, while sharing some of their own stories in an afternoon ceremony. Among the familiar faces was journalist and Define American founder Jose Antonio Vargas. Revealing he is undocumented last year in an essay featured in The New York Times Magazine, says the young DREAMers who have come out about their status inspired him.
"This is the most significant development in immigrant rights since 1986," he told Windy City Times. "If you think about it, you have an entire generation of people who've been taught to fear this government and now the government is saying, 'Come forward, tell us who you are, we won't deport you, we'll give u a work permit.' That's a massive turn around. I think it's historic and there's no going back."
Jorge Mena, an undocumented and queer youth, labels himself an "undocuqueer." Describing the day as overwhelming and exciting, he served as a volunteer. He suggests people take their time on the application and be sure to ask for help if necessary.
He recalled a time in his life when he felt he had to keep his queer identity and his undocumented identity separate, which was a constant struggle. Eventually, he explained, being queer helped him come out as being undocumented as he dealt with emotions.
"It's definitely been a struggle and it's definitely taken some time," he said. "For a while I was just going to immigration stuff and saying I was undocumented. For a while I was just going to LGBT stuff and saying I'm queer. It was like let's not talk about how these mix or intersectionality or anything like that. I think we've realized it's essential to talk about intersectionality. Putting them together made it feel more honest."
Maher Alhaj, of ICIRR and Lambda Legal, said he hopes the momentum seen in the crowd on day one continues and that there is an increase in immigration reform and immigration equality for everybody, including the LGBT community.
"We believe this undocumented movement includes the parents of these youth," said Alhaj. "It's not going to end here. We're going to have to be fighting it until we get comprehensive immigration reform, which includes undocumented parents and their families as well."
Although not everyone was able to be seen at this particular event, more workshops will be held continuously. Interested persons should visit the DREAM Relief website.
