The DREAM Act debate: Home is where the heart is

Among the many sacrifices my parents have made to protect our family from poverty and crime, there is one I thank them for the most: emigrating from our home country of Peru to the United States of America.

We sold our belongings, packed our bags, kissed our dear ones goodbye, and headed north to an uncertain future.

At the time, none of us knew that 11 years later what seemed then like the ultimate sacrifice would become a true blessing.

We soon learned that being an American was not all visits to Disneyland and eating Happy Meals. In fact, it was the complete opposite.

Being an American means working hard to better yourself, and this we did.

After years of mopping floors and cleaning tables, our family was finally able to afford a comfortable home where we can create memories together.

In a few months from now, my parents will become legal residents, each one receiving a work permit, a social security number, and a green card. They are one step closer to their dream of becoming American citizens.

Unfortunately, because my brother and I have passed the age limit to be included in my parents' petition for residency, we are not eligible to receive the same benefits as they will.

It saddens me that after paying my taxes, having a clean record, and achieving a higher education, I am still not able to become a legal American.

Fortunately, an act presented various times to Congress could be the light at the end of the tunnel for 700, 000 students illegally in the United States who strive to become citizens.

The Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors Act, better known as the DREAM Act, is sponsored by Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) and Sen. Richard Durbin (D-Ill.)

The DREAM Act offers those who were brought illegally to this country as youngsters by their parents, but have shown good moral character and can meet the requirements, an opportunity to apply for residency, and later on, citizenship.   

Some of those requirements to obtain Conditional Permanent Residency status are that the petitioner has to have entered the country before the age of 16; has to have graduated from high school or acquired a GED; has to have been present in the country at least five years before the legislation goes into effect; and must be between the ages of 12 and 35 at the time of application.

After these requirements are met, the applicants have two different paths they can then follow in order to receive a Legal Permanent Residency status: they can either go to college or join the military.

This is the requirement that has prompted pro-immigration activists to raise their voices against the bill.

According to them, immigrants in this country, especially Hispanics, face many obstacles that prevent them from pursuing a college education. Therefore, the military would become their only option.

During my journey through the educational system of this country, I confronted many obstacles.

I was segregated into classes with other kids of Hispanic heritage who had no interest in learning and were simply going to school because nowadays even a job at McDonald's requires a high school diploma.

For those who wanted to learn and strive for a higher education this was a poisonous environment, but even though I was a minority and, according to the critics of this bill, the system would keep me away from college, I fought tooth and nail and now I am getting ready to transfer into a university.

Just a few years ago, my native country of Peru had a president named Alejandro Toledo, who despite coming from a poor background, worked his way through middle school as a shoe shiner, graduated high school, and with the help of different organizations was able to study at the University of San Francisco and later on his master's degree from Stanford.

Want to talk about defeating the odds against a discriminatory system? Well there is a story for you.

On the other hand, many immigrants have for decades fought side by side with comrades of different heritages in various branches of our military, so offering this as another path to legalization is not out of the ordinary.  

It's understandable that the bill needs to be altered in certain areas to become acceptable for all parties involved, but this is a good start to a problem that the federal government has not been able to resolve, and the fast growing number of immigrants does not make things easier.

By legalizing the 700,000 illegal students who currently live in the shadows for fear of deportation, this country would create revenue in the long run. Not only financial, but also cultural and social.

New residents would have to pay taxes just like any other citizens, and would also inject money into our educational system by paying tuition, or would strengthen our military by enlisting.

The United States was founded by immigrants, and by completely shutting down legislation such as the DREAM Act you are stopping children, teenagers, and young adults who could become great individuals from enriching our nation.

Immigration is not a black-and-white issue. It has many different shades of color, and individuals who were brought here as children and are now itching to become prominent members of our society create a big chunk of it.

I believe the definition of what a citizen is goes way beyond what legislations or politicians can say or do.

Even though I am not even a resident on paper, I feel just as American as anyone who carries a passport that identifies them as a U.S. citizen.  

I have taken the decision to strive to be from the United States of America, even now when the rest of the world criticizes the image of our beloved nation, because deep down I know what our country stands for: freedom and equality.