蜜桃影视

With a proposed pathway to citizenship for America鈥檚 estimated 11 million undocumented residents, President Joe Biden鈥檚 immigration reform push could be lifechanging for millions of K-12 students 鈥� most of whom are themselves U.S. citizens.

But many aren鈥檛 holding their breath.

With a rash of executive orders on the first day of his presidency, Biden gave immigrant-rights groups reason to be hopeful, especially after former President Donald Trump made anti-immigrant policies the cornerstone of his administration. But they aren鈥檛 lost on the reality that comprehensive reforms must defy years of political gridlock in Washington 鈥� and that former . In fact, an inauguration-day executive order halting most deportations for 100 days has already been put on hold by a Trump-appointed federal judge in Texas.

鈥淣ot only do we have a problem with the Congress, we have a problem with the courts,鈥� said Patricia G谩ndara, a research professor at the University of California鈥檚 Graduate School of Education and co-director of The Civil Rights Project. 鈥淲e鈥檙e going to be in for a big fight.鈥�

A massive, forthcoming immigration bill, which reflects the Biden administration鈥檚 agenda, has also generated uncertainty and confusion. The legislation spearheaded by Sen. Bob Menendez, a Democrat from New Jersey, would create a pathway to citizenship for unauthorized residents who鈥檝e been in the country since the start of the year, including an expedited timeline for farmworkers, those with temporary protected status and 鈥淒reamers.鈥� Yet it remains unclear whether the quick pathway would be granted to youth who are too young to qualify for the Obama-era Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, which has granted work permits and deportation relief to hundreds of thousands of immigrants who were brought to the U.S. as children. A Menendez spokesperson didn鈥檛 respond to questions seeking clarification.

On his first day in office, Biden signed after Trump fought in court for years to end it. But the order did not spell out whether the new administration has any plans to alter the , which several researchers and advocates called outdated. In order to qualify for the program, which went into effect in 2012, recipients had to be at least 15 years old and had to have immigrated to the U.S. before 2007. Such requirements leave out a large swath of the estimated 772,000 undocumented U.S. residents under the age of 18, said Julia Gelatt, a senior policy analyst at the Migration Policy Institute, a Washington-based think tank.

Under the legislation, Dreamers 鈥� a term often associated with DACA recipients 鈥� would become eligible for green cards immediately and for U.S. citizenship after three years. Green cards would be available to the remaining immigrants in five years and citizenship in eight.

Though the bill鈥檚 text has not yet been released beyond , Gelatt said it鈥檚 possible that all young people, and not just those who currently receive DACA benefits, could be among those granted a fast track to citizenship.

鈥淲hen people say Dreamer, I think fundamentally what they mean is somebody who entered the United States without authorization as a child, and people see that as a sympathetic population because they weren鈥檛 the ones making the decision鈥� to move here, she told 蜜桃影视. However, she acknowledged that Biden鈥檚 executive order on DACA 鈥渟ounds like they鈥檙e trying to strengthen the legal arguments behind the current DACA program rather than expanding鈥� it. Nearly a decade after its passage via executive order, the program remains the subject of a contentious legal battle.

Beyond age requirements, immigration policies under Trump rendered a broader definition of Dreamers even more critical, said DACA recipient Reyna Montoya, founder and CEO of Aliento, an Arizona-based nonprofit that supports undocumented youth. People who were eligible for the program but hadn鈥檛 yet received its benefits were unable to apply for the first time as the Trump administration fought to end DACA in court. Now, her group is helping eligible recipients navigate the application process. She said it鈥檚 imperative that the Biden administration provide fast-track to citizenship to DACA-eligible recipients left in limbo by Trump.

鈥淚t鈥檚 really crucial that we鈥檙e including undocumented students who are also Dreamers, who weren鈥檛 able to apply for DACA because the prior President Trump decided to end the program,鈥� she said. 鈥淲e鈥檙e actually getting quite a few number of folks who did not qualify for DACA because they came [to the U.S.] either eight days or one year after the 2007 deadline.鈥�

Meanwhile in a far narrower immigration reform push, this week lawmakers , first introduced two decades ago, that creates a pathway to citizenship for some undocumented immigrants who came to the U.S. as children, a proposal that鈥檚 long faced setbacks in Washington but . The by Sens. Dick Durbin, a Democrat from Illinois, and Lindsey Graham, a Republican from South Carolina. The who came to the U.S. as children, graduate from high school or obtain a GED and work or pursue higher education, among other requirements. The legislation, which lawmakers said is , would include immigrants who moved to the U.S. before turning 18 and have lived in the country for at least four years.

Though the Menendez bill would reach far beyond those in the Dream Act, some in the immigrant-rights community are anxious about the degree to which young people are considered and, more broadly, the extent to which Democratic lawmakers are committed to sweeping immigration reforms. Deportations surged to record highs during Obama鈥檚 first term in office, outpacing those under Trump. Acknowledging this reality, Biden has characterized Obama-era deportations as a 鈥渂ig mistake.鈥�

Among those who are 鈥渃autiously optimistic鈥� is Viridiana Carrizales, the co-founder and CEO of Immschools, a nonprofit that partners with K-12 schools to support undocumented students and their families.

Biden鈥檚 swift action on immigration 鈥渟ends a super strong message鈥� that the new administration is invested in tackling immigration reform, she said, noting that the legislation would be critical for DACA recipients who鈥檝e fought for years to live in the U.S. without fear of deportation. But many families with younger children, she said, remain confused about where they fit in.

鈥淚t鈥檚 not very clear for me, and I know for many students, that it includes young students 鈥斅爕oung people of today,鈥� she said. 鈥淭hey鈥檙e left out of DACA and are left out of this as well.鈥�

A moment of hope

Ariadne, a 20-year-old student at Texas A&M University, is among the young people who are left out of the DACA program. She was just 13 years old when she moved to the U.S. from Mexico with her family in 2013, yet she remains ineligible for the deportation relief.

When she first came to the U.S., she recalled that her hands trembled from anxiety in school because she didn鈥檛 know how to speak English. She鈥檚 gained major confidence since then, with hopes of pursuing a Ph.D focused on immigration policy. Despite the roadblocks that come with being undocumented, she won鈥檛 be deterred from pursuing her dream. She鈥檚 OK with the possibility that DACA recipients could get a faster path to citizenship and said that Biden鈥檚 willingness to fight for immigration reform 鈥� especially so quickly in his presidency 鈥斅爈eaves her optimistic about her own future.

鈥淲e鈥檙e going to be heard, it鈥檚 just a matter of sooner or later,鈥� said Ariadne, who agreed to an interview on the condition that her last name be withheld because of her immigration status. 鈥淚鈥檓 being patient. The process of citizenship is so complicated 鈥� but it鈥檚 the land of opportunity for anybody who comes.鈥�

Yet for many young people, the reality of living in the U.S. without authorization has been the source of crippling fear. UCLA鈥檚 G谩ndara , finding in a survey that harsh immigration enforcement 鈥渟ignificantly dismantles an equitable education for all students and creates a critical threat to their futures.鈥�

鈥淭hey don鈥檛 just worry, they鈥檙e terrorized,鈥� she said. 鈥淭hey are crying, they鈥檙e upset, they鈥檙e not coming to school, they can鈥檛 concentrate, they鈥檝e got all kinds of mental health problems. It鈥檚 really, really tough on these kids and then it鈥檚 tough on their teachers.鈥�

Most of the kids who are traumatized by immigration enforcement, she emphasized, are U.S. citizens. As of 2018, there were an estimated 5.2 million children 鈥斅爄ncluding 4.4 million U.S.-citizen youth 鈥斅爈iving in the country with at least one undocumented parent, according to a recent . In total, they make up roughly 7 percent of the total child population of the U.S.

Given their share of the numbers, it鈥檚 the native-born children with undocumented parents who would be most affected by the expansive immigration bill, said Gelatt of the Migration Policy Institute. Other youth-focused highlights include a provision that would provide funding to schools that serve populations of unaccompanied minors. But even after a Texas judge halted Biden鈥檚 deportation moratorium, she said Biden鈥檚 approach to immigration enforcement is a major shift from that under Trump. Under a new set of immigration enforcement priorities, only a small percentage of the undocumented population would be subject to deportation, she said, including those with serious criminal records and those who pose a national security threat.

鈥淚 don鈥檛 know how this news is filtering down to immigrant families in the United States but, for now, a U.S. citizen child probably shouldn鈥檛 be very worried that their parent could be arrested by immigration authorities,鈥� she said. This shift in enforcement priorities 鈥� after the Trump administration 鈥済ave a sense across the United States that anybody, any unauthorized immigrant, could be arrested and deported at any time鈥� 鈥� could 鈥渞eally change how immigration enforcement is carried out鈥� moving forward.

Bill faces a wall of opposition

During a recent webinar, Menendez, the New Jersey senator, offered a sharp rebuke to those Trump-era immigration policies, declaring that Biden鈥檚 presidency represents 鈥渁 new day in America.鈥�

The Biden administration, he said, 鈥渨ill get our government back into the business of solving problems instead of creating them,鈥� unlike the Trump administration, which 鈥渟quandered billions on a futile border wall instead of addressing the root causes of migration.鈥�

But he acknowledged the roadblocks in his path, both in Congress and in the courts. Sen. Marco Rubio, a Republican of Florida, 鈥渁 blanket amnesty for people who are here unlawfully,鈥� while Graham, who is spearheading reintroduction of the older and more limited Dream Act, called comprehensive reform 鈥渁 tough sell given this environment.鈥� In Texas, meanwhile, state Attorney General Ken Paxton declared victory against Biden鈥檚 deportation moratorium, was 鈥渁 seditious left-wing insurrection,鈥� making comparisons to a Jan. 6 riot in the U.S. Capitol by a pro-Trump mob that left five people dead.

鈥淎s someone who has been in these battles for nearly two decades, I鈥檓 under no illusions,鈥� Menendez said, that getting the bill to Biden鈥檚 desk will be a 鈥渁 herculean task.鈥� In order to pass the Senate, the legislation would need approval from every Democrat, Vice President Kamala Harris and nine Republicans. 鈥淏ut it鈥檚 important, I believe, that we start this conversation from a position of strength, to advance a bold vision for immigration reform.鈥�

Given the Democrats鈥� narrow majority in the Senate, the bill is 鈥渧ery unlikely to pass Congress鈥� as written, Gelatt, of the Migration Policy Institute, said. But as Biden makes his intentions clear early in his presidency, the legislation offers a 鈥渟tarting point鈥� for a slew of separate bills, such as one that would enshrine DACA by law.

Biden鈥檚 early move also puts him on a different trajectory than Obama, who immigrant-rights groups famously dubbed the 鈥淒eporter in Chief,鈥� and was accused of putting the issue on the policy backburner until late in his presidency.

It鈥檚 this reality that continues to give some immigrant-rights activists pause. Montoya of Aliento said that many young people in her network have expressed optimism about Biden鈥檚 immigration push, but they鈥檙e being cautious because you 鈥渄on鈥檛 want to get your heart broken again.鈥�

鈥淎t the end of the day, Democrats have made promises before that they haven鈥檛 kept,鈥� she said. 鈥淭here鈥檚 that level of excitement and hope about 鈥楾here is a pathway forward, we can see it, but we don鈥檛 want to celebrate until it鈥檚 a reality.鈥欌��

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