Thirty More DREAMers To Attempt Entering U.S. To Protest Immigration Laws

By admin September 30, 2013 15:25

It was considered a risky, shocking, and provocative move when three undocumented immigrants returned to Mexico this summer, only to seek to re-enter the United States – with six others who joined them at the border. The move by what came to be known as the DREAM9 was, in fact, a protest against U.S. immigration policy and the record number of deportations that have occurred under the Obama administration.

But now, 30 more – who once lived in the United States, and either left on their own or were deported – are scheduled to seek re-entry on Monday when they approach U.S. border agents in Laredo, Texas.

“All 30 taking part are DREAMers; meaning they would otherwise qualify for the Dream Act, should it ever pass,” said a press release by Mohammad Abdollahi, head of National Immigrant Youth Alliance, which organized the first protest re-entry as well as Monday’s.

We’re already in touch with dozens of more Dreamers ready to participate in the next round. Bottom line, we won’t rest until the 1.7 million [who have been deported] are allowed to be reunited with their families.

– Mohammad Abdollahi, head of DreamActivist.org

“They come from all over! Some of these kids have traveled as far as Tijuana, Guerrero, Cancun & even Lima, Peru!” the release added. Just like the DREAM9, who were held in a detention center in Arizona for a few weeks before being released pending a final decision on their political asylum claims, the DREAM30 have come under fire from critics who have said they were engaging in a publicity stunt and are mocking a program that exists for people whose lives have been threatened in their home countries.

The DREAMers are requesting political asylum, saying they feared persecution if they returned to Mexico, where drug violence from cartels has soared. While the U.S. makes a decision on their application, they are allowed to work and remain in the country legally. It is unclear what the federal government will do with the 30 more DREAMers who are crossing on Monday.

“Obviously this is theater and they’re looking to make further mockery of U.S. immigration laws,” said Ira Mehlman, spokesman for the Federation for American Immigration Reform, which pushes for strict immigration policies. “They’re going back to a country they say they’re being persecuted in only to request political asylum. They’re taking something from U.S. immigration policy – political asylum – that is reserved for humanitarian purposes and using it to create some kind of street theater for their own political agenda.”