univisionnews:

The President said during his annual State of the Union address that he would sign the DREAM Act. (Wikipedia)

by  JUAN GASTELUM
Channel: Politics, Immigration

In a move that pits him against Republicans in the running for the White House, President Obama said during his State of the Union address Tuesday that he would sign legislation to give some students in the country illegally an opportunity to stay.

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Political rant/brain hurl ahead. Opinions and feelings. Just a warning.

This is me nodding in approval. Someone had to own this issue again this election year.

But wait. Actually, I did that a year ago, too, didn’t I? Anyone remember how this DREAM Act mention is an almost exact parallel to the one in last year’s speech? — Yup. If you forgot: the DREAM Act was also mentioned then. And then it passed the House, and then it didn’t pass the Senate. Around the same time, Obama was told to stop campaigning on the DREAM Act, because, really, asking for money for mentioning an act that you should probably endorse anyway — based on the platform upon which many eligible Latino voters elected you — without actually managing to deliver relief from deportation for undocumented youth is kind of a ‘bit not good.’ We might as well send donations exclusively to scholarship funds (which is not a bad idea, and really, we should support such funds. Mexico is already building a fund to help some of its DREAM eligible students in the US; maybe it’s time I stop by my national Embassy in DC and make use of my network.) But this isn’t me calling out Obama. This isn’t me saying don’t support the campaign, don’t donate. I worked for this campaign in 2008. I’m proud of the accomplishments of the past few years, but, yes, I’m also impatient and critical. 

So, here is me calling out the system of electoral politics. Let’s be honest; if we care about this issue, then the choice is Obama. Someone take a look at the GOP platform landscape and give an alternative. 

Just because I know this doesn’t ease my frustration. For one, now Obama can’t say DREAM Act? He has to allude to it. And all I can think of is how much I want this to pass. Not for me because I don’t need it. I want this to pass for all those that do need it — desperately. 

But, really, the main argument still stands. Politicians, pay attention now: don’t just campaign on the DREAM Act as a way to get more funding. That’s a low tactic. And this year I hope groups are going to be on this even more — not just targeting Obama (because it’d be unfair to say he’s the only that has pulled a tactic like this in the past — it’s politics, right?) but any politician that does this: it’s about time immigration reform either passed on a campaign year or stopped being used as issue bating.

Immigration reform are words advocates own all the time — during the good and bad times. These are words, though, that only seem to mobilize Washington as a way to bait sympathetic/empathetic voters. After elections, immigration reform gets mentioned during the first 100 days, is relatively forgotten in the weight of paperwork and red tape, and then the year before an election year things seem to begin to move. Then, we’re disappointed by the results. And the cycle continues. (This is highly simplified. Just as a general warning.) Yes. Sometimes it’s beneficial for those that can continue to use the issue. I don’t need someone to remind me. But it doesn’t keep it from being hurtful to the confidence of a movement, stagnating for those actively waiting in the sidelines, and disingenuous to a portion of constituents that are able to vote and campaign and mobilize and are looking for active representation for one of their key issues. 

Yes, I’m aware of the constraints of electoral politics. Sometimes you have to push issues aside to win support to keep fighting for other issues and support more communities. (Because we all understand the logic that being in office creates the biggest impact in policy, right?) Here’s what I feel people are failing to understand: how many people are mobilized in this movement? Imagine if all of them were then working on your campaign full time instead of having to divide their time between multiple ones. And let’s not get started on voter-party loyalty here. I think we’ve at least outlined the basic picture…

Just some thought hurls. Now I return to my Oxford homework. 

Oh, before I forget! One thing missing from this report: Obama also encouraged the increase of visas for highly skilled workers, a majority of which complete degrees in the US, but then aren’t authorized to work here. This is important, too. Let’s not forget it!