Deferred Action: A Youth Grassroots Movement, Fraught With Uncertainty
By Victor Landa, NewsTaco
Depending on who’s counting, anywhere between 800,000 and 1.4 million (OK, 1.7 million according to some counts) young undocumented immigrants will begin the process of applying for President Obama’s “Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals” program today. We’ve been talking about the eligibility since the President signed the order in mid-July, but it merits repeating. This from the official USCIS website:
You may request consideration of deferred action for childhood arrivals if you:
- Were under the age of 31 as of June 15, 2012;
- Came to the United States before reaching your 16th birthday;
- Have continuously resided in the United States since June 15, 2007, up to the present time;
- Were physically present in the United States on June 15, 2012, and at the time of making your request for consideration of deferred action with USCIS;
- Entered without inspection before June 15, 2012, or your lawful immigration status expired as of June 15, 2012;
- Are currently in school, have graduated or obtained a certificate of completion from high school, have obtained a general education development (GED) certificate, or are an honorably discharged veteran of the Coast Guard or Armed Forces of the United States; and
- Have not been convicted of a felony, significant misdemeanor, three or more other misdemeanors, and do not otherwise pose a threat to national security or public safety.
To give us an insight into the significance of this day; how the movement that led to it has been led by young people; how it’s fraught with uncertainty; how the potential applicants should be careful; how long the process might take and what we should expect at the end of the two year deferment, we spoke to John De Leon, an attorney with the Chavez & De Leon Law Firm as well as President of the Greater Miami ACLU. We caught up with him during his morning commute.
Click on the link below to listen to the interview.
[Photo by mdfriendofhillary]