Twenty-five college students who are raising money for school and promoting greater access to higher education for undocumented students rode into town Saturday, a little worse for the wear due to several mishaps, on day two of a nine-day, 540-mile bicycle ride from UC Berkeley to UC Los Angeles.
The second annual Tour de DREAM (Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors) Act ride is a student effort to raise awareness around the barriers to education some students face. They hope pending legislation - House of Representative Bill 1751 and Senate Bill 729, or the DREAM Act of 2009 which was first introduced years ago - will make college a more attainable goal.
The bipartisan legislation would grant states a way to allow undocumented students, who meet specific requirements, to receive expedited federal assistance to earn a college degree, participate in military service and have a path to citizenship. Both bills seek to amend the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 to permit states to determine state residency for higher education purposes.
"Now I am an American citizen but I remember how it felt when I had a work permit and how intimidated I felt," said Christian Alvarado, 25, a senior who is majoring in community studies at UC Santa Cruz. "I want to give opportunities to other students and help improve our economy. If we give people an opportunity to work with a degree after college, it will help our community a lot."
Each year, the DREAM Act gets a little more support, said Erik Ramos, 22, who is another of six UCSC students on the ride. Ramos, a fourth year politics and Latin American studies major, is at the helm of a tandem bike with Alvarado who is legally blind. The pair practiced for several months to get in shape for the ride.
"Immigration is a hot topic these days," but rather being a symptom of stronger sentiment, it's just a more public expression of what's always existed, Ramos said. "For us, it pushes us to press our legislators. Each year it's looking better and better."
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SOURCE: Mercury News
