Trying to Keep The American Dream Alive

Bisera Rozic is a DePaul University student majoring in Economics and a PCG intern.

It is known that the Obama Administration has had a record amount of deportations during its term. But with the fight to pass the DREAM Act,  Friday's announcement does make one wonder if it was a political move or something more. It is important to point out that most of those deported have broken the law, either through committing a crime or breaking immigration rules. On Friday, it was announced that the Obama Administration will not deport young undocumented immigrants if they met a certain criteria.

• They were under 16 years old when they entered the United States
• They are currently under 30 years old.
• Are enrolled in school, have completed high school in the States, or have served in the military.
• They have lived in the States for at least 5 continuous years. 
• They have been law-abiding residents with a clean record. 

Political pundits see the announcement as a political move because Mitt Romney has vowed to veto the DREAM Act if he became the president.There has been a lot of heat coming from the GOP. Arizona governor, Jan Brewer, called the President's move as "blatant political pandering". The LA Times also reports that Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano defended the Administration's move to relax deportation by saying, “It is an exercise of discretion to … ensure that we are not clogging the immigration system with low-priority cases involving productive young people.”

Since the Obama Administration will not seek deportation of those who meet the criteria, this means that some 800,000 people will be spared deportation and will have the ability to pursue the American Dream. No one can argue with valid proof that undocumented immigrants do not contribute to the economy. Alabama felt the impact of their anti-immigration law in a negative way through their economy. Aside from working jobs that most citizens would not do, most undocumented immigrants pay taxes.

Whether it is a political move or not, I hope the shift stays and lawful, productive youth have the ability to strive for their dreams.