I don’t envy California Governor Jerry Brown. With the second part of the California Dream Act now on his desk, he must choose between (A) providing hope to the state’s college-ready—but undocumented—students while feeling the wrath of many angry taxpayers who are opposed to public money going to illegal immigrants or (B) vetoing the bill and feeling the wrath of the state’s teachers, Hispanic community, and other vocal groups.
Each side is supported by valid arguments. But the debate is turning into another divisive issue in which the underlying complexities get simplified into black-or-white extremes. Pick a side and you risk being called either a treasonous bleeding heart or a backwater racist.
Brown already signed the first part of The California Dream Act into law, which gives undocumented immigrants the right to apply for privately funded college scholarships. The second part of the legislation would enable undocumented students who graduate from a state high school—and can demonstrate both merit and need—to qualify for the state’s publicly funded grants and scholarships.
This all comes at a time when California, like many states, is broke. As a result, tuition at some of the state’s public colleges and universities will be rising, even as admissions get scaled back and the waiting lists at community colleges grow longer.
There is already huge student demand for public post-secondary education that the state is unable to meet. That’s why many people question the wisdom of providing even easier access to students who are not in the U.S. legally.
The San Francisco Chronicle highlights the existing situation:
According to a legislative analysis, the bill would cost the state up to $40 million per year. Colleges and universities don’t track the immigration status of students, but higher education officials have said that there are about 3,600 students who are undocumented or who have other residency issues in the California State University system, and as many as 642 in the University of California system and 34,000 enrolled in community colleges.
It’s About Hope
Supporters of the California Dream Act point out that most of the students who would benefit are the children of parents who brought them into the U.S. illegally. These are residents of California who, through no fault of their own, know only America as their home.
These students are not criminals. They are simply caught in the middle of a tragic situation caused by the actions of their parents who were desperate to provide a better life for them.
Risking your life to cross a border illegally is not done just for kicks.
And, like it or not, the economic reality is that undocumented workers have become a key component in the competitiveness and survival of a number of American industries such as construction, hospitality, and agriculture.
In fact, multiple objective studies by respected institutions have shown that, despite some of the unsavory public costs, illegal immigrants may actually provide a net economic benefit. Many illegal immigrants even pay taxes (to every level of government).
Supporters of the Dream Act believe that enabling more undocumented students to get a college education will result in a better economy for California down the road since such students will be able to help replace retiring baby boomers in positions where a shortage of skilled labor is expected. They say it is “an investment in the future.”
At the very least, human compassion dictates that we should respect the point of view of undocumented students and give the ideas aimed at supporting them a fair hearing.
The Flip Side
Many opponents of the California Dream Act believe that such legislation is akin to robbing U.S. citizens and handing their money over to people who have no right to it (and should actually be detained and deported). They feel that any program that hands out public benefits to illegal immigrants will only encourage more illegal immigration.
The California Dream Act is a particularly hard sell given today’s poor economy in which jobs are scarce, even for college graduates. The limited amount of money for student assistance, it can be argued, should reasonably go to all deserving students who reside in the country legally before ever entertaining the notion of sharing it with undocumented students.
Who Wins, Really?
Personally, I have mixed emotions about this issue. I understand and empathize with both sides. I would, however, probably lean toward support of the California Dream Act if not for one important fact: it doesn’t include a path to U.S. citizenship for the undocumented students it would benefit.
I’m all for the compassionate aspect of the legislation; giving hope to an underclass of U.S. residents—illegal or not—is a noble thing to do. (After all, the federal government gives all kinds of financial aid to foreign nations. Why not to those who actually live and contribute here?) But I’m not sure this idealistic vision can survive for very long given the national political realities of the moment.
There seems to be little practical value to the California Dream Act when the students it benefits would graduate with new skills and knowledge but wouldn’t have a right to work and apply them. It provides hope without any payoff. Minus citizenship, educated-but-undocumented workers could still find themselves stuck in the bowels of the impoverished underclass.
Of course, supporters of the California Dream Act believe that it would put pressure on the federal government to finally tackle the immigration issue and enact a Dream Act of its own that would address the citizenship component.
I don’t know about you, but I’ve been paying attention to what’s going on in Washington, D.C. lately. It’s called gridlock. It’s ugly. These days, progressive ideas like immigration reform can’t even get out of the starting gate at the federal level.
There is no doubt that this is a difficult issue. But we must not lose sight of the fact that it is about real human lives, real people:
We all lose when we demonize each other instead of accepting reality as it is and moving from there to find common ground and good solutions.
And, sometimes, the right thing to do runs counter to our accepted wisdom. The question we should be asking is this: What is our shared vision for America?
How do we want to feel, as individuals and as a larger community? Let’s put our venom and polarizing politics away and work backwards from a set of common needs and desires to find out what makes the most sense. Let’s allow facts to overrule ideology.
In the meantime, we have legislation like the California Dream Act that challenges the beliefs we hold dear. It is an opportunity to step up and talk to each other with mutual respect. No matter your position, there is more to be gained by listening than by shouting.
What do you think?
