On Tuesday, October 13, over 400 SEIU members joined fellow activists and religious leaders for an immigration lobby day and rally to urge Congress to move immigration reform legislation forward. "We've traveled to Washington to tell our Congressman to stop costly immigration enforcement policies that rip families apart, upset workplaces and harm local communities," said Julio Sotelo, an SEIU Local 26 member who cleans office buildings in Minneapolis, MN and who traveled over 23 hours by bus to attend Tuesday's day of action.

The Capitol Hill rally featured Rep. Luis Gutierrez (D-IL), chairman of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Immigration Task Force, who outlined specifics of immigration reform legislation he plans to introduce in the House in coming weeks.

Legislation elements discussed by Rep. Gutierrez included:

• a rational, humane approach to the undocumented population;
• protections for U.S. and immigrant workers;
• sufficient visas to close unlawful migration channels;
• enhancing our nation's security and safety;
• establish a strategic border enforcement policy that reflects American values;
• keeping American families together;
• promoting immigrant integration; and
• including the DREAM Act and AgJOBS; and protecting fundamental rights for all.

"There are too many families separated, too many lives destroyed by failed immigration policies that benefit no one," said Julia Marroquín, 19 year old DREAM student from Minneapolis and daughter of SEIU Local 26 member Lucresia Mares. "This is our moment to put behind us the failures of the past and reform the U.S. immigration system once and for all so that it supports all U.S. families and strengthens this country that we love."

(Thanks to America's Voice for this video of Tuesday's event)

More coverage of the rally in the NY Times.

On Wednesday, thousands of immigrant students held over 120 events in 28 states to support legislation that would allow talented DREAM students who view this country as their own to attend college, serve their nation, and earn a path to U.S. citizenship. States with the most "Back to School" events included Illinois (7 actions statewide), Texas (11 actions), Florida (15 actions) and California (almost 30 actions).

"It doesn't matter if they came here illegally," said University of Mexico student Lee Kittell said as he signed his name to the petition supporting the DREAM Act bill. "If they've been contributing to society they need to be citizens."

In addition to shining a somber light on the urgent need for comprehensive immigration reform, the National Back to School DREAM Act Day of Action shined a somber light on the urgent need for comprehensive immigration reform by highlighting DREAM students like Herta Llusho and Jorge-Alonso Chehade who are fighting deportation from the only country--and home--they know. Click here to call Senators Pat Murray and Maria Cantwell to help save Jorge-Alonso from deportation.

"These brave valedictorians, honor students, and future leaders embody the American Dream, wanting nothing more than to serve the country they've grown up in and build a stronger America," said SEIU Executive VP Eliseo Medina in a statement. "America can do better. America must do better. It's time to open the doors of opportunity, pass the DREAM Act and pass comprehensive immigration reform that honors our values, strengthens our economy, supports working families, and restores the rule of law for the long-term." Read coverage in the NY Daily News, Seattle Times, Denver Daily News, and the Associated Press. More media coverage featured on dreamactivist.org here.

UPDATE: A new video:

Jorge-Alonso Chehade came to the U.S. from Peru as a child and is now facing deportation next Friday, September 25. He and a friend accidentally crossed the Canadian border while trying not to violate traffic laws, a March 2009 incident which, ironically, led to his arrest by Immigration and Customs Enforcement and sadly, his pending deportation.

Watch Alonso's call to action:

Jorge-Alonso Chehade graduated from High School with honors, attended community college and worked hard enough to transfer to a top-tier university, where he received a degree in Business Administration from the prestigious Michael G. Foster School of Business at the University of Washington. He is quite literally the embodiment of the American Dream, but our broken immigration system has prevented him from continuing down his career path after graduation. His story is part of a broader narrative of the challenges faced by immigrant students who have grown up in the U.S. and embraced American ideals, but are unable to fully contribute to our country because current immigration law does not provide a mechanism for them to do so.

On his Facebook Support Group, Alonso writes:

I am very grateful to the many opportunities that America has offered me and I am ready to give back. This is why I would like to stay in the country, work, pay taxes, and bring change by joining all national efforts in support of the DREAM Act.

Alonso has earned the chance to live and work here and call America home--and ICE needs to hear from us that he should be allowed to stay. The goal is to get at least 3,000 signatures--we currently have around 2,500. Sign onto U.S. Senators Patty Murry and Maria Cantwell's letter to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) on Alonso's behalf, requesting that they defer action on his deportation.

We've been successful with Walter Lara and Taha Mowla, now let's do all we can for Jorge Alonso! Please let your friends and family know how they can sign the petition on his behalf too: http://action.seiu.org/page/invite/invitejorgeltr. Later this week, Alonso will deliver the signed petitions in person to ICE.

Twitter & Facebook Support: Support the DREAM Act & allowing Alonso to stay in America on Twitter by posting this message: Another #dreamact student in trouble - STOP @jache0220 Deportation. Co-sign Senators' letters and RT http://t.seiu.org/zr8bqw #alonsochehade. Join his Support Group on Facebook here, where regular updates are being posted.

SEIU's latest Dream Act campaign on behalf of Herta Llushlo has generated over 3,700 letter to the Dept. of Homeland Security.

Herta sent the following email to her supporters earlier today:

Dear Friend,

I'm Herta Llushlo, and thank you - for all of the calls made and all the letters written to DHS and ICE on my behalf, I just want to say thank you from the bottom of my heart.  I also want to give you an update on next steps.

First, the good news: I've been issued an order of supervision which means I'm not being deported-- for now.  The reality of the situation is that an order of supervision is not a great position to be in. I have to report back to ICE on November 9, 2009 and learn my fate.

You've helped me buy some time but I'm not out of the woods. We still have work to do to keep the pressure on DHS to not deport me back to the country I left when I was 11 years old.

Can you help me reach my goal of sending 5,000 letters to DHS and ICE? 

I've recorded a special message for you and after you watch it, please sign on to my letter.

I have to tell you that on Wednesday, the day I was scheduled to be deported to Albania, my bags were packed and I had them with me when I reported to the Detroit ICE office.  I truly didn't know what to expect--and I especially didn't expect to see a stack of letters written on my behalf, over 9 inches tall, sitting on the officer's desk.

That's over 3,000 letters!  It's an amazing response and I couldn't have done it without you.

Now, we just need to convince Secretary Napolitano to grant an order of deferred action for me.

Help me reach my goal of sending 5,000 letters to DHS and ICE by clicking here:

http://action.seiu.org/page/speakout/dhsrequest4herta

Thank you for all of your support!

Herta Llushlo  

Here's Herta's special message:

Today, after days of activism by Senator Carl Levin, Representative Carolyn Kilpatrick and thousands of grassroots activists, Herta reported to to the Detroit ICE office at 10:30 am this morning, and was granted and extension on her deportation to Albania, until November 9, 2009.

Herta issued a statement saying:

"Today's decision from DHS comes as a great relief to me and to my family and I am eternally thankful to Senator Levin, Representative Kilpatrick and the thousands of activists who rallied on my behalf. I began my day--bags packed--not knowing where I would rest my head tonight. I close the day with an even greater faith in the goodness and fairness of this great country.

"While this temporary extension is a great first step in my struggle, there is much more work to do to ensure I can remain, pursue my dreams to become an engineer, and give back to the country that I love. Today, I am taking a deep breath; but tomorrow, I will be back out there fighting for my future and the future of thousands of students just like me who want nothing more than to stay, serve, and work in the country that they know and love."

And fight we will, because while this is certainly a step in the right direction, Herta will still have to report back to ICE on November 9th--and that's not good enough.

DHS and ICE need to grant Herta deferred action on her deportation.

We can't let up on DHS and ICE. Help us reach our goal of 5,000 letters by the end of the week!

Already, because of your efforts, over 2,500 letters have been sent to DHS and ICE. Now help us reach our goal of 5,000 letters by the week's end.

Go to http://action.seiu.org/page/invite/hertacallinvite and sign onto Herta's letter to DHS and ICE.

In the coming weeks, the Llusho family and a growing group of activists will continue to push for deferred action on Herta's case, which would allow her to remain in the country while she pursues her college education and while Congress considers immigration reform--particularly the DREAM Act. The DREAM Act would allow immigrant students who were brought to the US as children, such as Herta, to become permanent residents upon completing college or military service, thereby allowing these students to fulfill their potential and fully contribute the their communities.

For more on comprehensive immigration reform, visit www.seiu.org/immigration.

UPDATE - 5:44 pm

We're already half way to our goal of 5,000 letters to DHS and ICE. Take action now and if you've already signed onto Herta's letter, please forward it to a friend!

DREAM activist Walter Lara sent out an update on where things stand with Herta this morning.

At this point, The Department of Homeland Security and ICE, have still not made a decision on Herta's application for deferred action.

Today, at 10:30 am, EST, Herta will present herself to the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) field office in Detroit - where she will learn if she stays or if she will be deported.

Secretary Janet Napolitano, Assistant Secretary for ICE John Morton, and ICE field officer Vincent Clausen need to hear from you - right now.

Click here to write your letter:

http://action.seiu.org/writedhs4herta

Already, thousands of people around the country have rallied for Herta, writing letters, asking that she be permitted to remain in the United States.

I know Herta would not want us to let up, in fact she's counting on us not to.

Click here to write your letter:

http://action.seiu.org/writedhs4herta

We'll update you again as soon as we learn something new, but in the meantime, keep Herta and her family in your thoughts and prayers.

Walter Lara sent the following email out, in support of Herta:

Herta, 19, is being deported to Albania on August 19, 2009. Help us stop her deportation!!

Tomorrow, Herta Llushlo is scheduled to be deported to Albania - her bags are already packed.

You can make sure that doesn't happen.

Can you write in support of Herta Llushlo?

Click here to write your letter to Secretary Napolitano:

http://action.seiu.org/writedhs4herta.

While efforts to pass the DREAM Act continue, ask Secretary Napolitano to defer Herta's deportation.

You saw what we were able to do for immigrant students like myself and Taha - now Herta needs our help.

Click here to write your letter to Secretary Napolitano:

http://action.seiu.org/writedhs4herta.

---

Join the facebook group for immediate updates.

Read Herta's story after the break.

SEIU is working in conjunction with Dreamactivist.org again to stop the deportation of Herta Llushlo.

Check out her story and then use our click to call tool to call DHS and ask them to defer Herta's deportation.

In the fight for comprehensive immigration reform, the inclusion and passage of the Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors Act (also known as the DREAM Act) is paramount to why we need comprehensive immigration reform. The DREAM Act would provide certain immigrant students of good morale character the opportunity to earn conditional permanent residency. Immigrant students who came to live in the U.S. as children, have been in the country continuously for at least five years (prior to the bill's enactment) and graduated from a U.S. high school fall into this category.

Herta is one of these students - here is her story:

My name is Herta Llusho, I am 19 years old, and I'm writing this because I'm about to be deported. I was born in Albania and was brought to the United States when I was 11 years old. With the help and support of my family, I have struggled through more than seven years of legal proceedings to find a way to stay in this country legally. Despite our best efforts, on August 19, I will be removed by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) from the only place I know as my home. I will be sent back to a country that has become a foreign place to me. I don't even speak Albanian well anymore. My only hope of staying here is for as many people as possible to ask DHS to delay my deportation until the DREAM Act is passed.

You saw what we were able to do for immigrant students Walter Lara and Taha Mowla.

Now, Herta needs our help - please use the click-to-call tool now to call DHS and ask them to defer Herta's deportation.

SEIU is teaming up with Dreamactivist.org to help stop the deportation of another Dream Act student, Taha.

Like Walter Lara, Taha Mowla was brought to the USA when he was a toddler.

He has lived in Jersey City for more than 16 years.

On July 29, 2009, he will be deported to Bangladesh - a country that he has no memory of or connection to.

If Taha returns to Bangladesh, he will never have the chance to complete the education he has worked so hard all of his life to acquire.

Taha doesn't read or write Bengali. He doesn't even know its alphabet. Moving back there will mean moving to a foreign country where he'll have to start his life again from scratch.

Taha has been educated in America, K - 12. He achieved many awards in high school such as Academic Author Award, Principal's Award, Honor Roll and Merit Wall.

His teachers opened his eyes to so many great opportunities in this country. His dream career is to be a pediatrician, working in a clinic or hospital environment, and giving back to our great country that has given him so much.

Taha has been accepted to St. Peter's College in Jersey City, NJ to study Marketing and Pre-Med.

Picture yourself in Taha's shoes. All that he needs help with is getting permission to continue living in the country he loves and calls home so that he can complete his education--and spend the rest of his life giving back to this country, the only home he can ever remember living in.

Here are 5 ways you can help:

1. Spread the word about Taha's case: http://action.seiu.org/page/s/meettaha

2. Co-sign Sen. Menendez's letter on behalf of Taha: http://action.seiu.org/page/s/menendezltr

3. Call DHS and tell Sec. Napolitano to defer action on Taha's deportation: http://call.seiu.org/9/calldhs

4. Call New Jersey Sens. Menendez, Lautenberg and Congressman Sires and ask them to file a private bill on Taha's behalf. : http://call.seiu.org/9/callcongress4taha

5. Join Taha's Facebook group: http://www.facebook.com/home.php?ref=home#/group.php?gid=233343415360

Earlier today, Congressman Polis praised SEIU in his personal privilege floor speech for our work on behalf of Walter Lara and the DREAM Act.

Call your Senator right now and ask them to support the DREAM Act.

We did it!

Today, Walter Lara was supposed to be sent back to Argentina -- a country that he left when he was 3 years old and has no memory of. But thanks to everyone who rallied around Walter's cause and took action, he's not being deported today.

Here's what grassroots and immigration rights activists did together on Walter's behalf:

• Over 3,000 people co-signed Sen. Nelson's letter
  
• Over 1,000 calls were made to the Department of Homeland Security--so many that their message system was overwhelmed.

Thanks to DREAMer activism, Walter did not have to spend Independence Day saying goodbye to his family. But we can't stop here--not while 2 million young people who were brought to the U.S. years ago as undocumented immigrant children remain at risk for having their lives in this country cut short and dreams deferred. Not while we are still in the business of stopping one deportation at a time.

Here's a message from Walter on how we can clear a path for other undocumented students and support higher education for all students:

To Secretary Janet Napolitano, Senator Bill Nelson, Representatives Corrine Brown, Lincoln Diaz-Balart, words cannot express my gratitude. Their action is an acknowledgment that our immigration laws are broken.

But personal interventions won't help the tens of thousands of others in the immigrant community who stand to benefit from passage of the DREAM Act.

This is why we need Congress to pass the DREAM Act.

Call your Senator right now and ask them to support the DREAM Act.

I was lucky, but the reality is that someone else is being deported today.

Please call them.

Thank you,
Walter Lara

Twitter, YouTube, Facebook and the blogosphere have been buzzing over the past 48 hours, as thousands of grassroots activists and Congressional leaders contacted the Department of Homeland Security to stop the deportation of Walter Lara, a 23 year-old honor student facing deportation this Independence Day weekend. Today, Walter Lara was granted a one year stay of his deportation.

In response to DHS's deferment, Walter issued the following statement:

"Today, words cannot express my gratitude to Secretary Janet Napolitano, Senator Bill Nelson, Representatives Corrine Brown, Lincoln Diaz-Balart, and the thousands of grassroots activists whose unified efforts have given me a second chance to live out my American Dream.

"As I look to celebrate Independence Day with family and friends this weekend, I have once again seen what makes America the best country in the world. Americans are fair, just, and kind. When we unite our strength to defend our shared values -opening rather than shutting the doors of opportunity - we can achieve anything. As I have said before, America is the only country I have known and I am an American. I have never been more proud to say that than I am today.

"But even as the dust settles on this tremendous personal victory, my sights are clearly set on the struggle ahead to build a long-term future for me and the more than 2 million like me whose lives may be cut short and dreams deferred.

"The action taken by the leaders in Congress and the Department of Homeland Security is an acknowledgment that our immigration laws are broken. The DREAM Act, if passed, would help people like myself, who came here through no fault of their own, stay in this country, be put on a path to citizenship and contribute to our nation."

More background on Walter and the campaign that spread that wildfire to keep him from being deported after the break.

Walter Lara is an honor student who has lived in the U.S. since his parents brought him here from Argentina when he was just 3 years old. Almost 20 years later, Walter is set to be deported this July 4th weekend.

On February 17, 2009, Walter was with his boss (a DirectTV contractor) about to get on a ferry that would take him to Fisher Island so they could work on some installations. In ten minutes, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) authorities surrounded the vehicle and bombarded Walter with questions which he innocently responded to.

This is Walter's story --

UPDATE, 7/1/09 5:00 p.m.: Voice mail boxes at DHS are full, thanks to more than 500 calls that poured in to Sec. Napolitano today. The campaign will resume tomorrow DHS reopens at 9:00 a.m.

1. Join the Facebook page as an act of solidarity and to find out specifics of Walter's case.

2. Co-Sign senator Bill Nelson's letter to DHS: http://action.seiu.org/page/s/nelsonletterblog. The letter will be delivered to Homeland Security tomorrow -- so please sign it now.

3. Follow Walter on Twitter

Note: Athena Jones is an home care worker and Grassroots Lobbyist through SEIU's Change That Works campaign.

Students file in wearing colors mixed like an unsolved Rubik's cube--some wearing chords representing achievement and honors. Friends straighten each other's caps. The rainbow of the march is accompanied by a violin and the pomp and circumstances of cameras flashing. As smiles of achievement shine, each student's hard work and the pride of a family is represented with a cap and gown.

You would not notice or look twice at the needs of these high achievers. Each representing the overtaking of a struggle, brandished with the hopes of the Dream.

Onlookers could never have imagined Tuesday's commencement speech to be anything more than a student talking about bridging gaps to adulthood or hoping for the 10 year reunion. As she began to speak - I'll call her Anna - Anna spoke of her graduating from high school with honors and successfully completing college with a double major in biology and psychology. Her parents spoke to her of the hope, of education and the Dream of what America could be. She was the product of undocumented parents. They brought her here under the cover of a better future when she was eight, and she too was undocumented. Anna began to tell of the hurt she felt towards the only country she knew and the many opportunities lost because she does not have a 9 digit number assigned to her name.

Anna is a high achieving, college-educated student with honors. The U.S. government saw her as an illegal immigrant worthy of nothing better than being deported. Her undocumented status shadowed her amazing credentials. I imagine she never knew, regardless of her academic success, her ultimate diploma would be a letter of deportation.

With the U.S. Capitol's Statue of Freedom reaching to the sky behind them, more than 500 students from across the country took part in a symbolic graduation ceremony to urge Congress to pass a bill that would make it easier for them to become citizens and pursue higher education: the DREAM Act.

Fully clad in graduation attire, undocumented immigrant students from Texas, New York, California, Massachusetts, Florida, Illinois, Wisconsin and beyond marched in this staged mock graduation ceremony, designed to highlight the road block that 65,000 immigrant youth face each year when they graduate from high school--but are then barred from pursuing their dream of attending college because of their undocumented status.

The ceremony was hosted by labor organizations like SEIU, education, faith, business, immigrant and civil rights groups through the United We Dream Coalition (UWD). View this photo slideshow from yesterday's National DREAM Graduation:

Washington, DC --Today, with the U.S. Capitol's Statue of Freedom reaching to the sky behind them, more than 500 students from across the country took part in a symbolic graduation ceremony to urge Congress to support our nation's future leaders by passing the DREAM Act. The National DREAM Graduation ceremony was hosted by labor organizations like SEIU, education, faith, business, immigrant and civil rights groups through the United We Dream Coalition.

"SEIU congratulates these brave valedictorians, honor students, class presidents and future leaders who have come to Washington seeking reason and compassion so they can achieve their dreams," said SEIU Executive Vice President Eliseo Medina. "These high-achieving students want nothing more than the opportunity to serve their country and build a stronger America. It's time to open the doors of opportunity and pass the DREAM Act."

"The event highlighted the countless future nurses, leaders, teachers, military heroes and inventors of the next great technological or medical breakthrough who are denied the chance to contribute to building a stronger America because Congress has not passed the DREAM Act. After the ceremony, the students joined other immigration, faith and community leaders to talk one-on-one with members of Congress about the need to pass the DREAM Act this year.

"America became a great country because we gave opportunities to hard working newcomers and those willing to sacrifice for a dream. All these DREAMers ask is to be allowed to make their story part of the American story. SEIU's 2 million members strongly support the DREAM Act because if you work hard you should have the chance to make a difference and make the world a better place," concluded Medina.

The DREAM Act, introduced into the House and Senate on March 26, would correct a flaw in our immigration laws that provide no path to legal status for young people who were brought to the U.S. years ago as undocumented immigrant children through no fault of their own. For high school graduates who continue on to college or military service, the DREAM Act would provide a pathway to legal residency.

Remember what it was like when you had a dream? For many immigrant students their dreams of pursuing higher education can't be realized because of their immigration status -- even though they may have lived here most of their lives. Unlike their U.S. born classmates, they can't work legally or qualify for a driver's license or federal financial aid for college, and they are forced to live in constant fear of deportation to a land they barely remember.

On Tuesday, over 500 immigrant students from all over the country are coming to Washington, DC in pursuit of making their dreams come true.

While they are here, they'll be lobbying their Senators and Congressmen to pass the Dream Act, which would allow immigrant students who've grown up here to hope for a better future and a chance at higher education. And to dramatize the contribution they could make -- if only given the chance -- they will hold a graduation ceremony outside of the U.S. Capitol .

Help make their dreams come true by signing their diploma in support of the Dream Act and at the graduation - with your help - I'll unfurl the diploma at the ceremony for the graduates to see our support.

http://action.seiu.org/page/s/dreamactseiu

A disproportionate number of these DREAMers are valedictorians, honor students, class presidents or student leaders, and they include SEIU members and the children of our members.

Their DREAM - passage of the Dream Act -- is a part of the battle for comprehensive reform that our union strongly supports. It will be included in any comprehensive immigration reform that makes it through congress. It also could be enacted on its own, and if that happens, it would be a hopeful signal that comprehensive immigration reform is on its way.

Help make their dreams come true by signing their diploma in support of the Dream Act.

Sign the diploma now!

http://action.seiu.org/page/s/dreamactseiu

Approximately 2.8 million students graduate from U.S. high schools each year and go on to pursue the path in life they wish. Many go on to college; others choose to work or join the military. However, thousands of students who were brought to the U.S. as children hit roadblocks to pursuing their dreams upon graduating from high school because they bear the inherited title of undocumented immigrant--a title which causes them to face unique barriers to higher education and renders them be unable to work legally in the U.S. or serve in the military.

The solution: the Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors (DREAM) Act, legislation that would correct this flaw in our immigration laws that currently provide no path to legal status for young people who were brought to the U.S. years ago as undocumented immigrant children, even if they have spent most of their lives here and have stayed in school and out of trouble. In 2007, the DREAM Act was voted down by the Senate, squashing the dreams of thousands of deserving young people.

Yesterday, the DREAM came alive again, as S.729 and H.R.1751--the new DREAM Act--was introduced to Congress. Senators Richard Durbin (D-IL) and Richard Lugar (R-IN) introduced the bipartisan legislation in the U.S. Senate, while Representatives Howard Berman (D-CA) and Lincoln Diaz-Balart (D-FL) introduced it in the House of Representatives.