There has been a renewed push in Congress to pass the DREAM Act, which would offer a path to citizenship for undocumented youth. Congressman Tom Suozzi of Long Island is one of the 199 co-sponsors on the bill. He spoke at a press conference in Huntington on Monday.
Suozzi was joined by three Long Island residents who are enrolled in DACA, the Obama-era program that granted two-year work permits to people who illegally came to the U.S. as kids. One of them is Nelson Melgar, a 27-year-old Glen Cove resident who emigrated from Honduras when he was 13. After the Trump administration’s decision to end the DACA program, he is living in fear of deportation.
“I love this country. I’ve worked hard every day since the day I came here to make my way and to live up to the ideals upon which this country was founded.”
As a DACA enrollee, Melgar wasn’t eligible for financial aid and had to juggle work and and school for eight years to be able to afford his B.A. from Hunter College. He is now the founder of the North Shore Hispanic Civic Association and works for New York State Assemblymember Charles Lavine.
Suozzi says the DREAM Act would give permanent relief to people like Melgar, and as a congressman, he feels it's his duty to make sure that happens.
“The most fundamental of American principles is, all men and women are created equal. Not all men and women with a green card are created equal, or all men and women with a passport are created equal, or all men and women of a particular religion or a particular faith or a particular background are created equal, all men and women are created equal, and should be treated with human respect and dignity.”
Melgar says that even if the DREAM Act doesn’t pass by the time DACA ends, he will come to work the next day to keep contributing to his community.