Here are some facts about the DREAM Act nobody really wants to hear about. The connections with the Pentagon are becoming crystal clear. This is nothing more than a stealthy military recruiting component for the military’s and the chickenhawk’s poverty draft. Some may feel I am acting like a pendejo for making the claim that this legislation would allow many of our undocumented students to regularize their status by serving in the front lines of this country’s illegal and unjust war. Doesn’t anybody see this as a problem? By supporting this bill and then turn around and vocally oppose the war, we are nothing more but hypocrites. Last July, Senator Dick Durbin, the second-ranking Democrat in the Senate, showed his true colors when it came to the undocumented immigrants’ usefulness to this unjust war. Sure, Durbin has been a consistent critic of the war in Iraq; his problem is against sending US born citizens into Iraq, but he has no problem sending the “Brown” to the frontlines to fight in a war he considers as the “worst foreign policy ever” because everybody knows Xicanos/as are “naturally drawn” to fight. Remarks from the Congressional Record.

On the floor of the Senate, when we return next week, we will resume consideration of the Defense authorization bill. It turns out that many in the Department of Defense believe, as I do, that the DREAM Act is an important part of making certain we have talented young men and women ready to serve in our military. I have spoken to people at the Department of Defense who support the idea of the DREAM Act. I think we ought to include it in the Defense authorization bill. I hope to have that opportunity. [snip]

I hope when we return to the Defense authorization bill we can make the DREAM Act part of that bill. Certainly, it is going to help our defense and help our military. I think it is going to help America even beyond that. [snip]

Mr. President, as I said, I rise to speak about legislation known as the DREAM Act, which I hope to offer as an amendment to the Defense authorization bill.

Some people might ask why the Senate should revisit immigration again and whether an immigration amendment should be included in the Defense authorization bill. The answer is simple: The DREAM Act would address a very serious recruitment crisis that faces our military.

Under the DREAM Act, tens of thousands of well-qualified potential recruits would become eligible for military service for the first time. They are eager to serve in the Armed Forces during a time of war. And under the DREAM Act they would have a very strong incentive to enlist because it would give them a path to permanent legal status.

The DREAM Act doesn’t mandate military service. A student who is otherwise eligible could earn legal status by attending college. It would be inconsistent with the spirit our volunteer military to force young people to enlist as a condition for obtaining legal status.

But the DREAM Act creates a strong incentive for military service. And many DREAM Act kids come from a demographic group that is already predisposed towards military service. A 2004 survey by the Rand Corporation found that 45 percent of Hispanic males and 31 percent of Hispanic females between ages 16 and 21 were very likely to serve in the Armed Forces, compared to 24 percent of White men and 10 percent of White women.

Let’s break down the numbers using the average that is being thrown around. According to the Department of Defense, 750,000 youths who benefit from the DREAM Act. However, Durbin states the high school dropout rate among undocumented immigrants is 50 percent. Therefore, that would mean, half of them are already unqualified, which now brings that number to roughly 350,000 undocumented immigrants who entered the United States before age 16 and graduated from high school would qualify. As Durbin noted, not all high school graduates will go on to college according to a study conducted by RAND. They found that roughly half of those students were “very likely to serve in the Armed Forces.” Since the military is eying about half of those students, we are now left with roughly about 25% of the original 100%, which means roughly 187,500 undocumented immigrants would choose college over the military option. Of those 25 percent, not everybody will automatically get to adjust from conditional to permanent legal resident status, they still have graduate from a two-year college or complete two years of a four-year degree before they can qualify baring any hurdles placed by the Sec of Education and their respective state. The current dropout rate during the first two years in college for immigrant students is between 50 to 68 percent. In the end, roughly 60,000 to 93,750 undocumented immigrants will be allowed to adjust from conditional to permanent legal resident status.

So in reality, who is really benefiting from this Act? Recently, Sen Durbin has agreed to drop the in-state tuition clause for the college option thereby eliminating the college option for thousands of undocumented immigrants. The DREAM Act’s education component is a wonderful dream, but as it stands, the only DREAM that is really being accomplished is the military’s DREAM - the few, the proud, the military’s Green Card Soldiers.

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• Green Card Soldiers: How the US Army Recruits Them (4)
• The Green Card Draft (3)
• Shattered Dreams (7)
• Revisting The Green Card Draft Again (16)

Tags: Dream Act, Education, Immigration, poverty draft, undocumented immigrants, War |  Print This Post |
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