With the next session for the U.S. Congress looming, local supporters of the DREAM Act stood on the steps of Tigert Hall to drum up support for legislation.
In a statement read by UF professor Paul Ortiz, UF President Bernie Machen said he supports the legislation because everyone should have equal access to education.
“By supporting this federal legislation, we are acknowledging that education is a human right and that these students, regardless of citizenship status, should have equal access to institutions of higher education,” he wrote.
City commissioner Jeanna Mastrodicasa spoke on behalf of Mayor Craig Lowe in support of the act, which would create a means for undocumented youth to gain citizenship.
Mastrodicasa, who is also an assistant vice president for student affairs at UF, said the act will allow young people who want to contribute to society to be recognized by the country they call home.
She also noted the increases in tax revenue that would ensue.
“They will work more and pay more taxes,” she said.
Local supporters introduced an undocumented 19-year-old Gainesville college student, who wished to remain anonymous, to publicly share her story for the first time.
An aspiring journalist who has been in the country for more than half of her life, she said she just wants the ability to follow her dream, as do many in her situation.
“I think that they deserve to be called an American,” she said.
