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Children of undocumented workers, who have attended college in the United States or have served in the Armed Forces, would have been eligible for citizenship under the Dream Act. Those hopes of citizenship were dashed last week, when Republican lawmakers in the Senate blocked the measure.
The Dream Act would've granted permanent residency to children of undocumented workers who have spent some time in college or in the Armed Forces. The measure would have allowed young people who have spent at least two years in college or in the military to become legal US citizens. Children of undocumented workers, who were below 16 years of age when they arrived in the US with their parents, have lived in the country for a period of at least five years and have obtained a diploma from a US high school, would have been eligible for citizenship under the Dream Act.
Democrats have strongly supported the measure, and have promised to reintroduce the measure this year, but at this point in time, the chances of the measure actually becoming law, at least in 2010, appear quite slim.
While rejecting the proposal, Republicans have accused Democrats of using the immigration issue to score political points. In all this political mudslinging, it is the children of undocumented workers, who were born, raised and went to college in the United States, who have been at the receiving end.
For New Jersey immigration lawyers, it's been gratifying to note that the students, who would’ve been eligible for permanent residency under the Dream Act, haven't let this defeat steer them from their goal of permanent residency. Supporters of the Dream Act, mainly students, have been gathering in cities across the country to express their support for the measure.
