Defeating a Dream?
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Winner of Multiple Awards fromo Our college. Our news. Our voice. Naugatuck Valley Community College October 1, 2017 Waterbury, Connecticut Vol. 61, Iss. 6 30,000 a month would lose their work permits as their DACA status expires.” By working Defeating a Dream? legally, these Dreamers contribute substantial Christopher Gordon and Alam Khan tax revenue, yet are ineligible for certain ben- efits due to undocumented status. The Center Early in September President Trump for American Progress estimates deportation announced plans to rescind President Obama’s of Dreamers could cost the US approximately Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals $433 billion over the next ten years. program. For hundreds of thousands of young The American Dream is built on the claim people in America, the future became even that those who strive can build successful lives. more uncertain. It is important to remember While the odds of attaining that dream have many of those affected by loss of protections always favored a certain few, it is un-Ameri- afforded by DACA arrived in this country can to deny opportunity to those in compliance as babies; some remained unaware of their with a system meant to help them see the fruits undocumented status. They studied for tests, of their labor. The Dreamers pose no threat to shared laughter with best friends, and worked job security for the American-born; they are hard to buy birthday gifts for their loved ones, here for quality education, to find stability. secure in their presence in the United States. They are here to strive. Given a chance, they In less than six months that stability could be could be key to a brighter American future. stripped away. Walling off our borders cannot keep out Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, progress. Exiling potential future leaders to known as DACA, was created under the countries as foreign to them as they would Obama Administration to provide protec- be to an American by birth is cruel and short- tion for undocumented youths, often known sighted. Removing people who some deem as a as Dreamers. By allowing these young people problem does not create growth; it causes other to register and remain in the US, working and countries to resent us—and to grow without us. pursuing education, the previous administra- Rescinding DACA seems to be one step toward tion made a concerted effort to help these chil- “Mak[ing] America Great Again,” but “mak- dren and adolescents grow into contributing ing” implies building. By removing a signifi- residents of this nation. cant population with great potential, we build In keeping with the attempted rollback of nothing. And building a wall only succeeds most policies of the previous president, the in further damaging an American ideal: unity current one has chosen to focus on this pro- with the world community. gram by getting rid of it altogether. Trump DACA’s repeal is not immediate, but six has frequently referred to those who come months leaves little time to act. We must work from neighboring countries as criminals, but to apply and children are generally not held voice the opinion that immigrants are debili- to persuade Congress to create a law to replace during and after his campaign, he promised legally accountable for their parents’ choices, tating the progress of the US economy. In fact, the DACA executive order. If we believe in the Dreamers would be taken care of, saying he the questions are: Why remove children and the ideology of the Trump Administration will America as the Land of Opportunity, we must wished only to deport bad people who posed young adults from perhaps the only coun- likely result in stalling, rather than spurring, protect our neighbors, our classmates, our a threat. His recent decision to rescind DACA try they have ever known? Should we, as an economic growth. Utilizing resources to gather co-workers—people we’ve come to know, to protections—calling for a Congressional vote American society, hold these children in con- Dreamers and send them back to their country value, to depend on—who are undocumented. to decide the Dreamers’ fate—though not sur- tempt for the actions of their parents? of origin requires a huge expenditure. We cannot simply write them off after years prising, is alarming. Many who are against the policy believe According to CNBC, an August “report studying, working, and living beside them. To be considered as a recipient of the pro- it negatively affects the economy by stealing from FWD.us, a pro-immigration reform group We depend on one another, and we all dare to gram, a person must have no previous crim- jobs from American-born citizens. This fallacy co-founded by Mark Zuckerberg, [found] 91 dream. That is the way of humanity. For the inal history, neither felony nor misdemeanor. is given weight when key administration offi- percent of DACA recipients are employed. sake of dreams, for the sake of our future, we Based on the facts that criminals are ineligible cials, such as Attorney General Jeff Sessions, Canceling the program would mean roughly must unite. Dolores Huerta Joan Baez with Martin Luther King Dr. Ellen Ochoa Cesar Chavez Julia Alvarez ¡Celebremos! Let’s Celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month Karlene Ball strongest voices for peace, civil rights and activist since the 1960’s. She fought alongside Associate Justice of the Supreme Court social justice since the 1960’s. Of Mexican- Cesar Chavez as co-founder of the movement of the United States, Sonia Sotomayor was Hispanic Heritage Month is an official U.S. American heritage, she is known world-over that secured labor rights for farm workers. In nominated by President Barack Obama in observance to recognize the “histories, through her songs of freedom and justice 2012, she received the Presidential Medal of 2009. The first justice of Hispanic heritage, cultures and contributions of American sung in various genres. Baez has stood coura- Honor from President Barack Obama. Justice Sotomayor was born in New York City citizens whose ancestors came from Spain, geously and marched purposefully with many Dr. Ellen Ochoa is a research engineer, to Puerto Rican parents. Mexico, the Caribbean and Central and South of our Civil Rights leaders of the past, and she former astronaut and the first Hispanic direc- This month we also celebrate Naugatuck America.” The celebration is observed from continues her activism today. tor of the Johnson Space Center. She became Valley Community College as a Hispanic September 15 – October 15 to coincide with Mexican-American civil rights activist the first Hispanic woman to fly in space and Serving Institution. The school was first recog- the anniversary of independence of a number Cesar Chavez, successfully fought to secure has done so four times. nized as such in 2015 by the U.S. Department of Latin American countries. union rights for migrant farm workers. Fernando Torres who was born in of Education. According to the Office of According to the U.S. Census Bureau, as Sylvia Mendez is the child of Puerto Rican Nicaragua, holds four U.S. patents, including Institutional Research at NVCC, 31% of of July 2016, people of Hispanic origin make and Mexican-American parents. When she a U.S. Patent for “Automatic Selection of SIM our students have identified themselves as up the largest ethnic or minority group in was not allowed to attend school in an all- Cards in Mobile Devices.” Hispanic, up from 27% last academic year. Of the country. Hispanics are 17.8% of the U.S. white school district in California, her par- Dominican-American Julia Alvarez, an course, we are led by author and president of population. ents brought suit. The case, settled in 1947, award-winning distinguished poet, essayist NVCC, Daisy Cocco DeFilippis who traces Among the many trailblazers and icons of paved the way for the desegregation of pub- and novelist, may be known best for her nov- her roots back to the Dominican Republic. Hispanic heritage, we celebrate the following: lic schools in the state. els, How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents and ¡Celebremos! Joan Baez has been one of our country’s Dolores Huerta has been a civil rights In the Time of the Butterflies. 2 News The Tamarack, October 1 , 2017 EDITOR’S NOTEBOOK Shining a Light Cyber-safe SGA President Alyssa Katz Matthew Krankall Push the A Jam- It’s normal to feel sad or down every now When we were young, we were taught basic Boundaries and then. Depression is different, marked by safety tips such as: Look both ways before packed chemical changes to the brain, and affecting crossing the street, and don’t accept candy from There is a lot going daily life. This common disorder affects strangers. Those tips have served us well, but Month on in our society. This millions of people of all ages. As Depression as we’ve grown and learned to live in a world Now is the start ranges from our loved Awareness Month, October is a good time to with a perpetual internet connection, we need of October, which ones being afflicted shine a light on this disorder. new tips: Look both ways when crossing the means if you’re reading this, you made it by deadly hurricanes to the eventual There are various forms of depression, and information superhighway, and never take through the first month of the fall semester! desensitization over time that comes from multiple treatment options. Typical symptoms (digital) cookies from strangers. October is Hooray! Too early for Christmas music? Not listening to those living in tragedy and misery include feelings of constant sadness and nega- National Cybersecurity Awareness month, for me! beyond the reach of our country’s border.