A Minnesotan opinador

Writing about current and important things.

Sunday, March 7, 2010

Uphold the Veto of the Repealing of DREAM Act resolution

On Wednesday February 24, Arianna Genis, First Year President, and I,Incumbent Senator, brought Resolution 01 Regarding The Comprehensive Immigration Reform & DREAM Act (Development, Relief & Education for Alien Minors Act)
on behalf of the student organization Minnesota Students for Equal Rights.


On Wednesday March 24, Augsburg Day Student Government (ADSG) overwhelmingly voted in favor of the resolution. It was the first resolution brought up this school year.

These are some of the reasons we brought it up. One, our student group, Minnesota Students for Equal Rights, is dedicated to supporting comprehensive immigration reform and the DREAM Act. As students we are organizing at Augsburg to do what we can to correct the many issues with the current immigration system. Two, we are asking people to support our mission and we know that there are some groups that cannot take any direct action (i.e. make phone calls, emails, etc), and we thought it would be appropriate to ask Augsburg Day Students Government to support our missions as well. Three, as Augsburg students we have every right to ask ADSG for what we believe will help our cause. Four, we support Comprehensive Immigration Reform (CIR), which is why we have language around that, but mostly, we hope to at least pass the DREAM Act this year if CIR does not pass.

Sadly, on Wednesday March 3, a senator moved to repeal Resolution 01. Some of the reasons are such as that as that we have not defined what is the role of ADSG when it comes to "Federal Law." Another reason is that as ADSG we did not communicate with the Student Body about the resolution. And three, some of the 'conservative' or 'moderate conservative' senators' friend would not support passing this resolution.

Here is what I, Juve, have to say then. One, ADSG supports all student organizations some way or another, especially by providing them legitimacy as organizations and funding. Many of these organizations work around laws or legislation. If we were to limit ADSG to not work or make a statement about a 'Federal Law,'then many of this organizations will have to do something else. In reality, many of the things we do are related to Federal Law, so if we were to put the precedent that we do not get involved with Federal Law, we will be going towards a slippery slope and limit what our students are able to do with the support of ADSG.

Two, those of us who brought the resolution used the system in place to bring up a resolution: Bring it up one week, let senators speak with their constituents and/or ask questions about it, and then vote on it the following week, with the expectation that everyone voting is informed. So, to say that 'we' did not communicate with the student body might be true, but that is the senators' job. That is why they are elected: to represent their constituents. Apparently some senators did not do their job in seeking their constituents' opinion (or ask us questions about it) and now want to blame their lack of communication to the overwhelmingly-in-favor passage of the resolution. Not I fair call I believe.

Three, to have politicized the resolution by some of our conservative ADSG members was wrong and not called for. To say that immigration is a liberal thing is wrong. Or should I say that anti-immigration is conservative? That is wrong too. Our resolution was not liberal nor conservative. Our resolution is about human beings, about lives, about the well-being of our communities, about the well of our student population, about the well-being of our friends, about the well-being our families, about the well-being of our democracy; it is about the well-being of our nation.

My biggest problem with the repealing of the resolution is that why single out our resolution? Why not single out anything else we have done as ADSG before? If we wanted to be fair and repeal everything we have not communicated with the student body, we must then repeal everything we have done so far this school year. If we were to repeal every 'liberal' or 'conservative' thing we have done, we would have no record that we have done much as ADSG this year. I would very much like someone to move and do that.

I am really disappointed that this asking from Minnesota Students for Equal Rights was singled out. Why single out this act of solidarity? I really have a bad feeling about it to be honest. Overall, it was an inappropriate decision.

On Thursday March 4, Sam Smith, Augsburg Day Student Body President, moved to veto the repealing of Resolution 01. One, he said via email to ADSG, the repealing was "incredibly hasty and disrespectful to the authors of the resolution." We did what we were supposed to do in order to pass the resolution. Two, Sam continued, "recognize the role we play as representatives of the student body." As stated before, some senators failed at doing their job in representing their students, liberals, conservatives, independents, or just Auggies. "If we repeal this resolution, we set a very dangerous precedent on a very slippery slope, where from now on our decisions are constantly subject to criticism by a loud and intentionally inflammatory minority," Sam said in his email explaining the veto.

The day when we voted to pass the resolution, we had about a dozen students outside of ADSG show up to the meeting in support of the Resolution. It is time that we uphold what was done right and move away from trying to politicize and singling-out this one thing.

Take action to email your student senator or show up on Wednesday at 7:30pm in the Century Room in Christensen Center to show support for Resolution 01 Regarding The Comprehensive Immigration Reform & DREAM Act (Development, Relief & Education for Alien Minors Act)



Uphold the veto!

Here is info about the DREAM Act.

Brief explanation about DREAM Act:
The Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors (DREAM) Act is bipartisan legislation that addresses the situation faced by young people who were brought to the United States years ago as undocumented immigrant children, and who have since grown up here, stayed in school, and kept out of trouble.

Find more information here.