In a July 6 Gazette article entitled “Dream Act supporters take to the streets to win votes,” proponents and opponents of the Maryland Dream Act discussed the bill, which will be submitted to a referendum this November. The act allows undocumented workers to be eligible for in-state tuition if they have attended Maryland high schools for three years, then graduated and enrolled at a community college before transferring to a four-year state university, and whose parents have filed state income taxes during the period, among other benchmarks.
Lauren Hussey, assistant professor of political science, said that one factor may be President Obama’s recent suspension of deportations of younger undocumented immigrants, which may spur those supporting the president’s reelection to vote for the Maryland Dream Act. Hussey also noted the differences between the Federal DREAM Act and Maryland’s own proposal, with the former dealing largely with citizenship issues for undocumented students and the latter with tuition rates.
Donald Norris, professor and chair of public policy, was also source for the article, discussing issues involving partnerships between groups such as the immigrant-advocacy group Casa de Maryland and the same-sex marriage-oriented Equality Maryland.
Tags: CAHSS, PoliticalScience, PublicPolicy
