Opinion: Florida is in dire need of an immigration champion
Could Sen. Marco Rubio be Florida's next immigration champion? (Flickr: Todd Dwyer)
By JUAN ESCALANTE
Channel: Immigration, Politics
In the summer of 2009, I participated in my first legislative visit to one of my elected officials in Washington, D.C. Persuaded by the group of students that accompanied me, I was selected to be the person from the group to brief the office of Sen. Mel Martinez (R-FL) on why the DREAM Act was, and continues to be, a crucial piece of legislation for this country.
As an undocumented student, such an explanation was not easy -- after all, my words could be the ones who could sway the Senator one way or the other.
I sat across the table from a young woman who took down my name, zip code, and bullet points of my story to relay to the Senator. I was able to convey to her that I was one of the thousands of students who had fallen victim of the broken immigration system, and that the DREAM Act was crucial to my family and me. I added that I was a community college student and was working 30 to 40 hours a week to ensure that I saved enough money to afford my tuition at a public university.
By then, Sen.Martinez had become one of the champions of immigration reform within the Republican Party, having helped put together proposals that would have overhauled the country’s immigration system in 2006 and 2007. When both proposals failed in Congress, The DREAM Act was tossed up as a possible stand-alone bill, and Martinez had yet to announce his support for the proposal. It was a far cry from the Senator’s position in 2004, when, as a candidate, he opposed any pro-migrant legislation.
A week after my visit, Sen. Martinez came out in support of a stand-alone DREAM Act. However, a month later he but announced his retirement and the pro-immigration reform movement lost a valuable ally.
George LeMieux (R-FL), Chief of Staff to then-Governor Charlie Crist, was appointed to replace Martinez. At the time, LeMieux had positioned himself as a moderate Republican who remained mum on the issue of immigration. He didn’t grant meetings to undocumented students or his supporters; yet, his office and staff kept their ears open on the issue.
It was 2010 when I returned to the same blue-carpeted office in Capitol Hill, once again to make a case as to why Florida and our nation needed the DREAM Act. I sat in the same conference room, same chair, and gave the same pitch to the Senator’s staff. After much debate, I was finally granted an audience with the Senator.
At around the same time, an upcoming Senate vote had created some buzz around the legislation, which would allow a pathway to citizenship to some, like myself, who had come here as children and either went to college or joined the military but lacked legal status. As the vote drew closer, immigrant rights activists would amp up the pressure on LeMieux. Yet, the Senator remained unmoved on the issue and would ultimately vote against the measure and stated that Congress needed to explore additional border security while tackling a “tightened up Dream Act”.
Today, Florida has Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) as a senator.
The Republican darling who is now trying to tone down his party’s rhetoric on immigration, defended Arizona's right to implement its controversial SB 1070 during his 2010 campaign. But while his stance on immigration issues seems to align with that of his party, there may be room for change in the Senator’s stance.
Just last week, Rubio joined Senator Bill Nelson (D-Fla.) in support for Daniela Pelaez, a North Miami Senior High School student who is facing deportation to Colombia.
This is an unprecedented move from Senator Rubio, which has left many undocumented youth across the state of Florida -- myself included -- perplexed. Is it possible that Senator Rubio has had a change of heart on the DREAM Act? Unlikely, as he continues to spread his sympathy with no concrete plan on immigration reform or any solution to the plight that students like Daniela continue to face.
It has been four years since my first Congressional visit, and I still believe that any Republican in the state of Florida is missing the mark on immigration reform; specifically the DREAM Act. Florida does not need flowery speeches or letters in support of just one DREAM Act beneficiary. Nor does it need bills, like the ARMS Act, that would cripple common sense solutions to the plight of many undocumented students who find themselves in situations like mine or Daniela’s.
Florida is in dire need of an immigration champion. Someone who is serious about changing the tone of the discussion and who will recognize the issue for what it is, rather than a political maneuver to court the “Latino Vote.”
Marco Rubio has the opportunity to become that person.
Juan Escalante is an undocumented student and recent graduate from Florida State University. Escalante is a core-member of DreamActivist.org and founder of DreamActivistFL.org, online organizations that provide resources for undocumented students across the country.
Correction: A previous version of this column stated that Sen. Rubio supported the passage of a Arizona-style immigration law in Florida. Rubio in 2010 defended and applauded Arizona's right to pass its law, but he also criticized other elements of the law and said he would not want such a provision to pass in Florida.
