“The Obama administration has announced a dramatic move to placate the rising anger of Hispanic communities across America by offering a partial Dream Act to young law-abiding immigrants without documents who will now no longer live under the threat of deportation and will have the right to work.
The move will take effect immediately and could have an impact on 800,000 young immigrants, largely Hispanic, who came to the US as children and though hard-working and law-abiding have lived for years under the shadow of deportation.”
This is fantastic news, however, here at the Rio+20 negotiations, the US delegation are currently wrangling to delete any mention of migrants, or their rights to fundamental freedoms and green and decent work, from the green economy text.
The Dream Act proves that governments can and will move when put under pressure. The young Hispanic population of the US has formidable voting power, and Obama is making concessions to them as a result in the run up to the election. We, as a global community of young people, need to put them under the same pressure here at the UN. We have our dreams too.
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About the author
Green Jobs Director at The Otesha Project UK, leading the work of the East London Green Jobs Alliance. MSc Climate Change & Policy. Tracking the negotiations through a grassroots lens! Rio+20 Fellow.
