Representatives from the Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities (HACU) were among the tens of thousands of participants that gathered on the National Mall, on Sunday, March 21, 2010, urging President Obama and Congress to address Comprehensive Immigration Reform (CIR).

“Now that Congress has acted on health care and student loan reform with Sunday's  historic votes, the time has come to fix what everyone acknowledges is a broken immigration system,” said HACU President and CEO Antonio R. Flores.

HACU has long supported CIR: a formal Policy Statement dating to 2007 called for “a comprehensive, fair immigration law that protects our borders, upholds our values as a multicultural nation, and strengthens our economy and prosperity by providing educational opportunity for all students and, in particular, for immigrant students.” A centerpiece of HACU’s recommendations is the Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors (DREAM) Act, which has been introduced in every Congress since the 108^th, but has not yet passed. The DREAM Act would allow undocumented students who were brought to the U.S. as children and who graduated from U.S. high schools to attend college as in-state residents and to begin the process toward full citizenship.

“The DREAM Act is not only a moral responsibility to the students themselves, but also an economic priority for the whole country,” said Flores. “By passing the DREAM Act we will make the most of the talents of young people who have so much to contribute to their adopted homeland. Passing the DREAM Act will ensure that we not lose the talent development of another generation of future Americans.”

HACU is urging Congress to address now the twin challenges of securing our national borders and providing a fair and just pathway to citizenship for the many immigrants who are critical contributors to the American economy.

Please take a moment to call or email your Members of Congress and let them know that the time has come for a comprehensive and fair immigration reform which includes the DREAM Act.