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The Daily Tar Heel

Dream Walkers make trek to bring immigration reform into spotlight

UNC students support immigration reform

Loida Ginocchio-Silva, left, and Javier Solis, right, lead a group of volunteers. DTH/ Will Cooper
Loida Ginocchio-Silva, left, and Javier Solis, right, lead a group of volunteers. DTH/ Will Cooper

Correction (April 7 12:57 a.m.): Due to a reporting error, an earlier version of this story misquoted Ron Bilbao, chairman of the Coalition for College Access at UNC. Bilbao said, “Four students walking to D.C. is not the point. It’s the 2.4 million students that live in the shadows.” The story has beenc changed to reflect the correction. The Daily Tar Heel apologizes for the errors.

Students and community members walked nearly 12 miles Monday to show their support for immigration reform.

About 60 people joined the Dream Walkers, a group of four students who are walking from Florida to Washington, D.C. in an effort to bring attention to the plight of undocumented students in the U.S.

The walkers are making the trip to lobby for the DREAM Act, which would give undocumented students an opportunity to earn their citizenship by getting a college degree or completing two years of military service. Three of the four Dream Walkers are undocumented, and the route they are taking has been dubbed the Trail of Dreams.

“This walk is important because many students in our country can’t go to college simply because they’re undocumented,” said Wooten Gough, a member of the Coalition for College Access and Reform Immigration FOR America,  two organizations at UNC that are pushing for the DREAM Act.

The walkers described their journey on the Wilson Library steps to more than 50 people before beginning the walk to Durham.

“It’s an injustice,” said Carlos Rao, one of the Dream Walkers. “I’ve got to pay out-of-state tuition even though I’ve been living in the state of Florida since the age of 4.”


“Their humanity is being denied,” said Juan Rodriguez, another Dream Walker. “We’ve had people come up to us and tell us we are not entirely human.”

Along the way, the walkers have demonstrated in front of deportation facilities and helped delay or stop students from being deported.

After completing the walk from Franklin Street to Broadway Street in Durham, the walkers reiterated their goals.

“Four students walking to D.C. is not the point,” said Ron Bilbao, chairman of the Coalition for College Access at UNC. “It’s the 2.4 million students that live in the shadows.”

William Gheen, president of Americans for Legal Immigration, said giving those undocumented students citizenship would take seats away from U.S. citizens.

“I’d prefer them to walk their tails back across the border,” Gheen said.

But people from different parts of the state still came out in support.

“It’s a beautiful day, great people, great spirit,” said Chip Smith, a 67-year-old who drove in from Rocky Mount. “Resolving immigration issues is a key thing to do in the next few years.”

A group of students from Chapel Hill and Carrboro high schools also came out to participate.

“This kind of motivated me, so I wanted to come out here to support this group and be a part of our rights,” said Marco Cervantes, 16, a Chapel Hill High School sophomore.

Contact the State & National Editor at stntdesk@unc.edu.

 

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