May 7, 2013
SAVE THE DATE: NIYA Presents DREAM Graduation in DC on June 25
Will celebrate victories, push on to stop deportations
NATIONAL—Every year, the National Immigrant Youth Alliance presents DREAM Graduation in Washington DC, where we reflect on our accomplishments over the past year and welcome yet another class of activists into our movement. This year’s celebration will be on July 9th in Washington, DC.
LOCATION: Lutheran Church of the Reformation, 212 East Capitol St., NE, Washington, DC 20002
DREAM Graduation will be an especially important moment for our movement this year. As Congress considers comprehensive immigration reform, thousands of people continue to be detained, kept out of reach of their families, and subjected to unjust deportation. As well, same-sex couples are denied equal rights in immigration law, and will likely continue to do so after the passage of whatever proposal ultimately becomes law. We will not allow such critical issues for our community to pass silently away from the public debate. Our movement will continue to fight for them.
Commencement speakers and a full list of activities and sponsors will be released in June. If you would like to be an organizational sponsor, please contact Santiago Garcia at 828.559.7993. You can also make a donation via PayPal at admin@dreamactivist.org.
This graduation will be the second since the creation of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, a tremendous victory for our movement that came as a result of intense pressure placed upon the administration by undocumented youth. In June, NIYA engaged in a rolling occupation of Organizing for America campaign offices in swing states that culminated in the announcement of the DACA program. In the past year, we have also exposed dozens of cases of detainee mistreatment in Broward Transitional Center in Pompano Beach, FL and Calhoun County Jail in Battle Creek, Michigan. We have also won the release of over 60 detainees form the facility, some of whom have gone on to pursue legal status.
This has been an exciting year for our movement, and we welcome yet another year of activists into the fold. More information on DREAM Graduation will be posted here: http://on.fb.me/16T5AJu
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