Full Text of HR0913 94th General Assembly
HR0913 94TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
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| HOUSE RESOLUTION
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| WHEREAS, The United States of America is a land of | 3 |
| opportunity where the "American Dream" is promised to all those | 4 |
| who work for it; and
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| WHEREAS, Educational achievement levels in neighborhoods | 6 |
| and schools predominantly of color throughout the State of | 7 |
| Illinois and the nation maintain at below-average levels; and
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| WHEREAS, Undocumented students are currently faced with | 9 |
| the grim reality that even if they were to graduate from a | 10 |
| college or university, their immigration status would impede | 11 |
| them from pursuing most types of professional-level work, for | 12 |
| which they studied; and
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| WHEREAS, Illinois Senator Richard Durbin was a lead | 14 |
| co-sponsor of the Development, Relief, and Education for Alien | 15 |
| Minors (DREAM) Act in 2003 and the lead sponsor of S. 2075 in | 16 |
| 2005; and
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| WHEREAS, Illinois Senator Barack Obama is a co-sponsor of | 18 |
| the 2005 DREAM Act; and
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| WHEREAS, Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich recently | 20 |
| recognized the importance of the immigrant community, of which | 21 |
| undocumented students make up a significant segment, by signing | 22 |
| into law the New Americans Immigrant Policy Council which seeks | 23 |
| to secure equal rights for immigrants throughout the State of | 24 |
| Illinois; and | 25 |
| WHEREAS, Approximately 65,000 undocumented students | 26 |
| graduate every year from high schools across the country while | 27 |
| facing the reality that they are not eligible for federal | 28 |
| student financial aid, a majority of public and private | 29 |
| scholarships, or study outside of the State due to their |
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LRB094 19411 DRJ 55644 r |
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| immigration status; and | 2 |
| WHEREAS, Undocumented students are more likely to drop out | 3 |
| of high school before graduating because of their immigration | 4 |
| status and associated barriers to higher education; and | 5 |
| WHEREAS, The economic and societal costs of high drop-out | 6 |
| rates cost United States taxpayers and the economy billions of | 7 |
| dollars a year and wreak havoc on the fabric of families and | 8 |
| the communities they live in; and | 9 |
| WHEREAS, The United States, as a whole, stands to benefit | 10 |
| from investing in hard-working undocumented students who are | 11 |
| hoping to benefit from a higher education to reach their full | 12 |
| potential; therefore, be it
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| RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE | 14 |
| NINETY-FOURTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that | 15 |
| we urge the United States government to immediately approve the | 16 |
| Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors (DREAM) Act | 17 |
| of 2005 (S. 2075); and be it further
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| RESOLVED, That we recognize that hard-working undocumented | 19 |
| students should not be unjustly punished by our
immigration | 20 |
| laws for the decisions their parents made; and be it further | 21 |
| RESOLVED, That we recognize the role that public education | 22 |
| has on the lives of undocumented students, and we also urge
the | 23 |
| Chicago Public Schools system to actively support the passage | 24 |
| of the DREAM Act in
order to facilitate its work of stemming | 25 |
| the drop-out rates within its system; and be it further | 26 |
| RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be sent | 27 |
| to George W. Bush, President of the United States, the Chicago | 28 |
| Board of Education, and the members of the Illinois | 29 |
| Congressional delegation.
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