DREAM Act
The DREAM Act, officially known as the Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors Act, is a proposed federal legislation in the United States aimed at providing a pathway to permanent residency for young people who are undocumented immigrants. Originally introduced in 2001 by Senators Orrin Hatch and Richard Durbin, the act has not yet passed, despite multiple attempts in Congress, making it a focal point of ongoing immigration debates. To qualify under the DREAM Act, individuals must demonstrate good moral character, have graduated from a U.S. high school or obtained a GED, and have lived in the U.S. for at least five years as minors. If enacted, the act would grant temporary residency, contingent upon military service or college attendance, after which individuals could apply for permanent residency.
Supporters argue that the act offers necessary opportunities for immigrant youth who were brought to the U.S. as children, emphasizing their lack of agency in their immigration status. In contrast, opponents express concerns that the act may incentivize illegal immigration and lead to socioeconomic challenges for the newly legalized individuals. The introduction of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) in 2012 provided some temporary relief for those affected by the potential legislation but does not offer a permanent solution. The future of the DREAM Act remains uncertain, with continued advocacy and debate expected in U.S. political spheres.
DREAM Act
The Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors Act, better known as the DREAM Act, is a federal education legislation act that, if passed by US Congress and signed into law, would provide a path to permanent residency for many young people who currently have a status as an undocumented immigrant. Although the bipartisan legislation was originally introduced in the US Senate in 2001 by Senators Orrin Hatch and Dick Durbin, it had not passed as of 2025. Since it was first introduced, the legislation has been brought up in Congress over a dozen times and continues to be controversial.
Overview
The DREAM Act establishes multiple conditions for granting permanent residency status to undocumented minors. First, the minors must have excellent moral character. This is generally understood that they have not committed any crimes. Second, they must have either graduated from a US high school or obtained their GED certificate in the United States. Third, they must have first moved to the United States as a minor and lived there for at least five years prior to the DREAM Act becoming law.
If applicants fulfill these requirements, the DREAM Act would give them official temporary residency status after they either served in the military for two years or completed two years of college. The temporary residency status would last for a period of six years, during which they would be eligible to apply for permanent resident status. The legislation has a substantial amount of support and a substantial amount of opposition; it is the most widely debated immigration legislation in the country.
Opponents contend that by offering a path to permanent residency for undocumented minors, the DREAM Act would encourage illegal immigration. They suggest that if the legislation passes, more illegal immigrants will come to the country with the expectation that they will eventually obtain permanent residency. Opponents also worry that the immigrants affected by the law will experience low socioeconomic status and poor working situations.
Supporters of the DREAM Act say that the law represents opportunity for immigrant minors. Because those most likely to be affected by the law have usually come to the United States with their parents, proponents argue that they are not guilty of breaking any immigration laws of their own volition. Instead, most were brought into the country by their parents as children or even as infants. Additionally, the DREAM Act would impose both character and educational requirements, so the immigrants benefiting from it would be productive members of society.
In 2012, the administration of Barack Obama implemented Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), a policy affecting many of the young people who would be covered by the DREAM Act, temporarily preventing their deportation. DACA, intended as a stopgap measure to allow these young people to stay in the United States until more definitive legislation can be passed, does not provide a path to citizenship. Although President Donald Trump tried to rescind DACA in 2017, federal courts blocked his attempt, and the Supreme Court eventually ruled in 2020 that the Trump administration could not end the program. President Joe Biden subsequently signed an executive order when he entered office in 2021 to "preserve and fortify DACA," but the program continued to have a somewhat unstable status amidst ongoing legal challenges.
By the mid-2020s, the DREAM legislation had been brought before Congress at least twenty times. In 2023, three versions of the bill were introduced to Congress: the Dream Act of 2023, which was introduced by Senators Dick Durbin and Lindsey Graham, as well as two versions that were part of larger bills. As the legislation continued to be debated, the outcome and the future status of undocumented immigrants in the US remained uncertain. In the meantime, contention about the act continued to affect many state and national political races.
Bibliography
Arriaga, Belinda Hernandez. “67 Suenos: Inspiring a Movement for Undocumented Voices to Be Heard.” Journal of the Association of Mexican American Educators, vol. 6, no. 1, 2012, pp. 71–76.
Beamon, Todd. “Just Dreaming?” Diverse: Issues in Higher Education, vol. 29, no. 6, 2012, pp. 9–11.
"DACA and the DREAM Act." Britannica, www.britannica.com/procon/DACA-and-the-DREAM-Act-debate. Accessed 3 Feb. 2025.
"The Dream Act: An Overview." American Immigration Council, 8 May 2024, www.americanimmigrationcouncil.org/research/dream-act-overview. Accessed 3 Feb. 2025.
Galindo, Rene. “Undocumented & Unafraid: The DREAM Act 5 and the Public Disclosure of Undocumented Status as a Political Act.” Urban Review: Issues and Ideas in Public Education, vol. 44, no. 5, 2012, pp. 589–611.
Hernandez, Ingrid, Fermin Mendoza, Mario Lio, Jirayut Latthi, and Catherine Eusebio. “Things I’ll Never Say: Stories of Growing up Undocumented in the United States.” Harvard Educational Review, vol. 81, no. 3, 2011, pp. 500–08.
Miranda, Maria Eugenia. “One Dream Comes True.” Diverse: Issues in Higher Education, vol. 28, no. 9, 2011, pp. 20–21.
Morales, Amanda, Socorro Herrera, and Kevin Murry. “Navigating the Waves of Social and Political Capriciousness: Inspiring Perspectives from DREAM-Eligible Immigrant Students.” Journal of Hispanic Higher Education, vol. 10, no. 3, 2011, pp. 266–83.
Vega, Silvia P. Rodriguez. “My Life as a DREAMer Who ACTed beyond the Barriers: From Growing up ‘Undocumented’ in Arizona to a Master’s Degree from Harvard.” Harvard Journal of Hispanic Policy, vol. 23, 2010–2011, pp. 37–41.