RELATED PROJECT
RELATED ISSUE
Where do young people come down on questions of faith, values, and public life? How do they relate their values to public policy issues including education, economic inequality, and the environment? These questions, critically important for the 2012 election, are at the center of a campus conversation being organized by the Berkley Center and Georgetown University. This blog features an ongoing conversation about these issues between students selected as Millennial Values Fellows through a national competition. You can read and comment on their blogs here.To learn more about the project, visit the Campus Conversation on Values page.
OTHER POSTS
Millennials on Social Media and Politics
November 15, 2012
Millennials on Social Issues and Diversity
November 12, 2012
Hira Baig (Rice) on Why the Presidential Election Matters to Millennials
November 7, 2012
Millennials on Religion and Interfaith Work
November 7, 2012
Ryan Price (Drake) on E Pluribus Duo
November 6, 2012
Mohammad Usman (DePauw) on Unpredictable Millennials
November 5, 2012
Millennials on Affirmative Action Policy
November 3, 2012
Seth Warner (Vassar) on What Happens as the "God Gap" Widens
November 2, 2012
Josina De Raadt (Dordt) on How Social Media Is Like Wii Bowling
October 31, 2012
Zachary Yentzer (Arizona State) on the Next Greatest Generation
October 29, 2012
Brice Ezell (George Fox) on Post-Racial America? Race, Millennials, and the 2012 Election
October 25, 2012
Tyler Bishop (Vanderbilt) on a Future of Hashtags #whatitmeansforus
October 23, 2012
Brice Ezell (George Fox) on How the People Can Heal a “Divided,” Partisan Nation
October 4, 2012
Hira Baig (Rice) on Religion and American Democracy
October 4, 2012
Tyler Bishop (Vanderbilt) on How It’s All About Relatability: Voter Turnout
October 3, 2012
Josina De Raadt (Dordt) on Mistaking Politics for a Hollywood Blockbuster
October 2, 2012
Mohammad Usman (DePauw) on the Internet Solution
October 1, 2012
>> more
AT THE CENTER
EVENTS (103)
PUBLICATIONS (26)
Diverse, Disillusioned, and Divided: Millennial Values and Voter Engagement in the 2012 Election
October 4, 2012
October 4, 2012
INTERVIEWS (198)
LETTERS (91)
POSTS (106)
RELATED RESOURCES: VALUES
Red and Blue Nation? Volume I: Characteristics and Causes of America’s Polarized Politics
Publication
Publication
Red and Blue Nation? Volume II: Consequences and Correction of America’s Polarized Politics
Publication
Publication
Catholic Attitudes on Gay and Lesbian Issues: A Comprehensive Portrait from Recent Research
Publication
Publication
Sergio Cisneros (George Fox University) on American Values
March 29, 2012
One common value held by people in America is the desire to succeed. Alexis de Tocqueville noted more than 150 years ago, “Americans are taught from birth that they must overcome life’s woes and impediments on their own.” Success takes on diverse definitions, and is pursued by people in America regardless of age, race, and documentation.
Researchers estimate that there are approximately 11 million undocumented immigrants in the United States. Some pick your strawberries or take care of your children. Others attend college or serve in the military. Undocumented students work alongside documented students and faculty at my university.
They break bread with us in the cafeteria, attend forums and debates, and live in the dorms. Recently, some students have started “coming out,” making known their undocumented status.
The term “coming out” implies a narrow approach to the situation. Implicitly, it defines individuals as illegal, shameful, reprehensible aliens — people who deserve to be hidden. This mentality is dividing society and communities.
Recently, I asked some peers why they have “come out” with their undocumented status. One responded, “We aren’t coming out of anything. This is our struggle and who we are.” This response helped me realize that “coming out” to some is “coming in” to others. These students are embracing who they are and challenging society, the academic community, and myself to look them in the eyes and see them as no different from many of us.
They speak English, pay taxes, have dreams, and aspire to greatness. Shoot, they are just as American as doing the twist, lick and dunk with Oreos and milk. Most of these students came to America at a young age. They have lived in the United States most of their lives and are undocumented through no fault of their own.
They played on the elementary school playground. They received a pair of shorts and a T-shirt for their middle school gym class. These students coexist amongst other Oregon students. They serve as advocates of the DREAM Act, hoping Congress will pass the legislation soon. These students demonstrate to many other undocumented students that there is no single model of a DREAMer. We are all dreamers here in America; it’s just a matter of realizing it. These undocumented students are not “coming out;" they are asking unapologetically, what is more American than the shared desire to learn and succeed?
They break bread with us in the cafeteria, attend forums and debates, and live in the dorms. Recently, some students have started “coming out,” making known their undocumented status.
The term “coming out” implies a narrow approach to the situation. Implicitly, it defines individuals as illegal, shameful, reprehensible aliens — people who deserve to be hidden. This mentality is dividing society and communities.
Recently, I asked some peers why they have “come out” with their undocumented status. One responded, “We aren’t coming out of anything. This is our struggle and who we are.” This response helped me realize that “coming out” to some is “coming in” to others. These students are embracing who they are and challenging society, the academic community, and myself to look them in the eyes and see them as no different from many of us.
They speak English, pay taxes, have dreams, and aspire to greatness. Shoot, they are just as American as doing the twist, lick and dunk with Oreos and milk. Most of these students came to America at a young age. They have lived in the United States most of their lives and are undocumented through no fault of their own.
They played on the elementary school playground. They received a pair of shorts and a T-shirt for their middle school gym class. These students coexist amongst other Oregon students. They serve as advocates of the DREAM Act, hoping Congress will pass the legislation soon. These students demonstrate to many other undocumented students that there is no single model of a DREAMer. We are all dreamers here in America; it’s just a matter of realizing it. These undocumented students are not “coming out;" they are asking unapologetically, what is more American than the shared desire to learn and succeed?