Hourly Update

Rally supports residency for children of illegal entrants

PHOENIX — About 150 people rallied outside the Arizona Capitol on Monday to show support for a proposal in Congress that would give the children of illegal immigrants the chance to become U.S. citizens. The proposal would allow students to apply for legal residency if they entered the United States before they were 16, have lived here for at least five years and have graduated from high school or are enrolled in college. It was first proposed in Congress in 2001. The Urban Institute, an economic and social policy research group, estimates that 65,000 illegal immigrants who have lived in the country for at least five years graduate from high school each year. Supporters of the proposal say it's unfair to treat the children of immigrants differently just because their parents decided to bring them into the country illegally. Silvia Rodriguez, an Arizona State University student who was brought into the United States from Mexico when she was 2 years old, said the proposal would give young people who are essentially Americans more opportunities to pursue their dreams. "I don't know what it looks like over there (in Mexico)," Rodriguez said. "Some of us don't even know how to speak Spanish." Opponents said the proposal would lead to more competition for legal students who are seeking admission at universities. "It is a de facto amnesty," said Ira Mehlman, spokesman for the Federation for American Immigration Reform, which advocates limits on immigration and opposes the proposal. "It rewards people who broke the law. It puts at a disadvantage kids who didn't break the law." Advocates for immigrants have said the need for the proposal is underscored by a case in Phoenix where the government sought to deport four high school students who were brought to the United States illegally as toddlers. The four students, who are now young adults, were on a school trip in June 2002 to compete in a solar-powered boat competition near Buffalo, N.Y., when they drew the attention of immigration officials. One of the students wanted to make a side trip to Niagara Falls in Canada. Federal agents looked into the immigration status of all four after a teacher asked whether the students would be allowed to return to the United States with only their student IDs. An immigration judge threw out their deportation case in July, ruling that agents questioned the students based on their Hispanic appearance. Democratic state Rep. David Lujan of Phoenix said he and other lawmakers will seek to approve a nonbinding measure at the Arizona Legislature that urges Congress to pass the bill. "It gives them the opportunity to use their talents and their intelligence and make valuable contributions in this society," Lujan said.