Undocumented Immigrants and Immigration Reform

While climate change and anti-gun violence campaigns have surged in secondary schools, immigrant rights activities and efforts to protect undocumented immigrants have largely remained based at colleges and with church groups. While President Ronald Reagan, a Republican, signed into law an amnesty act in 1986 that allowed many previously undocumented immigrants to become US citizens, Republicans in the House of Representatives and the Senate have repeatedly blocked new immigration reform legislation. In high school, Garcia became an activist for immigration reform with Hope Community Center, helping newly arrived undocumented immigrants adjust to life in the United States, and in college she organized marches and rallies in support of the Dream Act. This chapter includes recommendations for teachers and schools from the American Federation of Teachers and primary and secondary source material that can be a starting point for student research and action on immigration reform.