Background: The Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors (DREAM) Act is a bipartisan bill that would allow a select group of immigrant students to contribute fully to America. It would give these students a chance to earn legal status if they came to the U.S. as children (15 or under), are long-term U.S. residents (continuous physical presence for at least five years), have good moral character, graduate from high school (or obtain a GED), and complete two years of college or military service in good standing.
Legislative Update
In December 2010, advocates and communities around the country were deeply disappointed when the Senate came just five votes short of invoking cloture on the DREAM Act. If passed, it would have provided a path to citizenship for undocumented youth brought here as children who have graduated from high school or obtained a GED and continue on to college or join the military.
In May 2011, the DREAM Act was reintroduced by Senator Durbin (D-IL), champion of this legislation for over a decade. On June 28th, the Senate Judiciary Committee Subcommittee on Immigration Refugees, and Border Security held a hearing on the DREAM Act.
Plan a DREAM Sabbath Event in Your Community
This fall, faith communities around the country will host hundreds of “DREAM Sabbath” events to raise awareness for the DREAM Act. Between September 16th and October 9th, we invite you and your community to integrate stories of DREAM students into your prayers, readings, reflections, or study sessions as a way to help educate and spread awareness of DREAM students and their hopes to attain full recognition of their contributions to our communities.
Click here to sign up! Let us know the dates of your faith community’s DREAM Sabbath celebration, and make sure to let us know if you have any questions. We will send you all the information you need to start planning, and we can also put you in touch with a DREAMer who can tell their story at your event.
Your participation will help spread understanding of the DREAM Act and build broad support for DREAM students!
Download the Toolkit
Check out the IIC Dream Sabbath toolkit, which you can download as a full packet (either in editable Word format or PDF format), or by section:
- Introduction
- DREAM Sabbath Event Planning
- DREAM Sabbath Press Conference Article
- DREAM Act and Immigration Education Materials
- Theological Reflections
- The DREAM Act Presented in Different Faiths
- Sermon Starters
- Action Steps
- DREAMers’ Stories
- DREAM Act Faith Lessons
- Sample Bulletin Insert
Track DREAM Sabbath Events
This map shows the locations around the country where we have confirmed DREAM Sabbath events taking place. To add an event in your area, fill out the form HERE.
