WEBVTT - The Dream 9 0:00:04.480 --> 0:00:08.480 From Fudromidia and PRX. It's Latino USA. I'm marian no 0:00:08.560 --> 0:00:12.440 Josa Today the story of the Dream Nine, a group 0:00:12.480 --> 0:00:18.160 of young undocumented activists who in twenty thirteen staged one 0:00:18.200 --> 0:00:21.280 of the riskiest protests in the history of the immigration 0:00:21.440 --> 0:00:28.120 rights movement in the United States. Welcome to Latino, USA. 0:00:28.280 --> 0:00:33.839 I'm Maria no Josa. For the so called Dreamers, undocumented 0:00:33.920 --> 0:00:38.240 young people, life in the United States is a constant limbo. 0:00:38.360 --> 0:00:41.160 They arrived in the United States as children and made 0:00:41.159 --> 0:00:45.559 this country their only home, many times even unaware that 0:00:45.600 --> 0:00:50.040 they were undocumented. Today, a lot of Dreamers are enrolled 0:00:50.080 --> 0:00:54.680 in a program known as DHAKA, or Deferred Action for 0:00:55.000 --> 0:00:59.120 Childhood Arrivals, which has allowed them to work, study, and 0:00:59.200 --> 0:01:03.240 live in the United States dates with identification and less 0:01:03.280 --> 0:01:08.600 fear of deportation. But in twenty seventeen, then President Donald 0:01:08.600 --> 0:01:12.840 Trump tried to fulfill his campaign promise of rescinding the 0:01:12.880 --> 0:01:18.440 DOCA program entirely program established by his predecessor, President Barack 0:01:18.520 --> 0:01:22.880 Obama in twenty twelve, after the case reached the Supreme 0:01:22.920 --> 0:01:27.760 Court in twenty twenty, Trump was unable to terminate the program. Then, 0:01:27.840 --> 0:01:32.840 in twenty twenty one, President Joe Biden's administration renewed DACA, 0:01:33.720 --> 0:01:38.440 but following that renewal, a Texas District court ruled that 0:01:38.560 --> 0:01:43.800 DOCA was unconstitutional. In September of twenty twenty three, the 0:01:43.840 --> 0:01:48.400 Texas Court found the program illegal once again, and while 0:01:48.440 --> 0:01:52.720 advocates have tried to reverse this ruling, the Fifth Circuit 0:01:52.760 --> 0:01:57.880 Court of Appeals has also deemed DOCA unlawful, so the 0:01:57.960 --> 0:02:01.920 case could end up back at the Supreme Court. Meanwhile, 0:02:02.200 --> 0:02:06.240 as Dreamers keep fighting to keep DOCA alive with legal challenges, 0:02:06.680 --> 0:02:10.600 the program is allowed to continue. Well, we hear at 0:02:10.639 --> 0:02:13.960 Latino USA wanted to revisit an episode that we originally 0:02:14.080 --> 0:02:18.000 ran in the year twenty fifteen, just about a decade ago. 0:02:18.520 --> 0:02:21.800 It's about a group of activists known as the Dream Nine, 0:02:22.480 --> 0:02:26.519 and while the Dream Nine are not DACA recipients, we're 0:02:26.520 --> 0:02:29.359 going to tell you why. Their story shows what's at 0:02:29.440 --> 0:02:32.000 stake for a lot of young people who have grown 0:02:32.080 --> 0:02:35.560 up in this country and continue to dream of a 0:02:35.639 --> 0:02:39.280 life in the United States and now with a very 0:02:39.440 --> 0:02:40.440 uncertain future. 0:02:43.160 --> 0:02:46.480 Hirawan, this is Lisa bed I'm making this video from Mexico. 0:02:47.480 --> 0:02:50.040 I know it's going to sound a little crazy and 0:02:50.200 --> 0:02:52.280 to be honest, I still can't believe that I'm here. 0:02:52.840 --> 0:02:55.880 This is a YouTube video posted in the summer of 0:02:55.919 --> 0:03:00.360 twenty thirteen. In the video, Lisbette Matteo is looking straight 0:03:00.400 --> 0:03:03.440 at the camera wearing a shirt that says the Dream 0:03:03.560 --> 0:03:06.320 is Coming in big block letters. 0:03:06.600 --> 0:03:07.320 I came to. 0:03:09.320 --> 0:03:13.440 Tahaka knowing that the US govern might not allow. 0:03:13.280 --> 0:03:14.000 Me to go back. 0:03:15.800 --> 0:03:18.040 Lisbeth was brought to the US as a fourteen year 0:03:18.040 --> 0:03:22.600 old kid without papers, which means that visiting Mexico leaving 0:03:22.639 --> 0:03:25.320 the United States could put her at risk for never 0:03:25.400 --> 0:03:28.160 being able to come back, to come back to her studies. 0:03:28.680 --> 0:03:31.160 She was putting it all on the line, going to 0:03:31.240 --> 0:03:34.639 Mexico for the first time in fifteen years to take 0:03:34.680 --> 0:03:37.560 part in one of the most daring displays of activism 0:03:37.840 --> 0:03:41.320 in over a generation, something that would take the immigration 0:03:41.440 --> 0:03:45.920 debate to brand new territory, something called the Dream Nine. 0:03:46.080 --> 0:03:49.480 The young immigrants known as the Dream Nine remain in nine, 0:03:49.600 --> 0:03:52.000 if they've come to be known, were brought here as 0:03:52.120 --> 0:03:55.600 childrenn as the Dream nine, or arrested last month after 0:03:55.640 --> 0:03:58.920 crossing the border from Mexico. On July twenty second, twenty thirteen, 0:03:59.320 --> 0:04:02.920 Lisbeth and eight other undocumented young people walked up to 0:04:02.960 --> 0:04:07.200 immigration officers in Nogles, Arizona, asking for re entry into 0:04:07.240 --> 0:04:13.600 the United States. The young activists formed a line, arms linked, 0:04:13.680 --> 0:04:17.640 wearing their graduation caps and gowns, the unofficial symbol of 0:04:17.720 --> 0:04:21.960 the Dreamer movement. They were asking for political asylum, but 0:04:22.080 --> 0:04:27.400 the action landed all nine in an immigration detention center. 0:04:29.680 --> 0:04:32.839 Today's show, we're spending our entire hour on the story 0:04:32.880 --> 0:04:35.960 of the Dream Nine, basically a bunch of kids who 0:04:35.960 --> 0:04:39.640 were willing to risk everything to make a very bold 0:04:39.760 --> 0:04:45.160 political statement. Our producers Antonia Serejido, Marlon Bishop, and I 0:04:45.200 --> 0:04:48.440 traveled across the country to interview members of the Dream Nine. 0:04:48.880 --> 0:04:51.839 You'll be hearing from them throughout the episode. 0:04:53.520 --> 0:04:56.000 Hey Maria, So our story starts not at the border, 0:04:56.200 --> 0:04:59.400 not with Lizabeth, but many years before in Mexico City, 0:04:59.680 --> 0:05:02.159 when it ten year old girl named Maria Ines Benice 0:05:02.279 --> 0:05:05.400 boarded an airplane a stuffed animal cradled in her arms. 0:05:05.720 --> 0:05:10.520 I bigly remember we landed in Texas like I had 0:05:10.600 --> 0:05:15.760 three backpacks across my chest, a roly backpack in Trumpita's 0:05:15.839 --> 0:05:16.520 my elephant. 0:05:16.720 --> 0:05:19.480 Marine's parents were struggling in Mexico City. 0:05:20.120 --> 0:05:22.440 Then her dad got an opportunity through a friend to 0:05:22.480 --> 0:05:24.320 come to the States and work at a restaurant in 0:05:24.360 --> 0:05:25.200 the Boston area. 0:05:25.560 --> 0:05:28.920 They came on a tourist visa, but with intentions to stay. 0:05:29.440 --> 0:05:31.960 Little Maria wasn't pleased. 0:05:31.920 --> 0:05:34.400 But my mom asked me to give it a chance, 0:05:34.440 --> 0:05:37.359 and I knew that the Backstor boys were from here, 0:05:37.560 --> 0:05:39.799 so I was like, Okay, maybe I'll give it a try. 0:05:40.440 --> 0:05:43.680 The family settled in Revere, a working class suburb of Boston. 0:05:44.120 --> 0:05:46.080 At first, Marianez hated it. 0:05:46.279 --> 0:05:49.520 Everybody looks down at me because I'm in the bilingual class, 0:05:49.960 --> 0:05:50.920 so I didn't like it. 0:05:51.360 --> 0:05:55.159 But eventually, as kids do, Maria Nez adapted. She learned 0:05:55.160 --> 0:05:58.200 English and started doing really well in school. Soon she 0:05:58.320 --> 0:06:01.200 was on the honor roll, taking ap classes and she 0:06:01.279 --> 0:06:01.920 had friends. 0:06:02.160 --> 0:06:04.560 Now I can say this, I lived the golden era 0:06:04.720 --> 0:06:05.960 of reggaeton. 0:06:09.880 --> 0:06:09.960 So. 0:06:12.640 --> 0:06:16.960 Back then it was cool to be Latino. Everybody wanted 0:06:16.960 --> 0:06:19.520 to learn how to dance reggaeton and speak in Spanish 0:06:19.560 --> 0:06:22.000 because like, oh my god, like you're speaking to each 0:06:22.000 --> 0:06:25.279 other in another language that the adults don't understand, and 0:06:25.320 --> 0:06:26.440 we were like mm hmm. 0:06:37.279 --> 0:06:40.839 During this time, Maria had no idea that she was undocumented. 0:06:41.240 --> 0:06:44.599 I think that by the time I hit eighth grade, 0:06:44.839 --> 0:06:47.360 I already felt like, this is my country, this is 0:06:48.400 --> 0:06:50.560 my language, and this is my friends. 0:06:51.000 --> 0:06:51.719 So it was cool. 0:06:52.040 --> 0:06:54.320 Yeah, my Regaton Golden era was cool. 0:06:55.080 --> 0:06:58.640 When did things start to not be so cool? 0:06:59.760 --> 0:07:02.880 So this would be junior year of high school. 0:07:03.000 --> 0:07:05.359 Her dad lost his job and at the same time, 0:07:05.480 --> 0:07:07.880 her mom became really sick and had to stop working. 0:07:08.360 --> 0:07:10.960 Suddenly there wasn't any money coming into the household, and 0:07:11.040 --> 0:07:11.400 I was like. 0:07:11.360 --> 0:07:13.320 Okay, Dad, well I want to get a job. I 0:07:13.360 --> 0:07:16.320 want to help you guys out. But I've been looking 0:07:16.360 --> 0:07:20.440 at places and they're asking me for my Social Security number. 0:07:21.760 --> 0:07:22.640 That's when we had. 0:07:22.480 --> 0:07:25.880 To talk money. I went down to East Boston and 0:07:25.920 --> 0:07:28.880 bought a fake social Security card. Then she took those 0:07:28.880 --> 0:07:31.720 fake papers to McDonald's and got an after school job 0:07:31.760 --> 0:07:32.560 as a cashier. 0:07:32.800 --> 0:07:35.040 And this whole time, she had a plan finish high 0:07:35.080 --> 0:07:36.200 school and go to college. 0:07:36.320 --> 0:07:38.720 I was going to move to New York City and 0:07:38.800 --> 0:07:42.400 go to Marymount Manhattan College, and I would watch Sex 0:07:42.440 --> 0:07:45.400 and the City every night before going to sleep. I'm like, yes, 0:07:45.600 --> 0:07:49.000 I am going to be this like independent, like strong 0:07:50.000 --> 0:07:52.320 American woman. And I got it like that. 0:07:57.360 --> 0:08:00.400 Maria and Ness didn't really understand how big of a 0:08:00.400 --> 0:08:02.680 deal it was that she was undocumented. To her, it 0:08:02.760 --> 0:08:04.480 just meant she had to go through a different process 0:08:04.480 --> 0:08:07.040 to get a job, that's all. It finally dawned on 0:08:07.080 --> 0:08:09.080 her when it was time to apply for college. 0:08:09.560 --> 0:08:11.560 She went to meet with her guidance counselor to talk 0:08:11.600 --> 0:08:14.600 about the application process, and the counselor told her she 0:08:14.640 --> 0:08:17.000 needed a Social Security number in order to apply for 0:08:17.080 --> 0:08:18.120 financial aid. 0:08:18.360 --> 0:08:21.680 And then, in just a few words, the counselor destroyed 0:08:21.720 --> 0:08:22.280 her world. 0:08:22.480 --> 0:08:25.280 We're so sorry, Maria, it looks like college is not 0:08:25.320 --> 0:08:29.600 going to be an option for you. And I was 0:08:29.640 --> 0:08:32.360 really upset on my parents. Why didn't you tell me 0:08:32.440 --> 0:08:35.560 this before? Why didn't you try to do something sooner? 0:08:36.000 --> 0:08:41.040 Why? Why why didn't you do anything? And then I 0:08:41.080 --> 0:08:44.280 called Mary Mount Manhattan. They were like, well, if you 0:08:44.360 --> 0:08:47.559 have thirty six thousand dollars in your bank account showing 0:08:47.679 --> 0:08:49.720 us that you're going to be able to pay for school, 0:08:49.800 --> 0:08:53.319 then well we'll see you in the fall. If not, 0:08:54.040 --> 0:08:58.440 let us know when you have that. And then out 0:08:58.480 --> 0:09:00.760 of the blue, a teacher reach out to me. 0:09:01.480 --> 0:09:04.240 A recruiter from Pine Manor College in the Boston area 0:09:04.480 --> 0:09:08.439 was at the school and had scholarships available for undocumented students. 0:09:08.720 --> 0:09:11.440 Shortly after, Maria Ynes and her dad went into the 0:09:11.440 --> 0:09:13.719 financial aid office to talk about a plan for how 0:09:13.720 --> 0:09:15.400 they could possibly pay for school. 0:09:15.920 --> 0:09:17.760 My dad was just like looking at me, and I 0:09:17.840 --> 0:09:19.400 was looking at my dad, and I was like, Dad, 0:09:19.440 --> 0:09:21.760 I really want this, Like Dad, this is. 0:09:21.679 --> 0:09:23.040 Such a good opportunity for me. 0:09:23.840 --> 0:09:25.600 And we were on the campus, you know, so we 0:09:25.679 --> 0:09:28.120 had seen the campus. I was like that, like, I 0:09:28.200 --> 0:09:31.200 really want to go here. He's like, I don't know. 0:09:31.360 --> 0:09:34.760 I don't know, Mikha, let's see, let's see until I guess. 0:09:34.760 --> 0:09:36.760 My dad just broke down and he didn't know what 0:09:36.800 --> 0:09:42.679 to do, and he told the lady, listen, my family's undocumented. 0:09:43.559 --> 0:09:45.520 It's really hard for me to pay all of this. 0:09:46.760 --> 0:09:53.960 But if you won, I can come and clean bathrooms. 0:09:55.240 --> 0:09:58.880 My wife and I can come and just do you know, 0:09:59.040 --> 0:10:01.679 like clean or do whatever you want us to do. 0:10:01.720 --> 0:10:04.160 We just want our daughter to come here. 0:10:05.480 --> 0:10:09.480 The financial aid officer was really moved and offered Marie 0:10:09.559 --> 0:10:13.000 Nis one of the biggest scholarships available at the school. 0:10:13.360 --> 0:10:14.400 She started in the fall. 0:10:14.720 --> 0:10:17.760 Maria Yes loved college, but after a year and a half, 0:10:17.800 --> 0:10:19.600 her dad broke the news to her that they wouldn't 0:10:19.600 --> 0:10:20.840 be able to pay for it anymore. 0:10:21.000 --> 0:10:23.600 Suddenly it felt like the walls were closing in on 0:10:23.640 --> 0:10:27.120 the family. Marie Nis then brought up an idea to 0:10:27.200 --> 0:10:28.199 her parents. 0:10:28.200 --> 0:10:31.800 Why are we struggling to get by to survive. Why 0:10:31.800 --> 0:10:34.840 don't we just go back to Mexico. Why don't we 0:10:34.920 --> 0:10:37.480 go back. I'll try to make my sex in the 0:10:37.480 --> 0:10:38.360 city in Mexico. 0:10:40.760 --> 0:10:43.319 Soon the family was on a plane headed to Mexico City, 0:10:43.440 --> 0:10:45.000 loaded down with suitcases. 0:10:45.040 --> 0:10:47.520 Once more, as soon as I stepped out of that 0:10:47.600 --> 0:10:51.360 airport and we were driving to my uncle's house, I 0:10:51.440 --> 0:10:55.520 saw the houses in Mexico. I felt out of breath 0:10:56.480 --> 0:10:58.880 and started crying, like I cried in the car and 0:10:58.920 --> 0:10:59.840 I was like, Mom, what. 0:11:00.120 --> 0:11:00.600 Do we do? 0:11:01.200 --> 0:11:03.040 Look around? Where are we? 0:11:03.800 --> 0:11:05.880 And she was just like, no, no, Mikai, it's okay. 0:11:06.280 --> 0:11:09.200 Marianes found a job at a call center helping Americans 0:11:09.200 --> 0:11:11.840 fix their WiFi over the phone. She was making very 0:11:11.960 --> 0:11:14.679 little money. She and her parents were still struggling. 0:11:14.880 --> 0:11:18.080 Things in Mexico kept getting worse. First, she was sexually 0:11:18.080 --> 0:11:21.040 assaulted by one of the managers at work. Then at home, 0:11:21.200 --> 0:11:24.200 a cousin's husband tried to molest her and afterwards he 0:11:24.280 --> 0:11:26.320 was having people follow her around the city. 0:11:26.440 --> 0:11:29.720 Maria Ess had hoped Mexico would feel like home, but 0:11:29.800 --> 0:11:33.040 it didn't. She says she felt very afraid all the time. 0:11:35.320 --> 0:11:37.160 And then she got a call. 0:11:38.160 --> 0:11:40.200 It was from a friend back in Boston. She had 0:11:40.240 --> 0:11:42.440 heard that some activists were planning something big at the 0:11:42.440 --> 0:11:45.319 border to try and bring undocumented students like maria Es, 0:11:45.640 --> 0:11:48.800 the so called dreamers, back into the United States. She 0:11:48.840 --> 0:11:51.600 gave Marines a number to dial. A guy picked up. 0:11:51.679 --> 0:11:55.839 He was like, Okay, I can't tell you much because 0:11:55.840 --> 0:11:58.880 people's lives at a risk. Blow I can tell you 0:11:59.080 --> 0:12:01.719 is that if you want to be part of this, 0:12:02.080 --> 0:12:05.320 we're gonna try to bring you guys back home. You 0:12:05.440 --> 0:12:10.360 need to be in Noga Les, Mexico tomorrow morning. And 0:12:10.400 --> 0:12:13.920 I was like, holy crap, what am I going to 0:12:13.960 --> 0:12:16.240 tell my mom? 0:12:16.280 --> 0:12:20.640 It sounded crazy, but Marinez was miserable in Mexico. All 0:12:20.679 --> 0:12:22.440 she wanted was to get back to the life she 0:12:22.480 --> 0:12:23.559 had in the US. 0:12:23.960 --> 0:12:26.600 That same day, the activist bought marian As a plane 0:12:26.600 --> 0:12:28.920 ticket to travel to the border. She made an excuse 0:12:28.960 --> 0:12:30.600 to get out of work and went home to say 0:12:30.640 --> 0:12:31.640 goodbye to her family. 0:12:32.320 --> 0:12:34.439 I had already spoken to my mom and the phone 0:12:34.880 --> 0:12:38.360 about it, and she was like, you were insane. You're 0:12:38.440 --> 0:12:41.920 crazy if you think I'm gonna let you go. So 0:12:42.000 --> 0:12:44.800 I opened the door and my mom's sitting in the 0:12:44.880 --> 0:12:49.680 living room and I'm like, Mom, I'm here. I came 0:12:49.800 --> 0:12:52.800 home to say bye to you and to pack some 0:12:52.960 --> 0:12:58.480 underwear because I'm doing this. And she was like, no, 0:12:58.520 --> 0:13:00.680 you can't do this to me. You can't sleeff like that. 0:13:00.840 --> 0:13:04.280 And I'm like, Mom, I love you, and I'm really sorry. 0:13:05.040 --> 0:13:07.760 And I promised that if this doesn't work, I'll give 0:13:07.840 --> 0:13:09.840 up on the US model, but you have to give 0:13:09.880 --> 0:13:15.160 me this last chance. She's like, okay, all right. 0:13:15.600 --> 0:13:25.640 Damn, and then she was off to the airport and 0:13:25.720 --> 0:13:28.640 on her way to Nogales on the US Mexico border. 0:13:29.280 --> 0:13:34.480 What she would find there, she had no idea. Coming 0:13:34.559 --> 0:13:37.360 up on Latino USA and our piece that originally ran 0:13:37.600 --> 0:13:41.679 in twenty fifteen, we find out what awaits Marie Nez 0:13:42.000 --> 0:13:55.200 at the border. Stay with us, Yes, welcome back to 0:13:55.280 --> 0:13:58.680 Latino USA. I'm Maria no Josa. We're going to continue 0:13:58.760 --> 0:14:01.559 the story about the Dream Now, which is a group 0:14:01.600 --> 0:14:06.480 of young undocumented activists who decided to push political buttons 0:14:06.520 --> 0:14:11.080 by doing something no immigration activists had ever done before, 0:14:11.840 --> 0:14:16.760 leaving the country in order to get purposely detained at 0:14:16.800 --> 0:14:20.000 the border. And when we left off, one of the 0:14:20.080 --> 0:14:24.080 Dream nine, Marie Nez Benice, had just told her parents 0:14:24.520 --> 0:14:27.760 she was leaving to take part in this risky direct 0:14:27.880 --> 0:14:31.440 action form of protest. So let's get back now to 0:14:31.480 --> 0:14:34.880 our episode that originally aired in twenty fifteen. 0:14:37.160 --> 0:14:41.040 At first, it was sad saying bye to my family 0:14:41.360 --> 0:14:43.280 because I didn't know what was going to happen. But 0:14:43.360 --> 0:14:45.800 at the same time, I didn't think anything was going 0:14:45.880 --> 0:14:48.080 to happen. I was like, I'm gonna go there. They're 0:14:48.080 --> 0:14:50.640 going to say no to me, They're going to deport me. 0:14:50.720 --> 0:14:54.360 I'll probably have a ten year ban and that's that. 0:14:54.960 --> 0:14:56.000 But at least I tried. 0:14:56.280 --> 0:14:59.040 Madia flew to the border town of Nogales, Mexico to 0:14:59.080 --> 0:15:01.360 meet up with the rest of the group. Before crossing 0:15:01.400 --> 0:15:02.520 into the United States. 0:15:02.800 --> 0:15:07.440 I met Lulu, Lisbeth, and Marcos, which were the kids 0:15:07.480 --> 0:15:11.520 that had come from the US to Mexico. 0:15:11.720 --> 0:15:16.920 Lulu Martinez, Lisbeth, Matteo and Marcos Savedra. They were all 0:15:16.960 --> 0:15:20.240 part of the National Immigrant Youth Alliance known as NIA. 0:15:20.720 --> 0:15:25.160 NIA was the organization behind the Dream Nine. Like Mariegnez, Lulu, 0:15:25.200 --> 0:15:28.880 Lisbeth and Marcos were undocumented, but unlike her, they had 0:15:28.960 --> 0:15:32.320 voluntarily left the US and flown into Mexico just for 0:15:32.400 --> 0:15:36.120 this action. In other words, while Marinez had already left 0:15:36.120 --> 0:15:39.080 her life in the US behind, these activists had everything 0:15:39.120 --> 0:15:43.720 to lose, their homes, their friends, their whole lives. In 0:15:43.760 --> 0:15:46.400 the days leading up to the action, the Dream Nine 0:15:46.440 --> 0:15:49.480 gathered in Novalis for a kind of activist boot camp. 0:15:49.920 --> 0:15:52.320 They stayed together in a shelter and did all sorts 0:15:52.360 --> 0:15:55.040 of trainings, what to say to the media, how to 0:15:55.080 --> 0:15:57.240 interact with immigration officials. 0:15:57.360 --> 0:16:02.280 Like we did this spiritual thing where everything was by candlelight, 0:16:02.520 --> 0:16:06.240 and it was like, remember your ancestors, remember the people 0:16:06.240 --> 0:16:07.640 that have fought for you to be here. 0:16:07.960 --> 0:16:10.040 They even had a legal team to help them through 0:16:10.080 --> 0:16:13.920 the process. The NIA members were excited. This was going 0:16:13.960 --> 0:16:17.480 to be their biggest protest yet. Our producer Antonia sa 0:16:17.600 --> 0:16:20.920 Rihido went to Los Angeles to visit with Lisbethe Matteo. 0:16:21.560 --> 0:16:25.040 Yes I did, Hey Antonia, Hey Madia. So we heard 0:16:25.080 --> 0:16:27.640 from Lisbet at the top of our show. She was 0:16:27.680 --> 0:16:30.240 one of the very first members of the National Immigrant 0:16:30.280 --> 0:16:31.760 Youth Alliance or NIA. 0:16:32.200 --> 0:16:32.440 Yes. 0:16:32.520 --> 0:16:34.760 And what struck me so much about Lizabeth in talking 0:16:34.800 --> 0:16:38.160 to her is that she is the stone cold warrior. 0:16:38.240 --> 0:16:40.800 I mean, she has never doubted a single decision she's 0:16:40.800 --> 0:16:42.360 made in her life. Like she came out of the 0:16:42.360 --> 0:16:43.480 womb self asshired. 0:16:43.600 --> 0:16:45.840 You know, most kids play with like dolls and make 0:16:45.880 --> 0:16:48.520 food or playing with things like that. I was paying 0:16:48.560 --> 0:16:50.920 more like, Okay, I'm a doctor or I'm an attorney. 0:16:51.240 --> 0:16:53.920 But to be those things, she needed to go to school, 0:16:54.120 --> 0:16:57.400 and like Marie Anez, she struggled to find financing or 0:16:57.440 --> 0:16:57.840 a job. 0:16:58.120 --> 0:17:02.280 I think I became active and started organizing out of necessity, 0:17:03.400 --> 0:17:06.120 not because I wanted. I don't think I ever had 0:17:06.200 --> 0:17:08.000 that idea I want to change the world or I 0:17:08.040 --> 0:17:09.800 want to make the world a better place. I think 0:17:09.840 --> 0:17:12.439 I just I was really frustrated with my situation and 0:17:12.480 --> 0:17:13.240 that of my family. 0:17:13.480 --> 0:17:15.840 Lizabeth was one of the many young people who took 0:17:15.920 --> 0:17:18.720 up organizing around twenty ten and what became known as 0:17:18.760 --> 0:17:19.880 the Dreamer movement. 0:17:20.200 --> 0:17:23.160 The term Dreamer comes from the Dream Act, a bill 0:17:23.200 --> 0:17:25.880 that would help to create a pathway to legal status 0:17:25.880 --> 0:17:28.640 for young people who were brought to the US as children. 0:17:29.640 --> 0:17:31.840 Both the House and said it could begin debate this 0:17:31.920 --> 0:17:34.680 week on legislation known here in Washington as the Dream Act. 0:17:34.920 --> 0:17:36.880 The bill would create a path to citizenship for un. 0:17:36.920 --> 0:17:39.200 Lisbeth was one of the millions of young people who 0:17:39.200 --> 0:17:40.560 could have benefited from the bill. 0:17:40.920 --> 0:17:43.199 I met a group of undocumented students that had been 0:17:43.280 --> 0:17:45.040 organizing online. 0:17:45.240 --> 0:17:48.560 One of those students was Mohammed ABDULLAHI. 0:17:48.200 --> 0:17:51.159 When I'm Muhammed, who was the shyest person ever, but 0:17:51.240 --> 0:17:53.000 he really grew out of his shell. He has all 0:17:53.000 --> 0:17:55.760 these crazy ideas. That's sometimes I feel like he doesn't 0:17:55.760 --> 0:17:57.960 really realize that they're crazy. 0:17:58.160 --> 0:18:02.080 Mohammed is also undocumented. He and his family are from Iran. 0:18:02.560 --> 0:18:05.080 He told us he didn't know any other undocumented kids 0:18:05.119 --> 0:18:07.720 growing up, so when he found out about the Dream Act, 0:18:07.960 --> 0:18:10.840 he wanted to learn more, but his parents told him 0:18:10.840 --> 0:18:14.120 that if he googled it, the government would deport them. 0:18:14.200 --> 0:18:16.119 And so, of course, the first thing I did is 0:18:16.160 --> 0:18:19.320 I googled the Dream Act, and I sort of found 0:18:19.320 --> 0:18:21.760 out that there was other undocumented folks. 0:18:22.000 --> 0:18:25.280 Immediately, Lisbeth and Muhammad found they had something in common. 0:18:25.640 --> 0:18:26.800 They weren't afraid to sleep. 0:18:26.840 --> 0:18:28.040 The next Mars and. 0:18:28.040 --> 0:18:30.840 I'm Heatherawas we told you just moments ago. Protesters stirring 0:18:30.880 --> 0:18:33.159 things up in downtown Tissan at this hour. This is 0:18:33.200 --> 0:18:37.360 a live picture just outside Senator John McCain's office. Inside 0:18:37.680 --> 0:18:41.800 five protesters, all reportedly illegal immigrants, are refusing to leave, 0:18:42.119 --> 0:18:44.600 demanding that the Senator support the Dream Act. 0:18:44.840 --> 0:18:47.879 In May of twenty ten, Lizbeth and Muhammad participated at 0:18:47.880 --> 0:18:50.640 a sit in in Senator John McCain's office, wearing their 0:18:50.640 --> 0:18:53.840 caps and gowns. Lizbeth and Muhammad were hopeful that the 0:18:53.920 --> 0:18:57.800 organizing they were doing was going to lead to change. 0:18:58.560 --> 0:19:02.879 There was momentum building in the Dreamer movement rallies in DC, Chicago, 0:19:03.040 --> 0:19:03.840 New York City. 0:19:04.400 --> 0:19:08.080 I was a really incredible time. I think we were 0:19:08.080 --> 0:19:10.800 meeting in documented US from other parts of the country. 0:19:10.840 --> 0:19:14.240 This is Lulu Martinez, who also met Lizabeth and Muhammad 0:19:14.280 --> 0:19:15.040 during this time. 0:19:15.119 --> 0:19:17.200 The people that we had either started to be friends 0:19:17.240 --> 0:19:20.520 with through social media or had no or knew about 0:19:20.520 --> 0:19:22.359 by name, like, we were meeting them in person. 0:19:22.600 --> 0:19:27.000 And finally, in December twenty ten, a huge victory born 0:19:27.040 --> 0:19:30.399 of the activism, the Dream Act passed in the House. 0:19:30.520 --> 0:19:33.960 On this vote, the yeas are two hundred and sixteen. 0:19:34.560 --> 0:19:38.520 The nays are one hundred and ninety eight. The man 0:19:39.160 --> 0:19:43.200 forgot him. But two days later, major blow for those 0:19:43.280 --> 0:19:47.240 pushing for immigration reform for younger undocumented immigrants today, the 0:19:47.280 --> 0:19:48.920 Senate voted against. 0:19:48.480 --> 0:19:51.200 The Dream Act. It would have offered a path to citizens. 0:19:51.240 --> 0:19:55.480 It failed in the Senate. The activists were devastated. Without 0:19:55.480 --> 0:19:58.560 the Dream Act as a clear shared goal, the dreamer 0:19:58.640 --> 0:20:02.400 movement began to s A lot of Dreamers were disillusioned, 0:20:02.640 --> 0:20:06.119 not to mention, confused about what to do next. So 0:20:06.359 --> 0:20:10.840 Lisbeth and Mohammad helped found the National Immigration Youth Alliance 0:20:11.080 --> 0:20:14.760 or NIA, and they wanted to do things differently. 0:20:15.200 --> 0:20:17.200 We were sort of naive about it in the sense 0:20:17.240 --> 0:20:19.639 that we thought if only people heard our stories, then 0:20:19.640 --> 0:20:21.800 they would Careen we sort of came to this joint 0:20:21.840 --> 0:20:26.040 conclusion that things don't change because people hear stories. Things 0:20:26.119 --> 0:20:28.840 change because people feel like they have no other choice 0:20:28.880 --> 0:20:30.960 but to make something happen. 0:20:34.320 --> 0:20:38.080 That meant more direct actions, more sit ins, more hunger strikes, 0:20:38.119 --> 0:20:40.200 and not taking politicians at their word. 0:20:41.000 --> 0:20:44.520 In twenty twelve, two years after the Dream Act had failed, 0:20:44.920 --> 0:20:48.679 feeling pressure to get something done, President Obama used his 0:20:48.760 --> 0:20:54.080 executive powers to create DAKA deferred action for childhood arrivals. 0:20:54.040 --> 0:20:57.160 And DACA was basically a diet version of the Dream Act. 0:20:57.240 --> 0:21:00.480 It allowed undocumented youth to receive two year work and 0:21:00.520 --> 0:21:03.600 stay in the US legally, but it wasn't a path 0:21:03.680 --> 0:21:05.760 to permanent legal status for. 0:21:05.800 --> 0:21:09.520 The all the undocumented youth and undocumented people that up 0:21:09.520 --> 0:21:12.280 to this point had not been part of organizing efforts 0:21:12.440 --> 0:21:15.639 or had not been able to find a good job, 0:21:15.880 --> 0:21:18.359 that that was an opportunity for them. The rest of 0:21:18.440 --> 0:21:22.280 us who were part of organizing, DOCA was just not gonna. 0:21:22.840 --> 0:21:23.680 Was just not enough. 0:21:27.840 --> 0:21:31.400 NIA wanted to go beyond DACA. They wanted to stop 0:21:31.520 --> 0:21:36.800 all deportations, shut down all the detention centers, and challenged 0:21:36.840 --> 0:21:40.080 the very notion that a border could keep them out. 0:21:40.359 --> 0:21:44.120 I remember calling Elizabeth and just asking her if if 0:21:44.119 --> 0:21:48.080 she was interested in doing something crazy, and she as 0:21:48.119 --> 0:21:49.000 always says yes. 0:21:49.600 --> 0:21:52.800 The organization was getting tweets and Facebook messages from young 0:21:52.840 --> 0:21:57.120 people who had moved back to Mexico, like Mariaynes Benice, 0:21:57.240 --> 0:22:00.840 but who would have qualified for DACA. Now they wanted 0:22:00.880 --> 0:22:01.440 to come. 0:22:01.240 --> 0:22:04.320 Back, so they devised a plan. NIA members were going 0:22:04.359 --> 0:22:07.520 to voluntarily leave the US, go to Mexico and come 0:22:07.560 --> 0:22:08.520