(San Francisco, CA, February 19, 2013)—Nearly 200 lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) undocumented young people have either received or are in the process of receiving two-year work permits and reprieves from the threat of deportation, thanks to a fund made possible by over four dozen LGBTQ organizations.
Last summer, President Obama created the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program to enable people who came to the United States as children—commonly known as “DREAMers”—to apply for work permits and relief from deportation.
In response, the National Center for Lesbian Rights (NCLR), the LA Gay & Lesbian Center, and the Evelyn & Walter Haas, Jr. Fund launched the “LGBTQ DREAMers Fund” at the Liberty Hill Foundation to help LGBTQ DREAMers pay the $465 fees required to apply for relief under the DACA program (a list of organizations contributing to the fund appears at the end of this release). The $465 fees pose steep hurdles for many DREAMers because neither they nor their parents are able to obtain lawful employment due to their undocumented status.
“These young people are an important part of the LGBTQ community, and we knew we had to find a way to give them a hand,” said NCLR Executive Director Kate Kendell, one of the fund’s co-founders. “We are thrilled that so many LGBTQ organizations across the nation stepped up to help.”
To date, more than $100,000 has been raised and 160 LGBTQ Dreamers have received financial assistance. At least another 40 will get help from the fund. LGBTQ Dreamers who would like assistance from the fund may apply at www.LibertyHill.org/LGBTDreamersFund .
One of the recipients of aid from the fund, Jose Mendoza, recently received his work permit. Jose’s dream is to become a nurse, and he is now taking classes that will allow him to apply to a nursing program.
“Getting this kind of support and help means so much, and it’s great to see the gay community stepping in and saying that what I am doing is important,” he said.
Marco Quiroga, who wants to be a surgeon, said he was “thrilled” to have the support of the LGBTQ DREAMers Fund so that he could submit his DACA application.
“Immigrant and LGBTQ issues have always been separate in my mind, and it is wonderful to see these two communities come together to work on a common cause,” he said. “Receiving these funds creates a sense of community with other gay immigrants who are in my situation.”
“In spite of having to deal with the stresses of being both undocumented and LGBT, these young people have persevered and emerged as leaders of the national reform movement,” said LA Gay & Lesbian Center CEO Lorri L. Jean, another fund co-founder. “All of us are so pleased to be able to show our support and gratitude to them.”
There is widespread agreement that the “DACA” program is only a temporary fix and that creating a direct pathway to citizenship for DREAMers is one of the key elements of comprehensive immigration reform. The framework for reform recently announced by President Obama as well as the one put forward by the bipartisan “Gang of 8” in the U.S. Senate specifically included DREAMers. On February 5, House Majority Leader Eric Cantor, who helped sink the federal DREAM Act in 2010, also endorsed citizenship for DREAMers.
The following are the stories of four DREAMers who received assistance from the fund, including Jose Mendoza and Marco Quiroga. More about these individuals and some of the other recipients of the LGBTQ DREAMers Fund is available at www.LGBTDREAMersStories.com .
Jaime Diaz, who also received a grant through the fund, recently got the news he had hoped for—he was granted a work permit under DACA. It was at that moment that he realized the dreams he’s had since his parents brought him to this country as a young boy could indeed come true, and he could one day become an elementary school teacher.
“Everything is starting to fall into place,” Jaime said. “Getting my work permit and Social Security card and other documents was like getting a whole load lifted off my shoulders. I feel more free because of DACA and I am no longer scared of the police or of being treated like a criminal.”
Marco Quiroga wants to be a surgeon, and he says earning a work permit under the DACA program will help him reach his dreams.
Marco arrived in the United States from Peru when he was just 2 years old. Marco’s mother singlehandedly raised him and three siblings while working custodial and cleaning jobs in Orlando, Florida.
Jose Mendoza decided to become a nurse while he was taking care of his mother during her recent battle with breast cancer.
With his mother now recovered, Jose, a recipient of the LGBTQ Dreamers Fund, is taking classes that will allow him to apply to a nursing program. Getting approved for the DACA program is allowing Jose to pursue his newfound passion to help people in the same way that the nurses in the hospital helped his mother.
Alejandra Estrada hasn’t known any other home than the United States. She was just 3 months old in 1989 when her mother brought her and her sister across the U.S.-Mexico border. She excelled in school, and after high school graduation she began cleaning houses with her mother, with the two recently starting a small house-cleaning business in Las Vegas.
Alejandra, who also received a grant through the fund, submitted her DACA application and is hopeful it is approved so she can achieve her dreams of attending college and majoring in early childhood education.
“A change of status could really change everything,” said Alejandra, adding that her immigration status has limited her abilities, not only to excel professionally, but to feel safe and included. “Even though I have been here since I was a baby, there’s still this feeling that I don’t belong. Becoming a citizen and getting everything squared away will be an incredible relief.”
Current contributors to the LGBTQ DREAMers Fund:
- Aaron Belkin, Executive Director of the Palm Center
- Center on Halsted (Chicago)
- The Center/GLBT Community Center of Colorado
- Cream City Foundation
- The Gay and Lesbian Community Center of Southern Nevada
- CenterLink: The Community of LGBTQ Centers
- Equality Federation
- Equality Maine
- Family Equality Council
- Freedom to Marry
- Gay City Health Project (Seattle)
- Gay Community Center of Richmond
- Gay Men’s Health Crisis (GMHC)
- Gay & Lesbian Advocates & Defenders (GLAD)
- Greater Palm Springs Pride
- GSA Network
- Horizons Foundation
- Human Rights Campaign (HRC)
- Immigration Equality
- Paul Kawata, Executive Director of the National Minority AIDS Council
- L.A. Gay & Lesbian Center
- Lambda Legal
- LGBTQ Center of Central PA
- LGBTQ Center of Raleigh
- LGBTQ Project of the ACLU
- Massachusetts Transgender Political Coalition
- MassEquality
- Mautner Project Board and Staff
- Metropolitan Charities
- National Center for Lesbian Rights
- National Coalition for LGBTQ Health
- National Gay and Lesbian Task Force Action Fund
- National Stonewall Democrats
- The Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender Community Center (New York City)
- One Colorado
- Out & Equal Workplace Advocates
- The OUTreach Center (Madison, WI)
- Pride Foundation
- Pridelines Youth Services (Miami Shores, FL)
- Q Center (Portland, OR)
- Rainbow Community Center (Contra Costa, CA)
- Ruth Ellis Center, Inc. (Detroit)
- San Diego LGBTQ Community Center
- Services and Advocacy for GLBT Elders (SAGE)
- Servicemembers Legal Defense Network (SLDN)
- San Francisco LGBTQ Community Center
- Transgender Law Center
- The Trevor Project
- True Colors
- Several Anonymous Donors
You can learn about other fund recipients at www.LGBTDREAMersStories.com.
LGBTQ Dreamers who would like assistance from the LGBTQ DREAMers fund may apply at www.LibertyHill.org/LGBTDreamersFund.
The National Center for Lesbian Rights is a national legal organization committed to advancing the civil and human rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people and their families through litigation, public policy advocacy, and public education.
