In an effort to educate students about what it means to be an undocumented immigrant and create community among Dreamers, Marquette DREAMers was established last spring.
Dreamers can be defined as undocumented immigrants who came to the United States as children, have lived and attended school here, and in many cases identify as American.
“The club strives to create spaces for students to engage in solidarity in real and meaningful ways with our DREAMers and support those students,” Fatima Jimenez Gonzalez, senior in the College of Education and president of Marquette DREAMers.
Additionally, the club hopes to educate the MU community about injustices seen by our immigrant communities and provide opportunities for involvement and advocacy in and outside of campus.
“These meetings are a place for undocumented students to learn and share, but it is also a place for allies to come and further educate themselves. Our mission is to educate Marquette, it’s not our job to do it, but we make the choice to… there is power in numbers,” Gonzalez said.
Gonzalez said the group started as just Dreamers and then expanded to anyone from the Marquette community. She said she reached out to Jacqueline Black, director for Hispanic Initiatives and Diversity & Inclusion Educational Programming, who also serves as a chairperson on the Dreamers support committee, who connected her with more Dreamers.
Nestor Ruelas, a junior in the College of Communication, said that initially the club was more informal; It was an unofficial club known amongst Dreamers before it officially became a club last spring.
“Even to this day people are scared to share their status, scared to express themselves,” Ruelas said. “This is a space where they can come together and talk to each other.”
Marquette DREAMers hosted UnDocuAlly week from Oct. 23 to Oct. 27 to celebrate students’ identities, educate them about their rights and engage the greater Marquette community.
Some of the activities during UnDocuAlly week included Monarch Butterfly Paint Night, Soup with Substance, Cafe Con-Leche: Check in with Dreamers, Know your Rights Training and Noche De Sueños Sin Fronteras.
The gallery walk was an event that celebrated Dreamers’ stories. Participants could submit full stories, artwork, or a single statement or picture. This event was held at the 707 Hub.
Gonzalez said she also hopes that students will check up on their friends who may be struggling with issues related to documentation and recognize that not everyone may be comfortable sharing their legal status.
Gonzalez said DREAMers is hoping to grow their visibility on campus and encourage conversations between students. From these events Gonzalez hopes that the community will learn more about the legal aspects of the issues, the role of allies, emotional support, financial support, and the challenges faced by Dreamers.
This story was written by Ruby Mulvaney. She can be reached at [email protected].
