WASHINGTON, DC-Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) recently announced that he would advance the Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors (DREAM) Act by introducing it this week as an amendment to the Department of Defense (DOD) authorization bill.  The Labor Council for Latin American Advancement (LCLAA),a national organization representing the interests of over 2 million Latino trade unionists and workers throughout the U.S. and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico stands in full support of the DREAM Act and urges the Senate to vote in favor of cloture and passage of this amendment to the Department of Defense Authorization Act (S.3454).

The DREAM Act has received consistent bipartisan support since it was first introduced. The legislation allows eligible students who entered the U.S. before age 16 and who have been in the United States for at least five years to earn legal status if they pass background checks, attend college, or serve in the military for at least two years Milton Rosado, LCLAA*s National President stated, *Life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness are values that America was built upon, but to children who were brought into this country without documents; these values are nothing but a mirage without a pathway to legalization.