On Nov. 12, the Supreme Court will start oral hearings for the survival of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA. While the fate of 800,000 people is in limbo, many others will begin a campaign in support of DACA. California has the highest number of DACA individuals, and because of this, Eloy Ortiz Oakley, the Chancellor of all California Community Colleges, has issued the week of Oct. 14 through 18 as the Undocumented Week of Action. During this week, community colleges have different events to educate their campuses on the obstacles that undocumented students face. With the help of the AB 540 committee and the Dream Resource Center, this year’s Week of Action will consist of a DACA panel where GCC alumni who were recipients and are now professionals working in different fields will come tell their stories. We will also be having a spoken word event where current students can come and share their struggles. There will also be workshops to help students fill out the California Dream Act and Know Your Rights workshop to teach the community their rights and what to do in case of an ICE encounter.

The student club V.O.I.C.E.S is also mobilizing to help in every way possible. We will be participating in a banner drop alongside 50 campuses around California that are part of the California Dream Network (CDN).

Together with the help of the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights of Los Angeles, or CHIRLA, a non-profit organization leading the charge for this campaign, our members will design and create a banner that will symbolize the beginning of the campaign to save DACA. V.O.I.C.E.S will also be having their semi-annual burrito sale where all proceeds go to scholarships for their AB 540 members. Be on the lookout for more information. 

Irvin Rendon

V.O.I.C.E.S. president