AMERICANS FOR IMMIGRANT JUSTICE AND MIAMI DADE COLLEGE PRESENT AWARD-WINNING DOCUMENTARY, DREAM: AN AMERICAN STORY

Miami, FL – August 3, 2016 – Americans for Immigrant Justice (AI Justice) presents Dream: An American Story on Monday, Aug. 29 at 5:30 p.m., at Miami Dade College’s (MDC) acclaimed Tower Theater. DREAM: An American Story explores the struggles of DREAMers through the story of Killian High School and MDC graduate and former top student, Juan Gomez, whose classmates rally to the cause when he is threatened with deportation. Local DREAMers who undertook the 1400 mile Trail of Dreams walk from Miami to Washington, D.C. to raise awareness of the plight of undocumented immigrants are also featured in this stirring film. That journey began on the steps of the Freedom Tower at MDC and was completed by four MDC students.

While there has been much discussion around immigration this political season, the future of hundreds of thousands of deserving young immigrants has gotten very little media attention. Much is at stake for our country’s DREAMers who arrived here as children and have lived much of their lives fearing detention and deportation.

On June 15, 2012, President Obama exercised his executive authority to defer the deportation of DREAMers, enabling them to get a work permit and in states like Florida to obtain a much-coveted driver’s license and pay less expensive in-state college tuition. Today, however, they again see their dreams shattering. “We are getting frantic calls from DREAMers wondering what will happen in late Jan. 2017 if Donald Trump is President and they no longer can benefit from Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA). No answer I can provide will give these precious young people peace of mind,” said Cheryl Little, AI Justice Executive Director.

AI Justice was at the forefront of the fight for DACA and in 2010 issued the report, Unleash the Dream: End the Colossal Waste of Young Immigrant Talent, which gave these remarkable young immigrants a voice. To date, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) has approved more than 800,000 DACA applications. Florida is among the top five states home to DACA recipients.

“This film provides an inside look at the heartbreaking consequences of our broken immigration system for some of our country’s most vulnerable immigrants, and the urgent need for Congress to pass sensible immigration reform,” Little noted.

WHAT: Americans for Immigrants Justice and Miami Dade College host screening of award-winning documentary,

DREAM: An American Story, reception and panel discussion. Panelists include filmmaker Aldo Bello, former City of Miami Mayor Manny Diaz, and DREAMer and immigrant rights activist Gaby Pacheco. Cheryl Little will moderate. Reception Sponsored by the Coalition of South Florida Muslim Organizations (COSMOS).

WHEN: Monday, August 29. Reception 5:30 p.m., film 6:30 p.m., followed by panel discussion.

WHERE: MDC’s Iconic Tower Theater
1508 SW 8th Street Miami, FL 33135

TICKETS: $25. Cost underwritten for students and DREAMers. Purchase tickets at  www.aijustice.org.