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Feelings of depression and worthlessness clouded up Joaquin Luna’s mind, an undocumented youth from Texas who committed suicide last year. In a country where undocumented youth are treated like less than equals but still strive to prove their self-worth everyday, many of them fall prey to depression and suicidal thoughts after feeling trapped and alone. One of these youth is Yanelli Hernandez Serrano.

Yanelli came to the United States at the age of 13. At the age of 13 I had to worry about finishing my homework and the cute boy in my class; however, these were not Yanelli’s worries. She made the journey to the U.S. alone and without family. She became independent at a young age and worked hard to provide a life for herself, doing whatever she had to do to survive. Imagine having to fend for yourself at the tneder age of 13 years old. Imagine working in a factory for over 7 years while your dreams of continuing your education continue to elude you. Imagine carrying such a heavy weight of responsibility on your shoulders. While most of us can only imagine, these are the facts of ….continue reading here!

Continue reading »]]> Our Community First Scholarship, is a program created to reward community participation before attending college. This scholarship is provided every year for individuals who will attend college for first time in 2012. This program has two components: a 300-500 word essay and a community service verification form. There is no cost to apply for this scholarship and it is sponsored by Union Settlement FCU.

To be eligible for this scholarship, students must be:

• college-bound high-school seniors attending college for the first time in Spring or Fall 2012.
• Applicants will be judged based upon their academic achievements, extracurricular and community activities and the quality of their written essays.
• Credit Union membership is not required to apply.

The amount of our scholarships are two of $500.00 sponsored by Union Settlement FCU.

Please take time to review the application before you submit it and if you have any questions regarding the
scholarship, email: aportada@unionsett.org

2012 Scholarship Application Here

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Dear Friend of Undocumented Youth,

On Wednesday January 11th four undocumented youth will be appearing in court at 9:00 am in Gadsen, Alabama. Sonia Guinansaca and Felipe Baeza from New York, Jesus Barrios from California, and Reyna Wences from Illinois will be facing a charge of criminal trespassing in the 3rd degree after being arrested while looking for a person in deportation proceedings at the Etowah County Detention Center. The four were in Alabama supporting a conference and action by the National Immigrant Youth Alliance (NIYA), which including doing anti-deportation advocacy with people in deportation in local detention facilities. After receiving a call from a detainee, the four were determined to find this person and organize around their case. Being in Alabama, they decided to go ask in person.

“When we went inside the office the person behind the desk could not find him. We kept looking and telling her that we felt a responsibility to find him and help him. But we could not find his name. After we asked to talk to the supervisor he called the police. We had a conversation with all of them about the local detention laws, as well as the anti-deportation work we do,” says Wences remembering the incident. After a few minutes the four were asked to exit the office, and they stepped out to the sidewalk. “The police officer then threatened us saying that if we said one more word he would arrest us. I asked, ‘What are we going to do?’ and he took out his handcuffs. I don’t remember them reading us our Miranda rights either,” she states. The four spent the following two and a half days in jail and were charged with criminal trespassing and disorderly conduct. On Wednesday, the four are going to a court in a small town in Alabama. The court has told them that for their charges, they will not be assigned a public defense attorney. Without any representation, the four undocumented youth organizers will walk into a court in a state that has passed the most aggressive legislation in the country that criminalizes undocumented workers. The maximum sentence, by Alabama criminal code, is three

The NYSYLC, Immigrant Youth Justice League and the National Immigrant Youth Alliance are asking for your help. As of right now, we need to secure the funds necessary to get Sonia, Reyna, Felipe and Jesus’ legal, court and other costs associated covered. Please contribute and help our movement, and to ensure that these four organizers are safe. Stand with us today. Click here to donate.

Continue reading »]]> As the year comes to an end we want to highlight and recap some of our accomplishments and memories of 2011.
It was been a year of tears, hugs and laughter. We hope that 2012 is a year of change.
Your monetary and time donations have kept us running. Thank you for standing by us and supporting us.

Love,
The New York State Youth Leadership Council

Continue reading »]]> Fierce Leaders,

We want to take this moment to send our very best wishes to you and your family during the holiday season and the start of a New Year is around the corner. At the NYS Youth Leadership Council, we want to thank you for all your time, help and the donations you contributed throughout the year in order to keep our organzitaion running. As the first and only undocumented youth led organization, we know that without your help, we would not have had a successful year. Please consider donating in order to keep us running and to bring many more programs to the undocumented youth we servce. A small amount of money brings us closer to our target goal that needs to be met by the end of 2011 in order to start planning for 2012. 

Click Here To Donate.

The undocumented youth movement is growing and every day there are other youths who we are empowering to take charge of their own life. We continue to firmly believe in being “Undocumented, Unafraid and Unapologetic.”

Some highlights from the 2011 year:

• We started campaigning for the NY DREAM Act that would benefit our undocumented youth. Find out more about the NY Dream Act.
• We held 3 college clinics througout the city to assist high school students apply for college, and are planning many more!
• We started our 1st high school/college mentoring program for undocumented youth and are starting the 2nd cycle now! Check out the video by our mentors and mentees here.
• We started work on our Education Not Deportation campaigns and have successfully stopped the deportation of undocumented youth, including Nadia Habib and her mother.
• We were able to offer 8 scholarships to 8 students in order to further their college education.
• We have had a sucessful blog that feautures guest bloggers and the Ask Angy page. Have a question? Send it to her!
• … and so much more!!!  Click Here To Donate.

(From Left to Right: Scholarship Ceremony Aug. 2011, Coming Out Of The Shadows March 2011, Stop Nadia's Deportation Sept. 2011)

This and so much more are some of the achievements the YLC has had. We could not have gotten to where we are today without your help. No donation is too small and every little helps to keep these services and more running. There are still a few days left before the end of the year, and all donations are tax-deductible.

Click Here To Donate.

Thank you in advance for all your help and may the New Year be surrounded by friends and family.

With thanks,

The New York State Youth Leadership Council

Continue reading »]]> NYU President John Sexton officially endorsed the New York State DREAM Act! A huge thanks to everyone who supports our campaign and made this possible.

This is amazing progress, but there is still more work to be done. Thank you for your support, we will keep you updated!

Thank you,
NYU Dream Team

Continue reading »]]> Undocumented Youth Urges for NY DREAM Act at Legislative Hearing

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Thursday, December 8, 2011
Contact: Daniela 646-472-9565

New York, NY- The NYS Assembly Higher Education and Governmental Operations Committees will hold a hearing on NYS DREAM Legislation on Friday, December 9th. At this hearing, several organizations will testify on various bills that seek to extend financial aid opportunities for higher education to undocumented youth in New York.

The NYSYLC expresses its gratitude to the Higher Education and Government Operations committees for holding the hearing on the New York DREAM Act. As the organization that spearheaded the campaign for the New York DREAM Act since its introduction in March 2011, we are pleased to see the legislative and organizational support that the bill has gathered. Undocumented youth arrived to New York as children and wish to contribute back to their communities and state, yet they face many obstacles due to their immigration status.

At this time when states like Alabama, Georgia and North Carolina are deterring undocumented immigrants from obtaining an education, New York has to stand up and enact legislation that will provide real relief to undocumented youth. It is not sufficient to pass ineffective and immaterial bills, such as a privately-funded program, in which undocumented youth will continue to depend on the decisions of a political-appointed commission and private fundraising. This kind of solution is a weak attempt at opening opportunities of higher education to undocumented youth. We need real solutions that will provide the relief that undocumented youth have been waiting and fighting for. We urge our elected officials to enact legislation that provides public-funded financial aid, which will allow them to attend college, and IDs which are a vital necessity for the daily activities of any New Yorker.

Who: Undocumented youth, supporters, and advocates
What: Press conference at 11am on the steps of City Hall (250 Broadway), and Assembly Hearing at 12pm. Take the trains N, R to City Hall; 4, 5, 6 to Brooklyn Bridge City Hall; 2,3 to Park Place stop. Map
When: Friday, December 9th, 2011
Why: New York undocumented youth need real and effective legislative change that will provide them access to TAP and IDs to contribute to the greatness of our state