Harvard (illegal alien) student won’t face deportation

[Hilarious Clinton 452]

( And rewarded for taking the spot of a legal resident at Harvard )

Eric Balderas, a 19-year-old Harvard biology student who became an international celebrity last week after being arrested for being in the United States unlawfully, is no longer facing deportation to Mexico, officials said last night.

Discuss

COMMENTS (407)

The US Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency informed US Senator Richard Durbin of Illinois late yesterday that it would not pursue Balderas’s deportation, said Max Gleischman, a spokesman for Durbin. The Illinois Democrat had lobbied the agency on behalf of Balderas.

The soft-spoken Harvard sophomore’s arrest on June 7 as he tried to board an airplane back to Boston after visiting his mother in San Antonio triggered international outcry, support from Harvard officials, and a Facebook page with more than 5,500 people lobbying for him.

Balderas’s friends and supporters cheered the news last night. His parents had brought him here from Mexico when he was 4, and he was raised in San Antonio, where he was valedictorian of Highlands High School. He had feared being deported to a country he barely remembered, and hoped to become a cancer researcher one day. Balderas could not be reached for comment late last night after the decision was made.

“My reaction was hallelujah; I was just absolutely thrilled,’’ said his former history teacher, Jan Archer, in San Antonio. “It’s like somebody up there understands the situation and that he’s really a great person and the kind of people we want here in this country.’’

ICE spokesman Brian P. Hale confirmed in a statement that Balderas had been granted deferred action, a discretionary authority that federal immigration officials can use to halt a deportation based on the merits of an individual’s case.

An official with the Department of Homeland Security, who requested anonymity because he was not authorized to speak on the matter, said it was not immediately clear how long Balderas’s deferred action would last. Homeland Security oversees the immigration agency.

Balderas will be allowed to stay in the United States for a period of time, apply for a work permit, and continue his studies at Harvard. He could apply to renew the deferred action when it expires, the official said.

In the past, ICE has delayed the deportations of college students and other young people such as Walter Lara of Florida, a former college student from Argentina who won a temporary reprieve after a massive Internet-fueled campaign to prevent his deportation.

Balderas, who is spending the summer conducting research, was detained while trying to board an airplane in Texas using his Harvard student identification and his Mexican consular card. He had lost his passport from Mexico, and was ordered to appear in court for possible deportation.

His detention thrust him into the center of a national debate over illegal immigration. The Obama administration has pointed to his case and others as reason for Congress to create a path to legal residency for the estimated 12 million immigrants in the United States illegally.

But critics say it is unfair to allow people who broke the law to jump ahead of those who have waited for years to come to the United States legally. They say the economy still needs to find jobs for people who are US citizens or legal immigrants.

In April, Arizona passed the most restrictive immigration law in the country, allowing police to question the immigration status of anyone they reasonably suspect is here without papers.

Last month, the Massachusetts Senate followed suit with a battery of amendments that sought to restrict illegal immigrants’ access to government benefits and other services.

In an interview Thursday, Balderas appeared exhausted, tense, and fearful of being deported. After his arrest, he said, he felt helpless and even suicidal. He said he was grateful for the outpouring of support, but was eager just to work in the laboratory for the summer and to return to his studies.

“I can’t wait until this is past,’’ he said. “I just like being down in the lab, doing my thing.’’

Friends said he probably would continue his studies at Harvard and keep fighting for the Dream Act, proposed federal legislation that would allow immigrant youths in his predicament to apply for legal residency. Durbin is a cosponsor of the Dream Act, which has been pending since 2001.

In San Antonio, his former government teacher, Martie Enriquez, sighed in relief that Balderas would not immediately face deportation, but she worried that his troubles may not be over.

“I think that part of his nightmare is over,’’ she said. “But it’s not all over. He can take a breather for right now.’’

http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2010/06/19/harvard_student_wont_face_deportation/

[Usui Takumi 1,562]

I think he was four when his parents entered illegally........

[Hilarious Clinton 452]

I think he was four when his parents entered illegally........

So you're saying we should charge the parents with Child Endangerment?

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

He's saying that it isn't the kid's fault.

Since we generally don't charge people for crimes committed as minors (even when they are aware of the offence) or for the crimes of their parents.

Seems reasonable enough to me.

[peejay 327]

Why haven't the parents been deported yet if they are here illegally and working illegally? Has Obama declared the border open and that visas and EAD's are no longer required?

[The_Dude 1,142]

Why haven't the parents been deported yet if they are here illegally and working illegally? Has Obama declared the border open and that visas and EAD's are no longer required?

Yes, that is the rational conclussion to draw from this.

[Ban Hammer 12,827]

Yes, that is the rational conclussion to draw from this.

well they are still here........

[justashooter 430]

He's saying that it isn't the kid's fault.

Since we generally don't charge people for crimes committed as minors (even when they are aware of the offence) or for the crimes of their parents.

Seems reasonable enough to me.

IIRC they EWI. in any case, the "child" became an adult before he entered harvard. he had responsibility the moment he turned 18.

throw him out.

[Obama 2012 1,714]

IIRC they EWI. in any case, the "child" became an adult before he entered harvard. he had responsibility the moment he turned 18.

throw him out.

that's how I feel about this, especially with one who seems so well educated.

For someone who was the top of his class and going to an Ivy league school, he sure is a fvcking idiot in understand the rule of law in this country. Of course like every other illegal scum piece of trash in this nation right now, they tend to ignore the rule of law to begin with the moment they cross that border illegally. I wouldn't expect anything different of one who has potential either.

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

IIRC they EWI. in any case, the "child" became an adult before he entered harvard. he had responsibility the moment he turned 18.

throw him out.

A responsibility to do what? Go back and live in a country he has no memory of?

A person can only reasonably do what they can with what they have. It isn't right to punish someone for a situation not of their making.

that's how I feel about this, especially with one who seems so well educated.

For someone who was the top of his class and going to an Ivy league school, he sure is a fvcking idiot in understand the rule of law in this country. Of course like every other illegal scum piece of trash in this nation right now, they tend to ignore the rule of law to begin with the moment they cross that border illegally. I wouldn't expect anything different of one who has potential either.

"illegal scum piece of trash" - what a lovely, thoroughly unbiased and rational sentiment

Is that kind of Thing really necessary?

Edited June 22, 2010 by Its a MADHOUSE

[Usui Takumi 1,562]

A responsibility to do what? Go back and live in a country he has no memory of?

A person can only reasonably do what they can with what they have. It isn't right to punish someone for a situation not of their making.

"illegal scum piece of trash" - what a lovely, thoroughly unbiased and rational sentiment

Is that kind of Thing really necessary?

Ignore them both. One is trolling the other is pot stirring to get a rise out of people

Edited June 22, 2010 by Sousuke

[justashooter 430]

A responsibility to do what? Go back and live in a country he has no memory of?

A person can only reasonably do what they can with what they have. It isn't right to punish someone for a situation not of their making.

last i checked this country still observes "rule of law". it is one of the things that makes us so special.

we are all reasonably expected to obey law. lady liberty wears a blindfold for a reason. she is no respector of persons.

justice unto all, or it's one big ride straight to hell.

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

last i checked this country still observes "rule of law". it is one of the things that makes us so special.

we are all reasonably expected to obey law. lady liberty wears a blindfold for a reason. she is no respector of persons.

justice unto all, or it's one big ride straight to hell.

Every modern country observes the rule of law. The us is neither unique nor special in that regard.

The key word is "reasonable". It is not reasonable to punish someone for the crimes of their parents.

That said, I think you have skipped over the story. The kid is not being deported.

Edited June 22, 2010 by Its a MADHOUSE

[Usui Takumi 1,562]

Every modern country observes the rule of law. The us is neither unique nor special in that regard.

The key word is "reasonable". It is not reasonable to punish someone for the crimes of their parents.

That said, I think you have skipped over the story. The kid is not being deported.

Pike, its obvious that people let their emotions push their thinking. It drips from posts with comments like "scum" and "trash". Someone who is "reasonable" wouldn't use such terms. So in a way you are wasting your breath trying to reason with the unreasonable.

Edited June 22, 2010 by Sousuke

[Niels Bohr 72]

Good for this kid. It shows education is more powerful than fighting about a political issue. Harvard, MIT, YALE, STANFORD, BROWN, CALTECH, etc...ivy league schools will fight for students if those students are far superior than anyone else. Whether he or she is an illegal immigrant or not.

The reality is that people with superior aptitude are graduating faster in China, India, Japan, Isreal than the US. I visited many seminars and talks from IEEE about the issues of acquiring students with high aptitude in academia to maintain US education superiority.

Edited June 22, 2010 by Niels Bohr