Miami Herald: Over the weekend, 18-year-old Daniela Pelaez continued her effort to fight a deportation order to her native Colombia from an immigration judge.
On Sunday, Pelaez, the valedictorian of her North Miami Senior High class and her attorney Nera Shefer, appeared on Michael Putney’s This Week in South Florida. Pelaez, who has a 6.7 GPA said she was “overwhelmed” by the support.
“I’m just the voice for the thousands that can’t speak,” she told Putney, referring to thousands of other high school students across the country who like her have no proper immigration papers and support passage of the DREAM Act, which would put them on a path to legal status.
On Saturday, she took her cause to the popular Univision Spanish-language variety show, Sabado Gigante, where she explained her case.
Pelaez, who came to the country when she was 4-years-old on a tourist visa, has drawn support from the entire community including Republican politicians Sen. Marco Rubio and Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen and Miami-Dade Public Schools Superintendent Alberto Carvalho.
On Friday, more than 2,600 students, teachers and community members took to the streets in North Miami to protest the order, holding banners and chanting “Justice for Daniela.”
Daniela told Putney her dream is to attend college and become a heart surgeon. She has applied to several prestigious universities and is waiting to hear back.
The turn-out in support of Pelaez was one of the largest immigration protests in South Florida since President George W. Bush first proposed the legalization of millions of undocumented immigrants in 2004.
Though her deportation date is set for March 28, her attorney will likely appeal the decision in the next couple of weeks, she told Putney.
“We have a lot of hard work to do, but I’m sure we will get there,” Shefer said.
Pelaez, whose family hails from Barranquilla, Colombia., is not alone in facing deportation. Her sister is in the same position, but her brother Johan, is a U.S. citizen serving in the U.S. Army; he returned from a tour in Afghanistan last year.
Pelaez’ mother Ana Gonzalez is stuck in Colombia after returning in 2006 to get successful treatment for colon cancer. Her father, Antonio Pelaez, was able to receive residency through her brother.
On Sunday, Pelaez, the valedictorian of her North Miami Senior High class and her attorney Nera Shefer, appeared on Michael Putney’s This Week in South Florida. Pelaez, who has a 6.7 GPA said she was “overwhelmed” by the support.
“I’m just the voice for the thousands that can’t speak,” she told Putney, referring to thousands of other high school students across the country who like her have no proper immigration papers and support passage of the DREAM Act, which would put them on a path to legal status.
On Saturday, she took her cause to the popular Univision Spanish-language variety show, Sabado Gigante, where she explained her case.
Pelaez, who came to the country when she was 4-years-old on a tourist visa, has drawn support from the entire community including Republican politicians Sen. Marco Rubio and Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen and Miami-Dade Public Schools Superintendent Alberto Carvalho.
On Friday, more than 2,600 students, teachers and community members took to the streets in North Miami to protest the order, holding banners and chanting “Justice for Daniela.”
Daniela told Putney her dream is to attend college and become a heart surgeon. She has applied to several prestigious universities and is waiting to hear back.
The turn-out in support of Pelaez was one of the largest immigration protests in South Florida since President George W. Bush first proposed the legalization of millions of undocumented immigrants in 2004.
Though her deportation date is set for March 28, her attorney will likely appeal the decision in the next couple of weeks, she told Putney.
“We have a lot of hard work to do, but I’m sure we will get there,” Shefer said.
Pelaez, whose family hails from Barranquilla, Colombia., is not alone in facing deportation. Her sister is in the same position, but her brother Johan, is a U.S. citizen serving in the U.S. Army; he returned from a tour in Afghanistan last year.
Pelaez’ mother Ana Gonzalez is stuck in Colombia after returning in 2006 to get successful treatment for colon cancer. Her father, Antonio Pelaez, was able to receive residency through her brother.
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