Walk to Washington for immigration reform

Risking the danger of arrest and deportation, 4 Miami Dade College students started January 1 a 1500 mile walk from Miami to the nation's capital protesting the Obama administration's lack of resolve in the much-needed immigration overhaul. They are using their personal cases to highlight the much broader issue of immigration reform and what to do with the millions of people here who lack papers.
The four students, who were raised in the US by undocumented parents, say their status prevents them from continuing their education and getting jobs. Their courage has earned them coverage in major newspapers, including a January 7 editorial in The New York Times.

The protesters include Carlos Roa, 22, who was 2 years old when his parents brought him here from Venezuela, and Felipe Matos, 23, sent from Brazil by his mother when he was 14. They say they support proposals in overhaul bills that would open a path to citizenship for students who came to this country illegally when they were young.

Mr. Matos, a former student government president at Miami Dade, said he had been accepted by Duke University but had not been able to attend because his lack of legal status prevented him from getting financial aid. Trained as a teacher, he has not been able to take a job without a valid Social Security number.

They will march 16 miles a day, stopping at churches and immigration centers. They plan to arrive in Washington D.C. in May.