Some 500 young immigrants are expected to participate Tuesday in a Chicago workshop for those interested in additional information pertaining to the Obama administration's deferred action policy.
The workshop will be hosted by U.S. Rep. Luis Gutierrez (D-Chicago) at Benito Juarez High School in the city's Pilsen neighborhood from 4 until 8 p.m.
The event comes almost a week after an unprecedented turnout at an event held last Wednesday at Navy Pier where thousands of young undocumented immigrants turned out on the first day applications to the program could be submitted.
Gutierrez pointed to that enthusiastic turnout as a sign of the "hunger" for the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program in a statement:
"[W]ith a little patience, hard work, and a helping hand from volunteers, we are going to get everybody who is eligible signed-up. … The message to the community is clear: we are going to help you determine if you are eligible and help you apply if you are."
Pre-registration for the Tuesday event is already closed but additional workshops are expected to be held over the coming months.
The DACA policy, introduced in June, allows immigrants who meet certain criteria to apply for work permits and a reprieve from deportation. The program closely resembles the Dream Act, a decade-old bill that came within five votes of passage in the Senate in 2010.
In order to be eligible, applicants must provide proof that they arrived in the U.S. before the age of 16, that they are currently 30 or younger and that they have been living in the country for at least five years. Further, they must be in school, graduated or have served in the military and cannot have certain types of convictions on their record.
"This is my chance, I'm not going to let it go," 16-year-old Nayeli Manzano told HuffPost of the new policy at the Navy Pier event.
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