The recent federal government shutdown (bringing with it colorful talking sticks, fake news, and finger-pointing festivities) that started when the parties couldn’t agree on how to include DACA protections as part of a continuing resolution, has given new life to the conversation surrounding illegal immigration.
Equipped with a sense of skepticism, Facebook users have flagged several DACA-related articles as potentially carrying the dreaded fake-news virus.
“New York Gov. Cuomo Proposes ‘Dream Act’ Allowing Illegal Immigrant Dreamers to Attend College for FREE,” declared a headline from Truth Uncensored.
While “Illegal Immigrant Dreamers” is a tad redundant— “Dreamers” refers to people who were brought into the country illegally as children by their parents—the story is correct. In the 2019 budget, Cuomo proposed that certain illegal immigrants be eligible to receive a tuition free college education through the Excelsior Scholarship.
The scholarship, allowing New York high school graduates of a certain income level free tuition to SUNY (State University of New York) and CUNY (City University of New York) who plan on working in the state after college and take at least 30 credit hours each year], was recently put into effect.
The proposition to allow certain illegal immigrants the same opportunity was presented in Cuomo’s 2019 budget book:
While the DREAM Act has passed the New York State Assembly “it faces an uphill battle making it out of the Republican-controlled state Senate” as NBC News reports.
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