President Barack Obama responded to hecklers during a campaign rally for Governor Dannel Malloy in Bridgeport on Sunday. Hecklers have interrupted speeches by President Obama and the First Lady before, but in recent visits to Connecticut, the hecklers at the New Haven and Bridgeport events were from the group Connecticut Students for a DREAM.
The president told the hecklers, "Unfortunately, folks get frustrated, and they want to yell at everybody. And I understand that."
The few who interrupted him and the First Lady on Thursday are called "DREAMers," youth who were brought to the country at a young age by their parents who are undocumented. Two years ago, President Obama signed an Executive Order that keeps these students from being deported, known as deferred action.
Connecticut resident Lucas Codognalla is one of the DREAMers who is benefiting from deferred action. He said, "DACA [deferred action for childhood arrivals] literally changed my life. DACA made me not live in fear anymore of deportation."
Deferred action doesn't put these youth on a path to citizenship, but it gives them certain privileges, like a permit to work, and the ability to get a drivers license. DREAMers want that for their parents, too, but most importantly, they don't want to see their mothers and fathers deported.
The Connecticut group is part of the national United For a Dream campaign. They're raising awareness about the need for an expansion of the DACA program.
Members have also heckled at events for Hillary Rodham Clinton and Vice President Joe Biden.
Codognalla said immigration reform is deadlocked in Congress, but the president can still act. "The national rhetoric has been the DREAMers were brought here through no fault of our own," he said, "but it's also important to recognize the journey of our parents. Our parents were the original DREAMers. They want to contribute to the United States."
In September, President Obama postponed announcing whether he'd take executive action on immigration policy until after the mid-term elections. DREAMers like Codognalla say they're waiting to see if Obama will expand deferred action to their parents and siblings.
