Juan Gomez grew up speaking English, reciting the Pledge of Allegiance and loving the only place he’s ever known as home, the United States of America. Academically gifted, he excelled in school and firmly believed in the philosophy of the American Dream; that in this country everyone has the opportunity to create a better future via hard work, discipline and ability, regardless of social class, religious belief, political affiliation, race or ethnicity. And like Juan, every year 65,000 young men and women graduate from high school to the realization that, as undocumented immigrants, they have no opportunity for success and no future. Most of them are unable to go on to college because the financial burden makes it nearly impossible to do so, and their only alternatives are dead-end, low-wage jobs without security or benefits, or deportation to a country they have never known. Without immigration reform, more students like Juan Gomez will graduate under these conditions every single year. Without immigration reform, we are in danger of creating a permanent underclass of unrecognized, discarded and marginalized individuals with no hope for a better future. Without immigration reform, we run the risk of making a mockery of the ethos that has defined the character of this nation since its birth, the American Dream.