State Of The Union 2014: Democrats Bring Undocumented Immigrants As Guests To President's Address

President Obama's State of the Union Address 2014 is set to cover immigration reform as one of its major topics. Observers will be keenly watching the President to see out how he will present this key issue to Congress, none more so than the nearly 1 million undocumented immigrants in the country, several of whom will indeed be in attendance at the event. Various House Democrats will be bringing undocumented immigrants as their invited guests in a demonstration of support for comprehensive reform.

Rep. Jim Himes (D-Greenwich) will be bringing Lucas Codognolla to the event - he was brought to the U.S. illegally as a boy by his parents. He attended Westhill High school in Stamford and later graduated from the University of Connecticut. Codognolla was able to get a job and driver's license as a result of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals policy, passed by President Obama, which allows 'Dreamers' like Mr. Codognolla to apply for work permits every two years providing they meet certain conditions.

Likewise, Cristian Avila, another young Dreamer from Peru, will be the invited guest of First Lady Michelle Obama, in a clear show of support from the Whitehouse Family for immigration reform. Rep. Zoe Lofgren’s (D-CA) invited guest will be Lorella Praeli, also from Peru, who now works as the Director of Advocacy and Policy at United We Dream. Meanwhile Represenatatives Luis Gutierrez, Mike Quigley, Jan Schakowsky, Brad Schneider and Bill Foster from the President's state of Illinois will be bringing Maria Torres and Estefania Garcia as their guests.

The presence of these individuals at the President's State of the Union address is not only a pertinent message to both Democrats and Republicans of the necessity for comprehensive reform, but moreover a reminder of the success achieved by reform in the past. All of these guests have benefited from DACA, and, despite not yet being granted citizenship status, are now leading successful lives in the United States.

In a press release put out by United We Dream, Dreamer Lorella Praeli said that she is “committed to fight just like we did for DACA and will not take no for an answer. We’ll remind the President of the promises he made as a presidential candidate and hold him accountable for the 1,100 people his administration deports every day.”“committed to fight just like we did for DACA and will not take no for an answer. We’ll remind the President of the promises he made as a presidential candidate and hold him accountable for the 1,100 people his administration deports every day.”