SA bill introduced to extend undocumented student task force
Paula Gamino and Dayanh Rubio Gomez, co-chairs of the undocumented student task force, introduced a bill to extend the undocumented students task force to advocate for improved support services Nov. 18.
The bill asks the Student Association to “continue to advocate for, improve and implement support services for undocumented students at Rice University.” It also states that the task force is able to access SA funding “as needed.”
According to Rubio Gomez, the task force was founded in 2017 but stopped having as much momentum around 2019, and she is hoping to bring the momentum back.
Rubio Gomez said that the current political climate makes the task force critical.
“I didn’t even know there was a task force until the end of my sophomore year, which really speaks to the lack of centralized support for undocumented students,” Rubio Gomez, a Martel College senior, said in an interview with the Thresher. “Now, with DACA in courts again and Trump being elected as president, it is especially important for Rice to invest funds to protect and support undocumented students.”
Rubio Gomez explained that being a task force rather than a club helps to protect members.
“We’re a task force and not a club is because we wanted to do our best to protect members’ membership statuses,” Rubio Gomez said. “That way, we don’t have an official list of who’s in our club because people are insecure and scared of us sharing their citizenship status. Another reason we’re a task force is because in the past we’ve had access to SA funding like the Treasury. That has been super vital to the task force and it’s how we get people to come to us.”
Rubio Gomez said that the funding will allow them to continue to host events like in the past.
“Last year, we hosted free legal consultations with a law firm in Houston. Many students, including myself, actually were able to get a free legal consultation and figure out pathways and citizenship,” Rubio Gomez said. “It was really helpful and we want to keep it a yearly thing with the task force.”
Gamino said the increased support will allow the task force to accomplish more goals.
“I am most excited for more visibility of the task force, having more students getting involved and the opportunity to collaborate with more student organizations,” Gamino said in an interview with the Thresher.
The bill is currently pending and will be voted on during the next senate meeting Nov. 25.
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