Mohammad Abdollah was carried to the United States when he was three years old by his parents. He went through all the necessary steps and education, but he still is an illegal immigrant 21 years later. This week, in response to the draconian immigration laws that were passed in Arizona, he and a group of students went to the office of John McCain to protest in favor of immigration reform, specifically, creating a path for individuals that were brought to the U.S. when they were young to go to the university and have the chance to become citizens.
He was arrested yesterday. He now faces possibly deportation charges to Iran, where the fact of him being gay could cost him his life. Obviously, he knew very well the consequences of what could happen when he was arrested in the act of civil disobedience-but he did it none the less-for the greater cause of fairness and justice.
It reminds of the story of Rosa Parks who risked arrest and humiliation to stop the unjust Jim Crow laws in the South. We like to think we have moved far beyond those days, but in some ways, I am not sure we really have. We are creating a whole underclass in society, by not allowing these young people the chance to become legal citizens and further their education and careers. They are denied the basic “rights” this nation was suppose to be built on-life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.
Will he be sent back to Iran? My guess is that he will not be, especially with the media and social network blogs catching a hold of this. However, he does serve as a great modern day example of civil disobedience and personal sacrifice for a greater cause. Perhaps, through actions like these, the nation will wake up and actually do something about the broken immigration system.
