GARDEN GROVE Calif.
Three dozen Southern California high school and college students launched a hunger strike to advocate a path to citizenship for undocumented immigrant students.
The students vowed Monday to take only water for a week.
Launching the protest at the offices of Democratic Rep. Loretta Sanchez in Orange County, they held signs declaring "I Want to Be a Lawyer" and "Bachelor Degree of Science in Chemistry."
The group included graduates and students of the University of California, Los Angeles, and UC Irvine.
The protesters said they were illegally brought into the United States as children by their parents, and want Sanchez to support the stalled Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors Act.
The act would create a path to legality for undocumented immigrants planning to attend college or join the military and who came to the U.S. with their families before they turned 16.
Sanchez spokeswoman Paula Negrete said the congresswoman had not supported the act because she "was hoping for comprehensive immigration reform."
The protesters also planned to demonstrate at the offices of representatives in Pasadena, Bakersfield, San Jose and San Francisco.
Information from: Los Angeles Times, http://www.latimes.com
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