How successful is the author in communicating his message

To whom the writer delivers his message

Part of your assignment asks you to assess if Jose Antonio Vargas is successful in communicating his message in “ ‘Dreamers’ Put Their Trust in DACA. What Now?”. To asses this aspect of the article, you should consider to whom the writer delivers his message. Vargas' message targets illegal immigrants, activists, and Americans that could help illegal immigrants.

The author uses his personal story as an illegal immigrant and, thus, other illegal immigrants can more easily relate to it: “…a recruiter at The Seattle Times, told me that she couldn’t offer me a summer internship because I am in the United States illegally.” (ll. 14-15).

Furthermore, he also claims to be happy for DACA beneficiaries, which is likely to get illegal immigrants like Vargas more receptive to his message: “I did not qualify for DACA — I turned 31 four months before the policy was announced — but was thrilled for my younger undocumented friends who did qualify.” (ll. 27-28).

The writer also engages activists both through language and images. For example, the article photo showing activists and protesters suggests many people support Dreamers and their cause. This is also suggested by the fact that he mentions immigrants still have people to trust, despite government actions: “…the people we had to trust before. To me, that means the teachers who see up close...