The Florida Dream Act would grant in-state college tuition to the foreign-born children of undocumented immigrants, as long as they've gone to a Florida high school.

The act has passed the State House, but it's in danger of dying in the Senate. Acitivists, however, are mounting an eleventh hour protest to keep their dream alive. If their bill can't be heard, their voices will.

Some college students even traded in their seats in class for a seat on the marbled floor of the Capitol, calling on Senate Republican leaders to give the Florida Dream Act and up-or-down vote.

Right now, their refusing to, and University of Florida student Robby Hayes says he can't understand why.

"Some of these students are my friends. They've been here as long as I have. Some were born in the state, too, and because of some racist notion or something like that, apparently these Republicans in the Senate have taken it upon themselves that they don't deserve the same opportunities that I or any other student in the state of Florida deserve."

At least for now, the fate of the Dream Act is in the hands of just one man: Senator Joe Negron, who's so opposed to in-state immigrant tuition, he's willing to go head to head against heavyweights in his own party.

Negron chairs the powerful Senate Appropriations Committee -- the final committee that the 'Dream Act' has to pass to make it the Senate floor.

But Negron won't give the bill a hearing, even though Governor Rick Scott and Former Governor Jeb Bush are making the immigrant in-state tuition a top priority.

Negron's reasoning is that taxpayers shouldn't be subsidizing the education of undocumented immigrants.

Not every Republican agrees with his stance, which is why House Minority Leader Thurston is hoping for a breakthrough.


"The fact that we only have two weeks left, that's so much time in the life and the history of the legislature. We can do it. It's just a matter of, do they want to do it?"

So the protest continues with the goal of turning a dream into reality, the appropriations committee's final meeting is tomorrow. But if the 'Dream Act' isn't heard there, the Senate could still enact a special rule to send the bill directly to the Chamber Floor for an up-or-down vote.

If that were to happen, the bill's backers say they have more than enough votes to get it passed.