Reality hit Jose Luis Zacatelco in high school, as it does for many in his situation. That's when the fact that he was born in Puebla, Mexico began to matter. Immigrant youth find themselves in a strange limbo as they grow up, Zacatelco, 29, said. On the one hand, they've had the same experiences and hopes for the future as their peers, yet their legal status can impede the very expectations they have for their future.

"It's different when you're in high school and all your friends are getting drivers' permits and you are not allowed to because you don't have documentation," Zacatelco said.

It's not fair that lives can diverge so dramatically because of a nine-digit Social Security number, 25-year-old Marisol Ramos said. Born and raised in the South Bronx to undocumented parents, she was able to get financial aid and go to Hunter College while the cousins she grew up with, born out of the country and ineligible for most financial aid, couldn't find the money to pay for college. "But we pretty much grew up here in the same lifestyles and same place," she said.

To call attention to the plight of immigrant youth, Zacatelco, Ramos and three other members of the New York State Youth Leadership Council met at J. Hood Wright Park on Sat., April 10 to set out on a three-week walk to Washington, D.C.

At the capital the group will demand a moratorium on teen deportation and swift passage of the Dream Act.

The Dream Act, first introduced in 2001, would create a six-year path to citizenship for undocumented youth who came to the United States before their 16th birthdays, graduated from high school and enrolled in college or the military for a minimum of two years.

With the George Washington Bridge, the start of the teen's journey, standing behind her, Daniela Hidalgo spoke to a crowd on the patio of J. Hood Wright Park.

"Today we decided to walk to create a path for ourselves," she said.

Armed with signs that read "Dreams are not illegal," and chanting "Education not deportation," the five marchers, flanked by supporters, walked portions of St. Nicholas Avenue before starting toward New Jersey.

Along the way to Washington, D.C, the leadership council, which formed in 2007 to advocate for the Dream Act, will stop at universities and meet with legislatures and press in various scheduled events. The teens plan to document the whole trip with video updates on their Web site and Twitter and text updates.

The march was inspired by a similar group that began marching to the nation's capital from Florida in January. The New York representatives will arrive at the same time as the Florida marchers on May 1. They will be joined by 600 youth activists bused in to the capital, similar to a demonstration for immigration reform held on March 21.

The Dream Act is part of immigration reform proposals and is also a stand-alone bill. A winnable piece of legislation alone, Ramos said there is no more time to wait.

"We feel that there should be no hesitation," he said.

Zacatelco wishes the bill was around when he was 25. Unable to qualify for financial aid his hopes of earning a master's degree in mental health and becoming a counselor at a junior high school are on pause. He is taking a semester off, he said, to save money with a sporadic job installing air conditioners.

"I feel like no more generations should be put their dreams on hold because of a broken immigrant system," he said.