For Immediate Release: September 5, 2018
Contact: Erin Williams, ewilliams@faithinaction.org
202-748-0699
On Anniversary of Trump’s Shutdown of DACA, Dreamers’ Are In Limbo But Hopeful Justice Will Prevail
WASHINGTON — One year after President Trump announced the end of the popular Deferred Action of Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, Dreamers across the nation are ramping up pressure on Congress to save the program and create a path to citizenship instead of funding Trump’s hateful anti-immigrant agenda that includes a militarized border and stepped up detentions and deportations.
Trump set out to end the program earlier this year, but various preliminary court decisions have partially maintained the program — letting current recipients continue renewing their two-year permits, but not allowing new applications. A Texas lawsuit to kill the program outright is also pending, increasing the prospects of lengthy court appeals. The future of the program is uncertain unless Congress passes legislation.
“Dreamers like myself are in limbo; unable to plan our futures because we do not know what the courts or Congress or even Trump will do next,” said Catalina Morales, an organizer with ISAIAH Minnesota who is also a Dreamer. “If you have been saving money to go to college, do you go ahead with your plans even if you do not know if you will be able to stay in the U.S. and graduate? What if someone wants to be a doctor or a lawyer, careers that require extra years of study? What are people supposed to do? It’s frustrating and very mean-spirited of Trump to do this to us.”
The anniversary comes just as Congress returns to regular session to consider government funding for 2019, including the massive appropriations measure for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. The House has proposed $51.4 billion and the Senate’s bill totals $48.3 billion, both are heavily focused on paying for massive increases in immigration enforcement handled by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP).
“Our nation is facing a moral crisis as the federal government wages a full-scale assault on immigrants, regardless of status,” said Richard Morales, policy and program director of LA RED, an immigrant justice initiative of Faith in Action. “But we are meeting with our congressional representatives and their staff to tell them to stop funding deportations of our families and neighbors, and pass legislation to protect Dreamers and allow them a path to citizenship.”
“Voters are smart and will remember the failure of Congress to protect immigrant communities this fall,” added Morales. “We must have faith to fight, and faith that we will win.”
###
