United We Dream: Stand With Daca
In 2012, the illegal immigrant student population was skyrocketing. Approximately 65,000 illegal immigrant students were found to graduate from U.S. high schools on a yearly basis. The majority of these students lived in uncertainty and fear- fear of being deported from a country that had become their home.
Then the Obama administration founded an immigration policy called DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals). DACA allows certain illegal immigrants who entered the country as minors, to receive a renewable two-year period of deferred action from deportation, and eligibility for a work permit.
A 2016 study found that DACA increased labor force participation and decreased the unemployment rate for eligible immigrants. Using these estimates, DACA moved 50,000 to 75,000 unauthorized immigrants into employment. The program currently allows nearly 788,000 undocumented immigrants to apply for work permits and live in the U.S. without fear of deportation.
However, DACA has been under review and attack by the Trump administration. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton and 9 other right wing politicians have demanded that Trump terminate the program by September 5th, as his administration terminated a similar relief program in June of this year.
In response to attacks on DACA this year, Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Lindsey Graham (R-SC) have introduced a bipartisan bill called the Dream Act of 2017. If passed, this bill would offer a route to permanent legal status for millions of undocumented immigrant youth.
Here are four things you can do right now to help protect DACA:
- Call your Attorney General and ask them to publicly support the DACA program. You can connect to your Attorney General by calling 1–832–610–3896.
- Share why DACA is important to you, how has it helped you, why you support it. Do it through a tweet or an instagram video using the hashtag #HereToStay.
- Tell your state Attorney General to publicly defend DACA with a statement about how it benefits your state. Add your name here to your local Attorney General here: Also sign the national petition here.
Show Up: On August 15 (the 5th anniversary of DACA) United We Dream will host a national week of action in DC and across the country. Find more information here.