For Immediate Release: June 18, 2020
Contact: Lee Morrow, [email protected], 202-601-7871
SCOTUS Grants DACA Reprieve, Congress Must Pass Permanent Protections
Sr. Simone: “For Dreamers to be safe, Congress must affirm that their home is here.”
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today’s decision by the Supreme Court to reject the Trump administration’s plan to end the Deferred Action for Dreamers (DACA) program is a profound relief for all who strive for justice. The human dignity of our 700,000 immigrant neighbors has been affirmed.
The Trump administration’s arbitrary and capricious plan to strip protections from DACA recipients has been stopped, but immigrant communities are still at grave risk. Congress must immediately pass a permanent legislative solution for DACA recipients.
Almost a year ago the House addressed this issue by passing the American Dream and Promise Act (H.R.6), but the Senate has failed to take up legislation. The Senate should act immediately on this common sense legislation to formalize the status of young people who are part of our nation in every way except the formal paperwork.
27,000 DACA recipients are health care practitioners and tens of thousands are essential workers. In this global pandemic, the Congress must ensure that these Dreamers can continue their critical work here at home.
Sister Simone Campbell, SSS, Executive Director of NETWORK Lobby for Catholic Social Justice said:
“Our prayers have been answered! The Supreme Court’s decision to reject President Trump’s arbitrary and capricious plan to strip protections from DACA recipients was the only just outcome. 700,000 of our immigrant neighbors have lived in fear for far too long. But they are not yet guaranteed permanent protections. For Dreamers to be safe, Congress must affirm that their home is here.
“The Senate must immediately act to protect the 700,000 Dreamers who call this country home. Tens of thousands work in health care and essential businesses. The House has already passed legislation that will keep Dreamers safe, and Mitch McConnell could take it up today. Call your Senators and demand that they take action now!”
Giovana A. Oaxaca Najera, DACA recipient and Government Relations Associate, NETWORK Lobby for Catholic Social Justice said:
“In a month of historic firsts, the Supreme Court’s decision against President Trump’s plan to end DACA is yet another example of the power of the rule of law and organized activists. This program has changed the lives of 700,000 DACA recipients who, like myself, will be able to continue to work and live without fear of deportation. This ruling spotlights the need to guarantee full protections and a pathway to citizenship for the hundreds of thousands of undocumented youth who call the U.S. home.
“The road to this decision has not been easy. I faced a lot trepidation in the days leading up to it, but prayed for this outcome. I will be able to rest easier knowing that the full force of the Trump administration’s punitive immigration force will not come down on DACA recipients in the middle of global health crisis. Now Congress must make these protections permanent.”
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NETWORK Lobby for Catholic Social Justice – advocates for justice inspired by Catholic Sisters – educates, organizes, and lobbies for economic and social transformation. They have a nearly 50-year track record of lobbying for critical federal programs that support those at the margins and prioritize the common good. www.networklobby.org