DEFERRED ACTION FOR CHILDHOOD ARRIVALS (DACA) DECISION
On September 13, 2023, Texas Southern District Court Judge Andrew Hanen ruled the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) policy unlawful, but making it clear the ruling does not require that federal agencies take any “immigration, deportation, or criminal action against any DACA recipient, applicant, or any other individual that would otherwise not be taken.” In fact, DACA recipients are encouraged to continue renewing their applications and applying for advance parole as needed.
This is the 11th year the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) policy has been in existence since President Obama signed the executive order in 2012. Since then DACA has been under various tumultuous legal battles and Congress has failed to pass a legislation that would provide permanent protection for 580,000 DACA recipients. Indeed, Judge Hanen’s ruling states, “While sympathetic to the predicament of DACA recipients and their families…The solution for these deficiencies lies with the legislature, not the executive or judicial branches.”
Executive Director of the American Business Immigration Coalition (ABIC), Rebecca Shi stated most eloquently: “We are talking about people who, in the decade since DACA began, have graduated from college here, joined the labor force and the military, started families, enriched their communities and contributed more than $100 billion to the U.S. economy. People should not have to live their lives and have their businesses held hostage to one court ruling after another. Once and for all, Congress needs to fix this mess so that Dreamers and their employers can finally exhale and commit long-term to aiding the American economy.”
AMERICAN BUSINESS IMMIGRATION COALITION (ABIC)- HERE TO WORK CAMPAIGN
“Our employers and DACA recipients like me are being yanked around by these court decisions,” said Juan Carlos Cerda, Texas State Director of the American Business Immigration Coalition and also a DACA recipient. “Only bipartisan legislation in Congress that provides a path to citizenship to DACA recipients and other Dreamers can resolve our fate in this country.”
While DACA has been ruled unlawful, Juan Carlos Cerda, has been leading the Here To Work campaign, an effort with support from many business leaders, employers, immigration groups, state attorneys general, republican governors, and democratic congressional representatives, urging the Biden administration to “expand a special category of immigration permits for individuals who can fill positions where labor shortages exist, for people migrating to the U.S. and long-term immigrant contributors like Dreamers, farm workers, and essential workers.” See recent Telemundo Dallas coverage of the campaign: Hay escasez de trabajadores en Texas (There is a shortage of workers in Texas)
ACTIONS TO TAKE
- Donate to the DACA renewal fund https://secure.actblue.com/donate/daf-partners-2023q2-daca/refcode=toolkit
- Send a letter demanding Congress to take Action https://unitedwedream.org/actions/send-a-letter-demand-congress-deliver-a-pathway-to-citizenship/?source=partner
- Support ABIC’s Campaign: If you are a business or association:
- 1) Sign the letter from over 170 employers and business leaders asking President Biden to expand work permits for immigrants, including long-term contributors and new migrants . You can sign the letter HERE
- 2) Please also consider attending the Here to Work Summit in Washington, D.C. on November 13 and 14 for meetings with key stakeholders, the White House, Cabinet officials, and supportive Members of Congress regarding this policy; you can RSVP HERE
Our faith calls upon us to take action when we witness or experience injustice. I recently learned the Judaism concept of tikkun olam, which refers to “various forms of action intended to repair and improve the world.” With this new ruling on DACA, it is imperative we take action and implore that Congress take immediate action to provide protections for DACA recipients, the 11 million undocumented in this country, and for the migrants that are new arrivals at our border.