11 OCT 2022
Senators Dick Durbin and Bob Menendez, United We Dream Action, Labor and Faith Leaders Urge Republicans to Work with Democrats on a Permanent Solution for Dreamers
Full recording of the press call is available here.
WASHINGTON, DC – Earlier today, U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee and author of the Dream Act, Senator Bob Menendez (D-NJ), a leading immigration advocate and author of the U.S. Citizenship Act of 2021, and United We Dream Action along with the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) and National Association of Evangelicals (NAE) hosted a joint press call denouncing the 5th Circuit Court’s decision finding the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program unlawful and sending the case back to Judge Andrew Hanen of Texas, who has repeatedly ruled against DACA and similar programs, putting the lives of Dreamers across the country in limbo. During the call, the leaders called upon Republicans in Congress to work with Democrats this year to pass permanent protections for immigrant youth.
The reality is that without legislation, DACA recipients are likely to lose their temporary status and work permits, subjecting them to losing their jobs and, even worse, the possibility of detention and deportation. DACA has long been one of the most successful and popular immigration programs among battleground voters, Latinos, and swing voters, allowing over 830,000 young people to live and work without an immediate fear of deportation. Senate Democrats have repeatedly called for permanent legal protections for DACA recipients. With the program still on the chopping block, the call underscored the need for Republicans to step up now and work with Democrats on a bipartisan solution for Dreamers.
“Dreamers are a part of the fabric of our society. They serve as our teachers, doctors, and essential workers, making our lives better every day. That is why I introduced the Dream Act more than twenty years ago to provide them with a path to citizenship,” said U.S. Senator Dick Durbin, D-IL. “I’m disappointed, but not surprised, by the Fifth Circuit’s decision finding DACA unlawful. We must respond with immediate action to protect Dreamers. Republicans have made clear that, if they take control of Congress next year, they will block any efforts to give DACA recipients a path to citizenship. And Republican governors are fighting—and winning—in Court to end DACA and deport DACA recipients. Many of my colleagues on the other side of the aisle have expressed concerns about their fate. I urge them to stand by DACA recipients, and join me to pass the Dream Act before the end of the year.”
“While the future of DACA still hangs in the balance, President Biden must use his existing authority to protect Dreamers who are ineligible to apply for DACA and offer additional protections for immigrant families who have been waiting for legal protection for decades,” said U.S. Senator Bob Menendez, D-NJ. “I commend UWD and SEIU for continually raising their voices for our community as I keep fighting in the Senate to deliver permanent protections for DACA recipients. It’s ultimately my hope we find 10 Republicans in the Senate to join Senator Durbin and I to end the uncertainty for Dreamers once and for all.”
“Last week the Fifth Circuit Court dealt another legal blow to DACA recipients and the DACA program overall,” said Greisa Martinez, Executive Director, United We Dream Action. “While the 5th circuit decision allows current DACA recipients to continue renewing our status, it also makes the possibility of DACA ending soon imminent. Republicans have shown us they will stop at nothing to subject immigrant youth to losing their work permits, detention, and deportation. The truth is that poll after poll after poll shows that the majority of Americans support a pathway to citizenship, for undocumented people. Immigrants are business owners, teachers, doctors. We are your friends, family, and neighbors. Our entire country has significantly benefited economically from the program. The American public knows the devastating impact that the end of DACA would bring not just to DACA recipients, but to our country as a whole. We won DACA through relentless organizing by undocumented young people of color across the country and we will harness that same power in this moment to win permanent protections. We fully expect our Congressionally champions to meet this moment of urgency by going all in on a lame-duck strategy to get this done this year. No excuses.
"For SEIU and our members, this fight is personal,” said Mary Kay Henry, President, Service Employees International Union (SEIU). “We are the largest union of care and service workers across the country and the largest union of immigrants. DACA recipients are part of the social and economic fabric of our nation, and they are pillars of their families and communities. The economic impact of deporting these breadwinners cannot be overstated. The time for congressional action to protect them permanently is now.”
“Evangelicals believe that Dreamers, like all immigrants, should be treated with dignity and respect because they, like all of us, bear the image of God. One cannot worship the God of the Bible and be hostile to immigrants,” said Galen Carey, Vice President, National Association of Evangelicals. “While other aspects of immigration reform may be negotiable, permanent status for Dreamers must not be held hostage to other interests. Just as Congress provided aid to those devastated by Hurricane Ian, so Congress must urgently come to the aid of Dreamers. And they should do it now.”
According to a new study from World Relief and the Evangelical Immigration Table and Lifeway, there is widespread support for immigration reform among Evangelicals, with four out of five evangelicals saying they would support Republicans and Democrats working together on a combination of reforms to strengthen border security, create a path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants who were brought to the United States as children and provide a reliable number of screened, legal farmworkers.
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