On September 5th, 2017, Donald Trump decided to rescind the DACA program started by the Obama administration. This program has helped nearly 800,000 undocumented immigrants and had a positive effect on the economy. Rescinding it will causes has hurt a lot of people and will no doubt harm our economy.
What is DACA?
DACA stands for Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals. Essentially, it is a program that keeps people who were brought into the country illegally by their parents, called Dreamers, from being deported for two years. The program also makes them eligible for work permits. To qualify, recipients must have no criminal record, completed high school or a GED, or be honorably discharged from the military. In addition, recipients pay a $495 application fee for every time they apply or renew.
Why should you care?
First, DACA has benefitted the overall economy in America, because DACA recipients are eligible to work. This means they are no longer living in poverty and are contributing to the economy through spending and taxes. Ending DACA would actually harm the economy by forcing immigrants to go back to working illegally for less pay. This would make employers go back to hiring illegal work forces rather than American citizens.
Beyond that, Dreamers are a part of American society. They are not just benefitting from America, they are also making it better. These people are your friends and classmates and coworkers. They are as much American as you or me. They work, pay taxes, and go to school. Many of them don’t know anywhere else because they were brought here so young. Sending them back to their “home” would just be sending them to a foreign country where they don’t know anyone and may not even speak the language.
What can you do?
Because ending DACA will cause major issues with the economy and uprooting Dreamers will take a lot of time and tax payer money, Congress has been given six months to act on the repeal and will allow any recipients to renew if their permits expire within this time. This also gives us time to stop the repeal. You can contact you senators and representatives and urge them to stop this repeal. Specifically, you should contact Speaker of the House Paul Ryan, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnel, Rep. Martha McSally, Rep. Mike Coffman, and Rep. Will Hurd, as well as our Republican Senator, Marco Rubio. You can call, email, or send them a letter using this contact information:
Paul Ryan
H-232 The Capitol
Washington, DC 20515
Phone: (202) 225-0600
Martha McSally
510 Cannon House Office Building
Washington, DC 20515
Phone: (202) 225-2542
Mike Coffman
2443 Rayburn House Office Building
Washington, DC 20515
Phone: (202) 225-7882
Will Hurd
317 Cannon House Office Building
Washington, DC 20515
Phone: (202) 225-4511 Mitch McConnell
317 Russell Senate Office Building
Washington DC 20510
Phone: (202) 224-2541
Marco Rubio
284 Russell Senate Office Building
Washington DC 20510
Phone: (202) 224-3041
Beyond this, you can find or organize protests in your area or start calling or mailing campaigns. You can also get in contact with the National Immigration Law Center, which represents immigrants in legal battles, to donate. The DACA repeal is a serious issue that will affect you, your friends and family, and the economy. Get involved and let’s fight this.