Add your name: Immigrants are here to stay! I support DACA and TPS.
Across the country, pro-migrant activists are taking to the streets to defend the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) and Temporary Protected Status (TPS) immigration programs. Together, these programs protect more than 1,000,000 people—allowing them to work and attend school without fear of deportation.
DACA went into effect in 2012. It provides two-year work permits for undocumented immigrants who arrived in the U.S. as children. As Daily Kos' Gabe Ortíz writes, the program is incredibly successful:
"Research has found that 6% of DACA recipients started their own business after receiving DACA. Twenty-one percent of immigrant youth purchased their first car thanks to being able to work legally through their permits, and 12% purchased their first home. Through these contributions to local and state economies, DACA recipients are cemented in communities."
In June, 10 state attorneys general—led by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton—and Idaho Governor C.L. “Butch” Otter demanded that the Trump administration roll back protections for hundreds of thousands of undocumented youth by September 5 or face legal action. Their objection to the program is blatantly racist and deeply mired in white supremacy and nativism.
TPS was established under George H.W. Bush as a humanitarian effort for people who could not return home due to extraordinary circumstances, such as war and natural disaster. Among the 300,000 TPS beneficiaries, there are some 50,000 Haitians who fled their home nation following deadly natural disasters. But, under urging from white supremacists, the Trump administration has signaled it will not renew the status of many of these refugees.
Again, this program is very successful: a majority of TPS recipients are employed, and many in vital industries like childcare and construction. At least 100,000 own homes and have deep family and community ties to the U.S. And around 68,000 of TPS holders arrived as children under the age of 16.
What's more, ending TPS would cost a lot of money. According to the Immigrant Legal Resource Center, ending TPS would result in a $45.2 billion reduction in Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and $6.9 billion reduction in Social Security and Medicare contributions over the next decade. If this workforce was laid off, employers could face $967 million in turnover costs.
DACA and TPS recipients go through an exhaustive application process and by all measures—economic, social, political, etc—are important contributors to society. They, like all immigrants, deserve recognition, dignity and respect for all they bring to our communities. Revoking their protected status would be mean-spirited, racist and harmful to all of us.
Ultimately, we need to reform our outdated immigration policies and rid them of racist ideology that perpetuate stereotypes and create hierarchies among immigrant groups. With the clock ticking, and white supremacists growing bolder every day, it is crucial that we are in solidarity with every community coming under attack. Eliminating these programs would destroy lives. The healthcare fight proved that when we move together, we can beat back Republican extremists. We can't let extremists win without without giving them the fight of their lives.
Say it loud, say it proud: Immigrants are here to stay! I support DACA and TPS.
DACA went into effect in 2012. It provides two-year work permits for undocumented immigrants who arrived in the U.S. as children. As Daily Kos' Gabe Ortíz writes, the program is incredibly successful:
"Research has found that 6% of DACA recipients started their own business after receiving DACA. Twenty-one percent of immigrant youth purchased their first car thanks to being able to work legally through their permits, and 12% purchased their first home. Through these contributions to local and state economies, DACA recipients are cemented in communities."
In June, 10 state attorneys general—led by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton—and Idaho Governor C.L. “Butch” Otter demanded that the Trump administration roll back protections for hundreds of thousands of undocumented youth by September 5 or face legal action. Their objection to the program is blatantly racist and deeply mired in white supremacy and nativism.
TPS was established under George H.W. Bush as a humanitarian effort for people who could not return home due to extraordinary circumstances, such as war and natural disaster. Among the 300,000 TPS beneficiaries, there are some 50,000 Haitians who fled their home nation following deadly natural disasters. But, under urging from white supremacists, the Trump administration has signaled it will not renew the status of many of these refugees.
Again, this program is very successful: a majority of TPS recipients are employed, and many in vital industries like childcare and construction. At least 100,000 own homes and have deep family and community ties to the U.S. And around 68,000 of TPS holders arrived as children under the age of 16.
What's more, ending TPS would cost a lot of money. According to the Immigrant Legal Resource Center, ending TPS would result in a $45.2 billion reduction in Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and $6.9 billion reduction in Social Security and Medicare contributions over the next decade. If this workforce was laid off, employers could face $967 million in turnover costs.
DACA and TPS recipients go through an exhaustive application process and by all measures—economic, social, political, etc—are important contributors to society. They, like all immigrants, deserve recognition, dignity and respect for all they bring to our communities. Revoking their protected status would be mean-spirited, racist and harmful to all of us.
Ultimately, we need to reform our outdated immigration policies and rid them of racist ideology that perpetuate stereotypes and create hierarchies among immigrant groups. With the clock ticking, and white supremacists growing bolder every day, it is crucial that we are in solidarity with every community coming under attack. Eliminating these programs would destroy lives. The healthcare fight proved that when we move together, we can beat back Republican extremists. We can't let extremists win without without giving them the fight of their lives.
Say it loud, say it proud: Immigrants are here to stay! I support DACA and TPS.
