FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: September 15, 2023
Contact: Pablo DeJesús | info@uusj.org |
Cruel and regrettable legal limbo
Congress and the Biden Administration must support DACA
Last night, Judge Andrew Hanan of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas again ruled that the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program is unlawful. This decision leaves hundreds of thousands of people currently protected by DACA in legal limbo and prohibits hundreds of thousands of other people from applying for DACA protection.
“This ruling is both cruel and regrettable, and tragically, it was avoidable,” said Pablo DeJesus, executive director of Unitarian Universalists for Social Justice. “Despite the fact that most U.S. Citizens support protecting DACA recipients, often called Dreamers, Congress has failed for more than a decade to pass legislation to protect them. As Unitarian Universalists, we believe in the worth and dignity of every person, so we again call on Congress to pass legislation to protect the Dreamers,” continued DeJesus.
“We also call on the Biden Administration as well as individual states and localities to provide whatever support Dreamers need to assure their safety and ability to thrive as their legal status is resolved,” said DeJesus.
“No, our immigration action team was not surprised by the ruling, although they were deeply saddened by the bitter result. The court’s decision has renewed our commitment to support the DACA program and Dreamers. We remind all Unitarian Universalists that our denomination passed an Action of Immediate Witness on this matter during June 2023,” concluded DeJesus.