To: Governor Gina Raimondo, Rep. David Cicilline (RI-1), Rep. James Langevin (RI-2), Sen. John Reed (RI-1), and Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (RI-2)
Rhode Island: Defend DACA and protect lifelong residents from deportation
Texas and nine other states have threatened a lawsuit against the Trump administration if it doesn’t end Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) by September 5, 2017. As a Dreamer, I worry for the well-being of myself and 800,000[1] other recipients, as our ability to drive, work, and study are in jeopardy.
Tell Governor Raimondo to stand up to the Trump administration and demand that the U.S. Justice Department defend DACA.
Our federal delegation must also protect young Rhode Islanders by codifying a permanent solution for Dreamers.
Tell Governor Raimondo to stand up to the Trump administration and demand that the U.S. Justice Department defend DACA.
Our federal delegation must also protect young Rhode Islanders by codifying a permanent solution for Dreamers.
Why is this important?
Update: AG Kilmartin has signed onto AG Becerra (California)'s letter to the Trump administration directing them to defend DACA.
Our focus is now on ensuring that our federal delegation sponsors the re-introduced Dream Act in order to codify permanent protection for Dreamers.
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DACA, a policy memorandum issued in 2012 by Department of Homeland Security Secretary Napolitano, allows those who overstayed their visa or unlawfully entered the United States as children an opportunity to work, pay taxes, and remain in the U.S. without the constant fear of deportation.
I am a DACA recipient. In 1998, I was brought to the U.S. from Portugal at the age of ten months. Prior to DACA, I was unsure of how I would live or work. I agonized over the fact that I wouldn't be able to seek lawful employment. I worried that I could be forced out of my home, the United States — the only country that I have ever known. I suffered from severe anxiety and depression. It was a challenge to merely get out of bed every morning.
DACA changed my outlook on life. It has allowed me to obtain something as simple as a driver's license. It allows me to work and be treated with dignity. It allows to obtain an education and pursue the American Dream.
But that dream is now at risk after ten states threatened to sue the Trump administration for continuing DACA.
Dreamers are Americans in every way except for our citizenship status: something that we are not allowed to pursue because of our broken immigration system.
If DACA is rescinded, the impact will be felt far beyond the 800,000 recipients nationwide that will be left jobless and unable to provide for their families. Ending DACA would have a grave economic impact on our communities, cities, and states as revenues shrink by over $800 million[2].
That is why we are calling on you, Governor Raimondo and Attorney General Kilmartin, to protect young Rhode Islanders by standing up to the Trump administration and demanding that the U.S. Justice Department defend DACA.
Our federal delegation, Representatives Cicilline and Langevin, as well as Senators Reed and Whitehouse, must lead on this important issue by co-sponsoring legislation to codify a permanent solution for Dreamers.
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[1] "Data Set: Form I-821D Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals." USCIS. Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, Biometrics Capture Systems, CIS Consolidated Operational Repository (CISCOR), 8 June 2017. Web. 20 July 2017.
[2] Hill, Misha E., and Meg Wiehe. "State & Local Tax Contributions of Young Undocumented Immigrants." ITEP. Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, 25 Apr. 2017. Web. 20 July 2017.
Our focus is now on ensuring that our federal delegation sponsors the re-introduced Dream Act in order to codify permanent protection for Dreamers.
----
DACA, a policy memorandum issued in 2012 by Department of Homeland Security Secretary Napolitano, allows those who overstayed their visa or unlawfully entered the United States as children an opportunity to work, pay taxes, and remain in the U.S. without the constant fear of deportation.
I am a DACA recipient. In 1998, I was brought to the U.S. from Portugal at the age of ten months. Prior to DACA, I was unsure of how I would live or work. I agonized over the fact that I wouldn't be able to seek lawful employment. I worried that I could be forced out of my home, the United States — the only country that I have ever known. I suffered from severe anxiety and depression. It was a challenge to merely get out of bed every morning.
DACA changed my outlook on life. It has allowed me to obtain something as simple as a driver's license. It allows me to work and be treated with dignity. It allows to obtain an education and pursue the American Dream.
But that dream is now at risk after ten states threatened to sue the Trump administration for continuing DACA.
Dreamers are Americans in every way except for our citizenship status: something that we are not allowed to pursue because of our broken immigration system.
If DACA is rescinded, the impact will be felt far beyond the 800,000 recipients nationwide that will be left jobless and unable to provide for their families. Ending DACA would have a grave economic impact on our communities, cities, and states as revenues shrink by over $800 million[2].
That is why we are calling on you, Governor Raimondo and Attorney General Kilmartin, to protect young Rhode Islanders by standing up to the Trump administration and demanding that the U.S. Justice Department defend DACA.
Our federal delegation, Representatives Cicilline and Langevin, as well as Senators Reed and Whitehouse, must lead on this important issue by co-sponsoring legislation to codify a permanent solution for Dreamers.
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[1] "Data Set: Form I-821D Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals." USCIS. Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, Biometrics Capture Systems, CIS Consolidated Operational Repository (CISCOR), 8 June 2017. Web. 20 July 2017.
[2] Hill, Misha E., and Meg Wiehe. "State & Local Tax Contributions of Young Undocumented Immigrants." ITEP. Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, 25 Apr. 2017. Web. 20 July 2017.