On Tuesday United States Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced that the Trump administration plans to repeal the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program within the next six months. By repealing DACA, President Trump overturns one of former President Barack Obama's signature policies and drastically the lives of more than half a million people living in the United States.
DACA was designed to protect undocumented immigrants who came to the United States as children. These undocumented immigrants are often referred to as 'dreamers.' Since the Obama administration began DACA in 2012 over a half of a million people have been approved to become part of the program.
To be eligible for DACA, potential applicants had to arrive in the US before age 16 and had to have lived within its borders since June of 2007. Potential applicants also could not be older than 30 years old at the time the program was enacted. On top of these stringent age requirements, DACA applicants must also have a squeaky clean criminal record. Even something as minuscule as a parking violation could keep an applicant from being approved for the program.
Under the DACA program, formerly undocumented immigrants have been able to obtain valid driver licenses, enroll in college, legally secure jobs, and pay income taxes. All of these actions were legally impossible prior to 2012. The program does not, however, grant its recipients a path to become US citizens. Instead, DACA forces dreamers to reapply for the program every two years.
Under current Trump administration rules, no new DACA applicants will be accepted and those already within the program have six months to reapply and extend their protection under DACA. However, given the volatility of the Trump administration there is no guarantee that reapplying for the program within the next six months will guarantee an extension of DACA protections for dreamers. This means that at the very least 300,000 undocumented immigrants and dreamers will be eligible for deportation within the next year or two.
The future of DACA and the hopes of thousands of dreamers are now dependent on Congress to come up with a solution within the next six months. Let us not forget that this is the same congress that cannot figure out how to pass a budget in a timely manner, reform health care, or do much of anything productive now faces the monumental task of reforming immigration in a mere six months.
To make matters worse for dreamers, congress is as divided as it has ever been. There is hardly any bipartisanship amongst members of the current congress. However, all hope isn't lost just yet...
The American people, when they come out in force behind an issue, have the power to greatly influence the productivity and course of action taken by Congress. Now, more than ever, it is time to start calling local members of congress and senators. It is time for the American people to put pressure on Congress and to force them to finally reform immigration in a way that positively affects all those who call the United States home; whether they be documented or not.
