On June 18, the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) ruled against Trump’s decision to terminate DACA in 2017, ending years of agony for the great Dreamers that live in the U.S. Chief Justice Roberts delivered the opinion that the Department of Homeland Security’s “decision to rescind DACA was arbitrary and capricious” under the Administrative Procedure Act. This decision came alongside another formidable victory for human rights earlier this week when SCOTUS ruled to extend protection to all LGBTQ employees under the Civil Rights Act and the Constitution.
DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) is an immigration policy that grants eligible young immigrants a legal status to delay their deportation by two years, as well as a work permit. On June 15, 2012, then-president Obama announced the historic policy that would apply to immigrants under 31 years of age who immigrated to the U.S. before the age of 16. In August 2012, Pew Research estimated that 1.7 million unauthorized immigrants could benefit from DACA. However, since its beginning, about 800,000 immigrants have enrolled in the program.
Following a xenophobic campaign promise, in September 2017, the Trump administration moved to terminate DACA. At the time, less than 690,000 immigrants were enrolled in the program. Consequently, the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) stopped accepting new applications, although it allowed current DACA beneficiaries to renew their statuses, which expire every two years.
DACA recipient Ellie Perez argues that Trump wanted to terminate DACA “to rile up his base and get votes.” She was among the panelists that joined the DNC President Tom Perez for the DNC’s organized a live event to support Dreamers and learn about their experiences. Ellie continued to state that Trump “thought that this was going to be the nail in the coffin that would win the election for him, but he forgot that 85% of the country supports DACA recipients.” Trump’s excluding vision for society places him in the minority group that wants to deport the Dreamers. Even 69% of those who voted for him in 2016 believe that DACA recipients should be protected, according to the latest POLITICO/Morning Consult poll.
Ahead of the SCOTUS hearing in November 2019, major U.S. groups presented amicus briefs in support of DACA and its beneficiaries. Over 140 companies and 18 business groups—including Amazon, Google, and Tesla—signed one that reads, “by expanding the opportunities available to DACA recipients, this program has benefitted America’s companies, our Nation’s economy, and all Americans.” Additionally, a group of more than 50 national security experts—among them, Secretary Madeleine K. Albright—argued that “terminating the program would come with a steep security cost, redounding on our safety at home and reverberating throughout our hemisphere.”
Democratic political leaders also feel committed to defending Dreamers. On the eighth anniversary of DACA, celebrated on June 15, the Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden wrote, “DACA was never meant as a permanent solution… Dreamers deserve to be able to plan their lives with confidence, as do the 11 million undocumented individuals who are living in and enriching our country every day.” Furthermore, he vowed that on day one of his Presidency, he would send a bill to Congress outlining a clear roadmap to citizenship. “And, as we work to pass a permanent, legislative reform through Congress, I’ll use the full extent of my executive authority to protect Dreamers and keep their families together.”
California Attorney General Xavier Becerra, who led a coalition of 20 states plus D.C. to preserve DACA, said that it “would have been cruel to the hundreds of thousands of Dreamers who call America home,” to end DACA. After today’s SCOTUS ruling, he said the decision could reopen the program “to anyone who qualifies.” Still, there are ongoing legal processes in lower courts that could determine whether the government must process new applications.
DACA recipients such as Ellie Perez are nurses, doctors, firefighters, and teachers. Over 93% of them migrated from Latin American countries. They have fought long and hard for a chance to be legally recognized as Americans. This pandemic is the latest example of their commitment to contribute to our nation’s progress, including in the health care and education sectors. The upcoming November election remains their hope that a path to citizenship will come.
The Supreme Court’s decision brings hope to the permanent struggle to form a more perfect union under the rule of law and justice for all. Dreamers are American citizens without a document in their hands, stating they are. Thus, this is only one battle won in the fight to give them, their families, and millions of hard-working migrants a path to citizenship through immigration reform, which should be a priority for Congress after this decision.