Call to Action: Support Dreamers and Pass the Dream Act of 2021
UPDATE: On July 16, 2021, a federal judge ruled that accepting new DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) applications is illegal. While this does not change the status of current DACA recipients, it does bar new applicants, emphasizing the need for legislative action. The House passed the Dream Act, but the bill is currently held up in the Senate. We need to continue to encourage our senators to work together to find a legislative solution to ensure Dreamers are protected from deportation and are provided a reasonable pathway to permanent status.
The American Dream and Promise Act of 2021 is a bipartisan bill that would provide permanent protection and a pathway for Dreamers (children who arrived in the U.S. without documentation) to receive citizenship. This bill has been introduced repeatedly since 2001 and has received bipartisan support.
Executive orders do not offer long-term legal solutions and are insufficient because a future administration could revoke protected status and potentially deport Dreamers to countries they do not even remember living in. They deserve a permanent legislative solution that does not put them at risk of being used as partisan pawns via executive orders. Until the Dream Act is passed, Dreamers will remain in uncertainty. The Dream Act will provide a path to citizenship for millions of individuals who feel completely American in everything but name. They already contribute to our communities, but citizenship will allow them the security of being able to further their education, find meaningful employment, pay taxes, invest in their communities, and bring their full commitment to our nation without fear of future deportation.
To do:
Write to your members of Congress and ask them to support the American Dream and Promise Act of 2021. You can submit a letter to all of your elected representatives at once via our website. After you enter your information, you will be given a chance to add a personal statement to let your members of Congress know why this is important to you. (Remember the Principles of Peacemaking.)
Background:
Those who arrived in the United States as children and without documentation — Dreamers — still do not have permanent protection or a path to citizenship. In 2017, the Department of Homeland Security under President Trump ended the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program created by President Obama. Last year, the Supreme Court overturned Trump’s attempt to rescind DACA, temporarily granting protection for Dreamers. President Biden also signed an executive order to provide protection for Dreamers, but that protection will last only until another administration wants to reverse it again.
Dreamers are an integral part of our communities. They are friends, neighbors, business owners, and family members. They are providing medical care on the front lines of COVID-19, serving in our military, and paying taxes. They are also human beings (Principles of Ethical Government 2) who deserve a chance to become U.S. citizens after living in and contributing to this country since childhood.
The American Dream and Promise Act of 2021 would provide that chance as well as permanent assurance that Dreamers can continue to thrive in the U.S. without fear of deportation from their homes. The Dream Act has been introduced multiple times over the last 20 years. It was first introduced by Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Orrin Hatch (R-UT), and it has consistently received bipartisan support. Last year, a version of the Dream Act (H.R.6) passed in the House but was never voted on in the Senate. In February of this year, Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Lindsey Graham (R-SC) introduced the bill again.
This bill would help to right the unjust immigration laws that punish individuals for choices they did not make. These choices were made on behalf of children when parents or family members entered the U.S. and stayed without documentation. We have a moral obligation (PEG 3g) to work together to bring about ethical legislation to support the Dreamers in our communities.
Mormon Women for Ethical Government is in support of the American Dream and Promise Act of 2021 and will be advocating for its passage in the Senate and then the House. We will continue to provide updated information, and we expect the bill to be heard in the Senate Judiciary Committee in March or April of this year. We need to act now to let our members of Congress know we support the Dream Act and want to see them support it too.
