FWD.us: 13 Years of DACA, A Permanent Legislative Solution Is Overdue

“DACA proves that failing to create a legalization process for millions of immigrants who have built their lives here, often for decades, leads to the conditions for the chaos we see today in Los Angeles and across the country”

WASHINGTON, D.C. – FWD.us President Todd Schulte issued the following statement ahead of the 13th anniversary of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) policy:

“For 13 years, DACA has been a lifeline, proving the immense value of allowing people to work legally and live without fear of deportation. It is a stunning testament to the incredible value of affording people legal status—and makes clear how much better our nation would be if we provided Dreamers, and many others who are building their lives in the U.S., a pathway to citizenship.

“The average DACA recipient came to this country at the age of six and has lived here for more than 26 years. DACA has helped people become teachers, engineers, small business owners, and doctors. It’s given tens of thousands of parents the peace of mind to go to bed at night and drive their kids to school in the morning, knowing they can raise their American families across the country with a bit more security. Yet, despite its successes, DACA remains at risk along with the legal status and work permits of millions of people across the country—a threat to families, the American workforce, and a basic sense of decency. DACA recipients and Dreamers remain incredibly vulnerable, in part due to the ongoing legal attacks on the policy and the fact that over a million Dreamers have been blocked from applying for these protections. DACA proves that failing to create a legalization process for millions of immigrants who have built their lives here, often for decades, leads to the conditions for the chaos we see today in Los Angeles and across the country.

“Thirteen years in, DACA remains a source of transformative but insufficient stability and resilience. Ending it would upend lives, cost the country a staggering trillion dollars in lost economic impact, and deepen the kind of chaotic, punitive immigration policies most Americans reject. It’s well past time for Congress to pass a permanent legislative solution that provides certainty to DACA recipients, Dreamers, their families, and the country that relies on them.”

Additional FWD.us Resources on DACA:

• DACA 13 Years Later: From Students to Careers and Families
• New Report: Forfeiting the Trillion-Dollar Dream
• What happens if DACA ends?