SCOTUS Decides DACA is Here to Stay — for Now — More Must Be Done to Protect Dreamers

By Alejandra Ramirez-Zarate, Policy and Research Analyst

Today, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in favor of upholding the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program in a 5-4 decision.

We applaud the Supreme Court for rejecting the Trump administration’s attempt to end the DACA program. The administration’s decision to terminate the program was both arbitrary and capricious. These are children who very much call this nation their home, who wish for nothing more than to prosper, thrive, and give back to the communities that raised them. This is the first step to ensuring we never again have to live in the shadows.

Yet this is a temporary fix. For nearly three years, DACA recipients have lived in limbo, and this decision will not stop the Trump administration’s relentless assault on immigrant rights. More must be done to protect the over 700,000 Dreamers who call this country home, more than 200,000 of which live in California alone. Congress must now pass permanent protections and solutions that help some without hurting others, including extensions of DACA and TPS work permits and protection from deportation for immigrants in any stimulus packages to address COVID-19. This is also an opportunity to defund ICE and CBP and invest in our communities.

This decision comes as millions of Americans have taken to the streets to demand equity and stop the over-policing and murder of communities of color at the hands of the police, particularly Black people who continue to be disproportionately affected by systemic racism and oppressive policies. Black immigrants are more likely to be deported than non-black immigrants because of such disproportionate policing, incarceration, and anti-black racism. We stand in unity, across all movements, to protect and ensure a happy and liberated future for all people of color, regardless of the color of their skin or immigration status.

Today we celebrate this moment and what this means for undocumented families: just a bit less daily fear of deportation; dreams no longer deferred or canceled altogether, and feeling a sense of belonging in this country. While DACA does not immediately resolve all these issues, it does humanize us and provide hope. Now, hundreds of thousands of people like me can collectively breathe a sigh of relief and look forward to the future.

Advancement Project California urges you to support the following partner organizations working to protect immigrant rights here in California: CHIRLA, California Immigrant Policy Center, The Partnership for the Advancement of New Americans, the Korean Resource Center, SALEF, and MEND