USA TODAY International Edition
DACA hasn’t ended — but DREAMers are still scared
Monday was supposed to be the day that the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program officially came to an end, terminating deportation protections for nearly 700,000 undocumented immigrants brought to the country as children.
A Supreme Court ruling delayed that end date, possibly by as much as a year, but DACA enrollees still used Monday to push Congress and the White House to pass a new law granting them permanent protection.
From Nevada to Capitol Hill to Trump Tower in New York City, immigrants and their allies held marches, rallies and prayer vigils to make sure their plight remains in the spotlight — because even though the Supreme Court bought them some time, that reprieve may be shortlived.
“When you are an immigrant, you feel so alone, and it feels amazing to see people from so many communities support us,” said Nancy Canales, 18, a Seattle resident who participated in a march in Washington on Monday to support her undocumented siblings who could benefit from DACA.
While many of the protests are focusing on Republican leaders in Congress and White House officials who have stalled efforts to pass a DACA solution, some protesters targeted Democrats as well for not pushing the issue hard enough.
“The Democrats made the calculation to kick the can down the road and allow hundreds of thousands of us undocumented youth to live in uncertainty,” said Maria Duarte, a DACA enrollee who walked with others from New York to Washington to protest congressional inaction. “We are anxious, and we are scared of being torn away from (our) homes and our community.”
President Trump also took a shot at Democrats on Monday, tweeting: “It’s March 5th and the Democrats are nowhere to be found on DACA. Gave them 6 months, they just don’t care. Where are they? We are ready to make a deal!”
A federal judge in California ruled in January that the Trump administration used flawed reasoning when it decided to end the program. The Supreme Court ruled last week that the appeal of that ruling must go through the regular appeals process.