Helping ‘Dreamers’ first step toward immigration reform

On Oct. 5, I flew to our nation’s capital to join conservatives and progressives, law enforcement, business and faith communities that met in Washington, D.C., to urge Congress to provide a legislative solution for those young undocumented immigrants— knownas the “Dreamers”— many of whom do not knowany other country but the United States and whose protection from deportation has been terminated by President Trump.

Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA, was the executive decision promulgated by President Barack Obama in June 2012, only fourmonths before the 2012 presidential elections. It occurred at a time when many immigration activists were upset by Obama’s unkept promises for immigration reform and the massive deportations during this administration, and began to protest at democratic events. What many do not knowis that Florida’s Sen. Marco Rubio was crafting an alternative Dream Act months before the 2012 elections, which was preempted by Obama’s unilateral executive decision.

DACA provides no legal status. President Trump’s decision to rescind this executive decision may have a salutary effect since nowthe issue is squarely back to where it should be: Congress.

In Washington I had the honor to listen to Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), cosponsor of the SUCCEED Act, largely based on the Recognizing America’s Children Act— RAC Act— written by Rep. Carlos Curbelo (R-Miami). The SUCCEED Act creates a15-year process that allows young undocumented immigrants towork legally in the United States, travel outside the country and become legal permanent residents.

Such status would be given only to certain undocumented youth who arrived to the U.S. before a certain age and have continuously lived here since at least June15, 2012. They have to show proof they finished high school or a GED program, are currently in college, serve in the military or are employed, and undergo criminal background checks. Tillis proclaimed his bill to be a “good starting point” and welcomed us to contact his office to improve it.

Some Democrats, on the other hand, are advocating for what they call a “clean Dream Act” and want this legislation to pass without any enforcement provisions attached to counter future undocumented immigration. In 2010, a “clean Dream Act was voted on. The bill had enough Republicans on board, that if every Democrat would have voted for it, we would have had the DREAM act in 2010.

Five Democratic senators voted against the 2010 Dream Act. In 2009, Obama expanded exponentially the “secure communities” program that gives lawenforcement the ability to work with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), which fueled the massive deportations that characterized his administration. Such “enforcement” action of President Obamawas not paired with any legalization for the Dreamers, or for the11 million undocumented immigrants. The Succeed Act could mirror some of the DREAM Act— which has a shorter waiting time for Dreamers to become legal permanent residents— if Democrats accept that such bill must be paired with some enforcement provisions, such as enhanced border security and terminating the diversity visa lottery program.

We must focus on the crisis at hand— the Dreamers. Their lives at the moment are hanging by a thread. Once Congress acts on the Dreamers, itwould be a catalyst for further bills to address not only border security, but also the fate of the Dreamers’ parents and other hardworking undocumented immigrants who did cross borders or overstayed their visas— a civil, not a criminal, violation— without documentation to feed their loved ones. They work from sunrise to sunset and often nights, filling jobs that most American workers are not doing.

Our immigration system was last revamped in 1986 and provides no path for many of our needed workers. For me, they are the courageous one. They left their homes and countries, took risks andwork hard; harvesting our crops, building our homes, trimming our plants, building our golf courses, taking care of our children.

Humanity’s common thread is the movement of people— both documented and undocumented— and how we treat the stranger among us says everything about the soul of a nation. President Bush used to say: “Immigrants make the United States more, not less, American.”

Aftermy recent trip to D.C., I am hopeful that our nation will rise once again to be the welcoming nation that it always has been, as our Congress begins to address this policy issue, not only with smart enforcement but with heart.

Aileen Josephs is an immigration lawyer based in West Palm Beach and Co-Chair of Florida Voices for Immigration Reform.