The uncertainty facing Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) recipients didn’t come to an end following the Supreme Court’s decision this past June ruling that the Trump administration unlawfully ended the program. Not only have officials continued to defy this ruling for over 100 days now, but unlawfully appointed Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Sec. Chad Wolf also signed further restrictions into place, slashing protections from two years to just one. (He’s currently being sued over this.)
But even in the face of these attacks, undocumented youth are determined to keep fighting back. New survey results find that nearly 95% of surveyed DACA recipients plan to encourage family and friends who are eligible to vote to cast their ballots in this year’s election. “This year’s survey results show us that despite what we’ve lived the last four years, no matter the attacks on our communities, immigrant youth continue to be resilient and willing to fight to ensure we are here to stay,” United We Dream state and local policy manager Juliana Macedo do Nascimento said.
The survey results, published this week by the U.S. Immigration Policy Center at the University of California, San Diego; the National Immigration Law Center, the Center for American Progress; and United We Dream find that DACA recipients have continued to be relentless in their civic engagement despite racist attacks designed to demoralize them.
“Nearly half of respondents, 46.1 percent, reported that they have become more politically active since receiving DACA,” the research said. “This includes 33.9 percent of respondents who reported that they contacted or tried to contact a member of Congress during the past 12 months and 30.0 percent of respondents who reported that they contacted or tried to contact a state or local elected official. It follows that the majority of respondents, 52.0 percent, reported that they have become more involved in their communities after receiving DACA.”
Survey recipients also expressed a strong commitment to fighting racial injustices like the state-sanctioned police killings of Black men and women all across the U.S.
The survey found nearly 90% of respondents “reported that they support or strongly support the Black Lives Matter movement. This support has also translated into action, as 41.2 percent reported that, during the past 12 months, they had participated in a campaign to protest the killing of Black people.” Participating in protests can come with additional risks for DACA recipients: Some have been arrested by police and then turned over to federal immigration officials, putting their lives here in the U.S. at risk.
But even as they’re fighting back at the ballot box and in the streets, “DHS’ continued attacks on DACA are weighing heavily on the minds of DACA recipients”—as is the ongoing novel coronavirus pandemic that has now killed over 200,000 Americans and has even infected the uppermost regions of a reckless White House.
“Like most Americans, DACA recipients have been grappling with the devastating economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic,” the research continued. “Of respondents who are currently employed, 25.8 percent, reported having either their work hours or pay reduced due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Among respondents who are currently not employed, 45.1 percent reported that they lost their job due to the COVID-19 pandemic.”
Further “underscoring the importance of the intersection of immigration status and economic recovery,” the research also found that nearly one-quarter of respondents had someone in their household who was denied a federal stimulus check due to their immigration status, even though they filed taxes. But all of this is also why “DACA recipients are fired up to get involved to fight for our future,” Macedo do Nascimento continued.
“Despite being unable to vote, DACA recipients are ensuring their voices are heard,” she said. “The results of the survey also showed that DACA recipients’ continue to be deeply concerned about the threat of deportation and family separation should DACA end, in addition to concern about added hardships as a result of COVID-19. It’s imperative that DHS rescind their latest memo limiting the DACA program, so recipients can feel safe in renewing and also so eligible youth can apply for the first time.” See the full survey findings here.