Thursday marks seven years since the Obama administration began accepting DACA applications. “I remember watching Obama’s speech,” Samuel Cervantes tweeted. “I remember feeling closer to being American. I could finally be like my friends. I didn’t need to hide anymore.” In the seven years since that day, hundreds of thousands of young immigrants have had an opportunity to pursue their educational and professional goals.
But today, DACA recipients like Samuel are in a precarious position. “DACA was ended by the Trump administration,” he continues, and while the courts eventually forced officials to partially reinstate it, the Supreme Court will hear a case around it later this year, with a decision expected early next year. Samuel has been among the advocates urging other eligible immigrant youth to hurry and apply for their two-year renewals, saying, “We don’t know how long DACA will be around, so please renew ASAP.”
But it’s also costly—each renewal costs $495, not including any legal fees should undocumented immigrant youth require an attorney’s help for any reason during the application process. If a DACA recipient’s protections have expired for some reason and they’ve been unable to work since, the cost also represents a steep and unrealistic reach. Allies, however—including many from the Daily Kos community—have helped raise thousands of dollars to offset these costs.
But Samuel also wants everyone to remember immigrant youth blocked off completely from the program. While the courts forced the administration to reinstate the program, it only did so for current and former applicants, with new applicants left out entirely. “I was lucky to be able to keep my DACA,” he said, “but there are undocumented youth that will never be able to apply. We live court to court decision.”
While the House of Representatives finally passed permanent protections under the new leadership of incoming Democrats, Republican Sen. Mitch McConnell is blocking this relief. Samuel notes, “We contributed $1.7 billion in local and state taxes; and $1.4 billion in federal taxes,” and could contribute even more on a path to citizenship, but it’s about more than just dollars and cents. It’s about making sure immigrant youth can stay here, in the only home they’ve ever known.
We must keep fighting for permanent protections—but right now, immigrant youth need our help more than ever to keep renewing their DACA protections. The Daily Kos community has already raised $70,000 for the DACA Renewal Fund—can you chip in today to help immigrant youth like Samuel?