Campaign Action
The Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program represents so much more than a work permit, it also represents physical and emotional wellbeing. Through their employers, many DACA recipients have been able to enroll in health insurance. And because they’re protected from deportation, DACA recipients have been able to live with peace of mind, knowing they will not be torn from their families at a moment’s notice. In fact, as Dr. Akash Goel writes for TIME, research showed that DACA’s protections have had transformational effects on young immigrants:
A recent study from Harvard Medical School used national survey data to demonstrate that rates of psychological distress fell 40% amongst those eligible for DACA after it’s passage compared to those ineligible for DACA. What’s more, this effect appears to impact subsequent generations. Another study showed that amongst children of DACA eligible mothers, rates of anxiety and adjustment disorder fell by nearly half after its passage. While programs like DACA and the DREAM Act are not explicitly meant to be public health programs, their impact on mental health are on par with our best available population health interventions.
Research has already shown that mass deportation policies have catastrophic effects on the U.S.-born kids of undocumented parents, including symptoms of PTSD. “Children who have been separated from their parents frequently show signs of trauma, including anxiety, depression, frequent crying, disrupted eating and sleeping, and difficulties in school.” Ensuring undocumented young people have full civil and legal protections will not only help them become better parents, but help their children, too.
As Dr. Goel continues, passing the DREAM Act—bipartisan legislation that would legalize an estimated two million undocumented immigrant youth—would have broad public health implications. As immigrant youth are finally allowed to live up to their own potential, many will be able to pursue vocational training and higher educational opportunities. We know this to be true because it’s been happening. And as older generations leave the workforce, it’s been younger Americans, like DACA recipients, who have stepped in to continue important and vital work:
The health impact of not passing the DREAM Act is not just limited to immigrant communities, though. It also has significant implications for the general population and, in particular, our elderly. Surveys suggest that nearly one-fifth of DREAMers work in health care and education, filling critically needed direct care roles such as home health aides as well as even highly trained roles as doctors and nurses. This is critically important because there are already significant health workforce shortages, particularly in home care, which cannot meet current demand. The population of seniors, currently 48 million, is projected to nearly double by 2050. And the Bureau of Labor Statistics already projects an additional 1.1 million direct care workers will be needed by 2024. Deportations of DREAMers will put at least tens of thousands of these jobs at further risk.
Undocumented immigrants are more than their tax contributions, but during an administration that continues to falsely malign immigrant families as takers, it must be pointed out that undocumented workers contribute $12 billion annually in local and state taxes, and research from the Center for American Progress has found that passing the DREAM Act could spur economic gains as high as $1 trillion over a decade. The Dream Act isn’t just smart policy, it’s the moral thing to do. “Not taking action on DREAMers,” Dr. Goel writes, “portends harmful psychological consequences on immigrant communities—those that are already marginalized and face a high disease burden.”
Right now, the fight to pass the DREAM Act is entering the most critical weeks yet. “As actions across the country this week demonstrated,” immigrant rights group America’s Voice notes, “there is incredible energy for protecting Dreamers all across America, there is growing bipartisan support in Congress, and poll after poll reminds us that the American people, including Republicans, strongly back efforts to keep Dreamers here in America.” Immigrant youth need our help now more than ever. Make one call today—it could make all the difference for them.