Without a legislative solution, the futures of over a million young people known as Dreamers remain uncertain and they live in fear of deportation. Congress needs to take urgent action to protect these extraordinary young people.
The Uniting and Securing America (USA) Act of 2018 (H.R. 4796), was introduced by Rep. Will Hurd (R-TX) and Rep. Pete Aguilar (D-CA) in the House of Representatives on January 16 and has more than 50 bipartisan co-sponsors. While the Dream Act of 2017 remains the ideal legislative solution and the USA Act can still be improved upon, as written it is a compromise bill that provides a path to citizenship for 1.8 million Dreamers and offers proportionate border security measures. We are asking the House of Representatives to urgently move forward this piece of legislation.
Take action: Ask your Representatives to support the USA Act of 2018
The USA Act 2018:
- provides qualifying Dreamers with protection from deportation, as well as a path to citizenship;
- augments border security at the U.S.-Mexico border, in part through deployment of new technology and development of a strategic plan;
- increases the number of immigration judges and Board of Immigration Appeals staff attorneys;
- seeks to address root causes and prevent future irregular migration by conditioning aid to Central America to prevent corruption.
While a larger solution is still needed to fix our broken immigration system, we urge Congress to first focus on passing the USA Act, as written, or similar bipartisan and narrowly-tailored legislation.
It is both our moral duty and in our nation’s best interest to protect Dreamers. We stand in solidarity with Dreamers, recognizing that they are contributors to our economy, academic standouts in our universities, veterans of our military, and leaders in our parishes. These youths have grown up in the United States and know this country as their only home. They truly exemplify the extraordinary contributions that immigrants can provide to our nation when they are permitted to reach their God-given potential.
Take action now: Ask your Representatives to protect Dreamers and support the USA Act.
Thank you.