DACA/DAPA
Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) and Deferred Action for Parents of Americans and Lawful Permanent Residents (DAPA) offer certain immigrants protection from immediate deportation and other benefits. Learn more about these policies, how they affect America, and our work to strengthen them below.
BREAKING: DACA Approvals Surpass 50,000
Earlier this afternoon, the Obama administration released updated statistics indicating that 53,273 undocumented youths have been granted relief under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. As of November 15, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) had received more than 300,000 requests for deferred action, with most… Read More
Including DACA Recipients in Health Care Reform
By Jenny Rejeske, Health Policy Analyst National Immigration Law Center. The Obama administration’s decision to cut access to affordable health care for young people granted relief from deportation hurts everyone. This decision came weeks after the administration initiated the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) policy, which lifts the cloud of deportation for immigrant youth who have grown up here. At the same time, the administration quietly issued policy changes excluding DACA recipients from federal health insurance programs, effectively shutting their door to affordable health care. Read More
In Presidential Election, “Self-Deportation” Goes Down to Defeat
It did not become certain until late Tuesday night that President Obama would win re-election. But for Mitt Romney, the campaign may have been lost during the Republican primary, when he cited “self-deportation” as the solution to our nation’s immigration problems. With the post-election dust now settled, it has become increasingly clear that supporting the idea is not only bad as a matter of policy, but also a losing political strategy. Read More
Elections Demand a New Way Forward on Immigration
Even before the election was called for President Obama last night, pundits and pollsters were remarking on the fact that immigration—or more specifically, anti-immigrant policies—were a death knell for Mitt Romney. Today, the analysis of whether and how the Republican party recovers from its devastatingly poor showing among Latinos—the key demographic group of the 21st century—is also focusing on immigration. CNN’s David Gergen noted that immigration reform would become a reality because Democrats want it and Republicans need it; even Fox news commentators grumpily acknowledged that immigration reform has got to be on the table now. Read More
Could DACA Have Happened Without Public Engagement at USCIS?
Approximately two months after the program opened, nearly 200,000 individuals have submitted requests for grants under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) imitative. It’s still too early to assess the overall success of the program or evaluate the grant rates, but it isn’t too early to take note of the important role that preparation played in making DACA a reality. Read More
Associated Press Issues Misleading Defense of Term “Illegal Immigrant”
Unlike lawyers and policymakers, journalists have an obligation to use language that ordinary people understand. Although the practice is generally helpful, it can sometimes result in oversimplification, or sacrificing accuracy for the sake of supposed clarity. A perfect example is the memo issued by the Associated Press last week endorsing use of the term “illegal immigrant.” Read More
Immigration (Finally) Takes the Stage at a Presidential Debate
George W. Bush made several appearances in last night’s presidential debate, but perhaps nowhere with greater effect than when President Obama contrasted Governor Mitt Romney’s position on immigration reform. Where President Bush supported comprehensive immigration reform, declared President Obama, Governor Romney supports “self-deportation” and Arizona style anti-immigrant laws. Moderator Candy Crowley then segued into a direct immigration question from an undecided voter about Romney’s plans for dealing with the 11 million undocumented immigrants living in our nation. The next few minutes revealed a great deal about both candidates’ positions on the immigration question, but perhaps more importantly, the points where the candidates challenged each other suggest that both parties recognize they must begin talking about immigration in new ways. Read More
Pace of DACA Approvals Quickens, but Will it be Fast Enough?
For the first time since immigration authorities officially launched Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals in mid-August, the federal government released statistics last Friday indicating that thousands of requests have been officially granted. But while the figures themselves are an encouraging sign, other evidence suggests that most applicants will not have their requests considered until after the next presidential inauguration in January, if at all. Read More
Who and Where the DREAMers Are, Revised Estimates
There are roughly 1.8 million immigrants in the United States who might be, or might become, eligible for the Obama Administration’s “deferred action” initiative for unauthorized youth brought to this country as children. Read More
Naturalized Citizens Have the Power to Swing Elections
There is no doubt that immigrants are a force to be reckoned with in this year’s presidential race. After all, the Obama administration unveiled its Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program in June, just a couple of months before the official start of the campaign. And Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney has said that, if elected, he will not deport DACA beneficiaries (although he says he will discontinue the program). In other words, both candidates are going out of their way to woo immigrant voters—that is, naturalized U.S. citizens who are eligible to vote—as well as those second and third generation Americans for whom immigration is still a highly personal issue. This is smart politics. Given that the presidential election could be decided by the most razor-thin of margins, the ballots cast by naturalized citizens could prove decisive, especially in the handful of swing states upon which the election will probably hinge. Read More
