Take a moment and picture this scenario.
Imagine being born in a country where you have limited resources and even the rich have poor living arrangements. Now imagine that after a few months or a few years of living there, you and your family move to a better country with more opportunities to have a better life.
Then imagine living in the better country with no remembrance of the one you were born in and being told that because you came here when you were four years old and you are not a citizen of this country, you will be shipped back to the place you were born, even if you know this place better. This is what is happening across America right now with the DACA policy.
DACA, or Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, was an American immigration policy that allowed some young children who entered the United States by force of their parents, receive a two-year renewable deferred action from deportation and made them eligible for a work permit.
Recent data from the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services showed that since the program’s creation by former President Barack Obama in 2012, approximately 790,000 young immigrants have been granted work permits and deportation relief. This means that almost 800,000 people have had a new chance at life and are getting it ripped out of their hands if DACA gets repealed as called for by President Trump.
These are people who live the American lifestyle. They pay their taxes and they even have to pay to be able to work in the U.S. Work permits are not free. Every two years when their renewable deferred deportation runs out, they have to pay hundreds of dollars to get that renewed.
Looking at it from that perspective, they deserve to live here. They work hard to live here because they know this is the country where their dreams can be made. If President Trump takes that from them, not only is he ruining their lives, he is ruining this economy. They are a big part of our workforce and they have to pay to work before they can make money.
They live the American lifestyle. They are American.
(Citizens protest the repealing of DACA outside Trump Tower. Photo Credit/Creative Commons)
