09.04.2017

NEW YORK -- In response to rumors, reported in Politico and other news sources that President Trump has decided to phase out DACA, a lifesaving program for hundreds of thousands of young immigrants, the Center for Popular Democracy released the following statement from Co-Executive Director Ana Maria Archila:

“News outlets are reporting that Trump may phase out DACA, a program that has been a gateway to a better life for hundreds of thousands of young immigrants across the country. It has been a gift to the communities they live in, which have prospered as immigrants have come out of the shadows and pursued new opportunities, be it a better job or an advanced degree.

To revoke it is not just an affront to basic American values. It is an affront to basic human decency. 

Ending DACA is nothing less than a declaration of war on immigrants. It is a war on communities of color. It is yet more proof that Trump unapologetically backs an agenda of white supremacy and will stop at nothing to implement it nationwide. We need to be clear that white supremacy underpins every aspect of Trump’s agenda, from stealing our healthcare to destroying public education to ramping up mass incarceration. 

Any announcement  that DACA will phase out in six months will catalyze a massive national call to action for Congress to find a real legislative solution to our broken immigration system - and not one that uses immigrant youth as bargaining chips for building a wall on the southern border. The lives of dreamers, their families and communities are in their hands.

We will join scores of others across the country to ensure every Member of Congress has to answer this question: will you stand with the young people who call America home, or will you stand with President Trump’s  white supremacist agenda?. 

Ultimately, Trump will not succeed in transforming our country into one defined by exclusion and fear. Immigrants are not defined by a piece of paper. We are not defined by a single law. We are defined by our humanity and our dignity, and no President can take that away. 

In the course of fighting for DACA, immigrant youth have built a powerful movement that has let millions come out of the shadows and declare that they are, in the face of adversity and struggle, definitively here to stay. Immigrants were here before DACA, and we will continue to fight for their future today and every day after."

On Tuesday, September 5th, CPD state partner CASA and United We Dream will anchor a mass mobilization at the White House, followed by a march through downtown DC. A slew of other CPD state partners are mobilizing members to DC to join the march.

On Wednesday, dozens of CPD partners will hold direct actions across the country, including occupations of Congressional offices, walkouts from schools, and civil disobedience in the streets. 

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Media Contact:

Asya Pikovsky, apikovsky@populardemocracy.org, 207-522-2442