News
Asian Fortune: Congress Seen As Solution
By Jennie L. Ilustre/Asian Fortune
Asian American and top mainstream organizations have expressed outrage over the recent ruling of a federal judge in Texas that the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) is unlawful.
Current DACA recipients are not affected for now. Application renewals also can continue while the case goes to the courts. But the door has been closed on new applications.
Remarked Annie Wang, director of the Immigrant Justice Project of the Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund or AALDEF: “DACA was never meant to be a long-term solution for undocumented youth. In light of Judge Hanen’s order and the uncertainty over DACA’s future, AALDEF stands with Asian and all immigrant communities to demand that Congress and the White House enact legislation that would provide a path to citizenship for young immigrants and others who are undocumented in this country.”
Since 2012, AALDEF has provided legal representation to undocumented Asian youth. AALDEF said DACA recipients who have questions or need assistance submitting their DACA renewals, “should consult with immigration attorneys and nonprofit legal service providers.”
RAISE is a pan-Asian, undocumented youth-led group affiliated with AALDEF. RAISE stands for Revolutionizing Asian American Immigrant Stories on the East Coast.
Reacting to the latest ruling on DACA, RAISE leaders said, “While this decision once again puts DACA recipients in danger, this case is bigger than DACA and temporary protections. “
“We refuse to perpetuate ideas of deserving and undeserving immigrants and the criminalization of our communities,” they stressed. “Our lives cannot be in constant limbo from court case to court case, which is why we need permanent relief for all 11 million undocumented people now.” The undocumented originally are from Mexico, Central America, as well as Asia and the Pacific Islands.
The leaders urged Congress “to act now and provide a long-overdue pathway to citizenship that is inclusive of all undocumented people through the budget reconciliation bill, as the lives of millions of immigrants hang in the balance.”