Press Release
AALDEF stands with DACA recipients in historic Supreme Court case
Following the oral arguments at the U.S. Supreme Court today over the fate of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, the Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund (AALDEF) urges the Court to consider this case as one about people’s lives: those of DACA recipients, their loved ones, and their communities.
AALDEF joined the more than 1,400 individuals, organizations, and other entities that signed amicus (“friend of the court”) briefs urging the Court to uphold the lower court rulings that have required the Department of Homeland Security to continue processing renewal requests under DACA. These briefs highlight the far-reaching harm that would result if the Court rules in favor of the administration’s unlawful termination of DACA–not just for the 800,000 DACA recipients and their families (including 256,000 U.S. citizen children), but also for our communities, the economy, and the country.
Annie Wang, Director of AALDEF’s Immigrant Justice Project, said: “Since the DACA program began in 2012, AALDEF has worked closely with undocumented AAPI youth to provide them with free legal services in filing their DACA applications. These cases demonstrate how the Trump administration’s abrupt and arbitrary termination of DACA failed to consider the harmful impacts on the lives of DACA recipients, who have engaged in educational and employment opportunities through their reliance on DACA.
Margaret Fung, AALDEF Executive Director, said: “No matter how the Supreme Court rules in the DACA case, we call on Congress to move forward with legislation that will provide DACA recipients and other undocumented young immigrants with a path to citizenship.”
A copy of our amicus brief can be found here.
For more information, contact:
Annie J. Wang, Director, Immigrant Justice Project
212.966.5932 x213
awang@aaldef.org
Stan Mark, Senior Staff Attorney
212.966.5932 x204
smark@aaldef.org