JJAmerican Governments If you’ve been keeping up with current events, you may or may not have run into the issue of immigration. President Donald Trump has made it very clear that illegal immigrants are not welcomed in the US. With that being said, he’s come out with a new policy that restricts immigrants who are first time DACA applicants from being able to apply. The only type of submissions allowed will be for renewals. This is an issue because it will not only hurt the economy of the US but it will also affect those who are Dreamers receiving an education.
What is DACA and why is it important? In 2012, President Barack Obama created this policy, DACA, for those who came to the US as children. DACA stands for Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals. This policy allows them to stay in the US without the risk of deportation. To add on, it allows the recipients to get a hold of a workers permit, permission to study while in the US, and a state ID and/or Driver’s License. Besides what is mentioned above, DACA is important because it enriches the culture in the United States. For example, diversity can help society by being able to create new innovations like jobs and technology. This is also helps improve the nation’s economy. This is shown mostly through locally owned businesses. Not only does it add to the culture, but it also helps create jobs for others. Who are Dreamers? Now that we have addressed DACA, let’s talk about the recipients, also known as Dreamers. Dreamers are those who are under the age of 31 as of June of 2012 when the policy first was created and have consistently lived in the US before the age of 16. Most Dreamers are from Mexico, El Salvador, and other countries from Central America. They are most likely to live in the states of “California, Texas, Florida and New York” (Joanna Walters 2017). Why can President Trump’s policy change be seen as an issue? President Trump’s policy change can be seen as an issue because it affects students who are under DACA, especially those who are pursuing higher education. By ending DACA, Dreamers will be threatened of deportation and be sent back to their home countries once their permits expire. Like mentioned before, most dreamers came to the United States before they were 16 which can mean many don’t know much or remember what their home country is. To add on, this will cost Dreamers to pay out-of-state tuition for public colleges. Finally, it will also strip away the right to have a workers permit and ID/driver’s license which will make it harder on students to pay for college. How did the election of 2016 impact this issue? The impact the last election had on this issue was the conversation of ending DACA. During the 2016 election, Hillary Clinton (D) was asked what she would do to help Dreamers become permanent residents. Her response was to do whatever it would take to keep them in “schools, [working], and becoming productive members of society” (BallotPedia). Much like Clinton, Jill Stein (G) also worked towards keeping Dreamers protected. To add, Gary Johnson (L) also agreed with Obama’s Immigration Accountability Executive Actions. He said, “I think that what Obama has done is what needs to happen…” (BallotPedia). On the other hand, President Donald Trump (R) was against Obama and believed that illegal immigrants had to go. During his campaign he stated that he would “immediately terminate President Obama’s two illegal executive amnesties” (Joanna Walters 2017).He believed that those under DACA were stealing jobs from “hard working Americans.” Will the 2020 election focus on your issue? Yes. Immigration is one of the most controversial topics talked about in politics. It is one of the main factors that divides the political parties. With that said, one might begin to start asking questions about what is next. For example, both parties may ask how DACA can stay alive and protect Dreamers while compromising on strickening immigration laws. Another question that may spark in 2020 may be, how will candidates work on either helping Dreamers with their permanent residency or how candidates will help get rid of those who entered illegally faster. Finally, a question that may come up due to recent events with the detention centers is how will parties help keep families together? This was big news because several children were seperated from families for long periods of time. Not to mention, while in the processes of transferring them to the centers, there were reports of missing children and abuse. In conclusion, there are a lot of unanswered questions regarding DACA and Dreamers. In the upcoming election, it’ll be a hot topic to debate over. Regardless of the outcome, it affects millions of people in the United States.
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AuthorUndergraduate student generated content. Blog posting and updating done by Kristina Flores Victor, Assistant Professor of Political Science at CSUS Archives
March 2020
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