Philadelphia, Sept. 5, 2017 – Philadelphia City Council members Helen Gym (At-Large) and María Quiñones-Sánchez (7th District) on Tuesday denounced President Trump’s announcement that he will end the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, which has protected hundreds of thousands of young undocumented Americans from deportation.
With an estimated one in 10 American families being of mixed documentation status, President Trump has upended the lives of not just 800,000 young people, but American families and communities across the nation. This action inflicts needless and unwarranted cruelty upon young people — students, workers, entrepreneurs, leaders — who contribute to their communities every day.
In Pennsylvania, more than 7,000 people have applied for DACA, with an estimated 21,000 deemed eligible — including 5,000 in Philadelphia alone. These are our beloved neighbors, colleagues, co-workers, classmates, and friends.
“There are moments in our country’s history when we must face challenges to our nation’s founding ideals. Today is clearly one of those times,” said Councilwoman Helen Gym, a second generation Korean American immigrant. “Philadelphia remains a proud Sanctuary City. Now more than ever we stand with our immigrant communities, with DREAMers and our DACA youth, to say that they will not stand alone. We have deepened resources to support and protect them in city government and in our schools. We have filed lawsuits against illegal federal actions. And we will continue to defend them, their parents, their children, their relatives, and everyone who calls this country home until we win fair and full immigration reform that prioritizes a road to citizenship.”
“Once again, this President has confirmed that he is a coward by attacking the DREAMers who are solid contributors to our country,” Councilwoman Sánchez said. “This short-sighted decision is particularly disappointing given that until now, even many of the most conservative lawmakers have recognized that DACA is a necessity until we muster the political will to address comprehensive immigration reform.”
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