United Methodist Women Stands with DREAMERS

United Methodist Women laments the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program rescission and the fear that this move imposes on young undocumented immigrants in the only homeland they have ever known.

DACA was enacted in 2012 to provide some measure of protection for young people who were brought to the United States long before they had any say, young people who nevertheless have worked hard and contributed to this country, young people aptly called “Dreamers.” DACA was enacted after the bipartisan Dream Act of 2010, which was approved in the U.S. House of Representatives, was five votes shy of the 60 needed to pass in the Senate.

We decry the maddening uncertainty that the DACA rescission revives for vulnerable immigrant youth. The current Administration has both supported and opposed DACA. The six-month phase-in of the DACA rescission does not change the distressing nature of the action or its basic unfairness to immigrant youth who have done no wrong.

We stand with these most vulnerable youth, and we affirm the United Methodist Immigration Task Force’s call to the church to act for justice on their behalf. We urge United Methodist Women groups and members around the country to stand alongside the Dreamers.

We call on United Methodist Women members to:

• Contact your U.S. Senators and Congressional representatives and tell them you are a registered voter, they are your representative, and you want them to sign onto the bipartisan Dream Act being presented by Senators Dick Durban (D-Illinois) and Lindsey Graham (R-Florida). Call the U.S. Capitol Switchboard at 202-224-3121 and ask for your representatives’ offices.
• Speak up with compassion and justice for Dreamers. With love and gentleness, as you can, correct false reports that malign Dreamers as thugs and criminals. Let people know that to even be eligible for DACA, Dreamers must be enrolled in school, have a high school diploma or a GED, or have been honorably discharged from the military or Coast Guard by the time of their application; and they can have no felony convictions, significant misdemeanor offenses, or three or more other misdemeanors. Let people know Dreamers do not present a threat to national security or public safety.
• Read the statement from the United Methodist Immigration Task Force on umc.org
• Live out our biblical mandate to welcome the stranger: “Any immigrant who lives with you must be treated as if they were one of your citizens. You must love them as yourself because you were immigrants in the land of Egypt; I am the Lord your God,” Leviticus 19:34.
•  Use United Methodist Women resources on hope and hospitality
• Revisit United Methodist Women’s Immigration and the Bible spiritual growth study book in your personal and group Bible studies.

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Contact: Yvette Moore, ymoore@unitedmethodistwomen.org