What this year’s election meant for Chicago Dreamers
Photo credit: Valeria Grarcia
During this year’s elections the nation anxiously waited to learn who would be the next president of the United States. DACA recipients were particularly anxiously awaiting to learn the fate of their futures.
Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, also known as DACA, has been an installed U.S immigration policy under the Obama administration since June 2012. This policy allows for undocumented individuals who were brought into this country before their 16th birthday to apply for a two year period of deportation protection. DACA also allows applicants to receive a work permit, education opportunities, and even a path towards citizenship. As of March 2020 there is An estimated 682,690 people that are DACA recipients or as they are also known “Dreamers.”
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has been conducting extensive arrests across the nation for years causing fear in everyday lives for people such as DACA recipients. Therefore, DACA recipients have decided to remain anonymous as a way to protect themselves from ICE’s radar.
“Having DACA gave me an opportunity in continuing my education and being able to work at a hospital. If DACA wasn’t around, I myself wouldn’t be able to work, be able to drive legally, or even get a credit card.” said a Chicago DACA recipient.
To learn more about DACA and its guidelines click here.
“Knowing that one of the candidates wants to continue DACA and provide a path for citizenship for us dreamers, gives me peace of mind because they’re taking us into consideration and considering us as Americans instead of “aliens”,” said one Chicago Dreamer.
The 2020 election had come to a halt as the nation waited for the results of battleground states. Dreamers were especially on edge because their acceptance into this country has been repeatedly threatened by the Trump administration.
Since President Donald Trump’s election in 2016 his administration has made repeated efforts to the program. These efforts met a setback when the Supreme Court ruled that the Trump administration violated federal law when trying to end DACA. As a result, the Trump administration stopped accepting new applications and reduced its duration. During his 2020 campaign, President Trump made claims about enforcing a policy on DACA through an executive order, but no action has been made yet.
This is why Dreamers have been on edge, and entered into a stage of uncertainty according to one Dreamer.
“I was super anxious and scared at the same time because anything can happen during the election. But I was more scared for the future of DACA, it can be removed or it can completely be stopped at any given moment.”
On Saturday Nov.7, Joe Biden became the projected winner of the presidency by defeating Trump. In 2012, then Vice President Biden was part of the Obama administration that originally passed DACA. During his 2020 presidential campaign, Biden released a plan to reinstate DACA and keep protection for dreamers and their families in order to avoid unlawful separation which sat better with Dreamers and caused a sense of ease.
“However, with the results I can personally say that I finally have some peace in mind knowing that dreamers are being treated as Americans, because that’s what we are. They have given us hope for a path of citizenship within the future, and honestly that’s all I can ask for,” said a Chicago Dreamer.
To learn more about Biden’s future plans with DACA and immigration policies click here.