The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) and its Justice for Immigrants Campaign (JFI) are urging individuals to contact their U.S. Senators and request that they support and co-sponsor the Dream Act of 2017, S. 1615 .  The bipartisan Dream Act, authored by Senators Lindsey Graham (R-SC) and Dick Durbin (D-IL), is intended to protect undocumented youth brought to the U.S. as children.  The bill offers qualifying immigrant youth "conditional permanent resident status" and a path to full lawful permanent residency and eventual citizenship.  The bill would cover the estimated 780,000 individuals who received temporary relief from deportation and employment eligibility through the Department of Homeland Security's Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program.

 

The young people S. 1615 seeks to protect are contributors to our economy, veterans of our military, academic standouts in our universities, and leaders in our parishes and communities.  As Catholics, we have long supported DREAMERS as we believe in protecting the dignity of every human being, especially that of our children.

 

To learn more about DACA and the Dream Act, visit the JFI website.  To contact your Senators, visit the JFI Action Alert.  Please take action today!