Defend DACA & TPS: A Call for Coalition Building
by Rony Castellanos
Our communities are in a state of urgency for survival, justice and empathy.
Last week, the undocumented community celebrated the fifth anniversary of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. DACA was established by an executive order signed in 2012 by former President Obama. It has allowed more than 800,000 young people, including me, to receive work permits, driver’s licenses, jobs and access to higher education.
Now, DACA is threatened by a legal challenge from a coalition of states if the Trump administration does not eliminate the program by September 5.
President Trump has used his platform to elevate white supremacist rhetoric and adopt policies that target minorities in the U.S.
It is no surprise to communities of color that our lives are threatened by the current administration. This past weekend, white supremacists, neo-Nazis, and Ku Klux Klan members marched on the University of Virginia with torches demonstrating acts of hatred and white-supremacy. This act of blatant bigotry was made possible through the current president and his administration.
From the executive order to set a Muslim and refugee ban to banning transgender people from serving in the military, President Trump has used his platform over and over again to elevate white supremacist rhetoric and adopt policies that target minorities in the US.
Why should all communities stand up for DACA?
Threats to the DACA program and the Temporary Protected Status (TPS) program, which provides status for over 300,000 immigrants from Africa, Central America, and other regions, collectively put the lives of over a million of immigrants in danger, according to United We Dream.
The lives of thousands of students and families are at the fingertips of policy makers, Members of Congress and the President of the United States.
I am an undocumented queer student of color and a DACA beneficiary. I am a testament to the impact that DACA has had on the lives of many young people, including the lives of queer youth. The Williams Institute estimates that about 75,000 Dreamers identify as LGBTQ and approximately over 36,000 have participated in DACA. There are thousands of DACA recipients who could continue to benefit from relief from deportation, as well as the opportunity to continue to achieve their dreams in the U.S.
My father worked long hours a construction worker with the hope of seeing his son attend school. DACA has allowed me to be the first in my family to attend college.
When I began my journey in higher education in 2010, DACA did not exist, and the only form of support was the California Dream AB540 affidavit, which allowed undocumented students to pay college tuition as residents. As an AB540 student, I did not receive financial aid for my studies. My father worked long hours under the sun as a construction worker with the hope of seeing his son attend school. His perseverance and borrowing $2,500 got me to my first semester at California State University, Northridge.
The hurdles I faced as an undocumented student got more complicated shortly after my first semester of university, when I initiated therapy and my acceptance process as a queer person. As an undocumented queer student of color, my intersecting identities meant I faced many barriers to pursuing my education. I am currently 26 years old and the first in my family to attend college. DACA has allowed me to obtain a seat at the University of California, Santa Barbara, where I will obtain a degree in Sociology and LGBTQ Studies.
This week, I attended the Day of Action Rally at Lafayette Square in Washington, DC, organized by United We Dream, an organization dedicated to securing justice and equity of immigrants at the national level in the United States. Hundreds of DACA supporters showed up to reinforce the sense of urgency that is being lived in communities of color.
The rally was a demonstration of courage, passion, and activism that parents, families and their children were there to witness a beautiful demonstration of love. As activists chanted, “DACA does not define me,” I thought about how it is the work, the resistance, the survival, and the desire to dream that empowers us as dreamers to continue our lucha (fight).
This is my truth, our truth — thousands of students, families, transgender and LGBTQ people, and individuals from all over the world who find ourselves in danger, in a call of urgency. We call to you so that collectively, we can all take a stand.
How can our communities support DACA and TPS?
- In the next 22 days, United We Dream leaders will rally outside of the White House to continue to call attention to save DACA and TPS. Sign United We Dream’s petition to save DACA or reach out to them via their webpage at www.unitedwedream.org.
- Support the 2017 Dream Act, a proposal that would offer a route to permanent legal status. See this easy guide provided by United We Dream to understand what this bill means for the undocumented community.
- Create dialogue with your friends, family and community members to build bridges of compassion and empathy for those most affected in our communities.
- Reach out to the Transgender Law Center’s TIDE Program, National Immigrant Justice Center and Immigration Equality if you are in need of legal advice. Also, check out QUIP (Queer Undocumented Immigrant Project), a group whose emphasis is to uplift and support LGBTQ immigrants through an intersectional approach.
With multiple communities coming together to support DACA, TPS and other policies, we can create a world where people like me have the opportunity to achieve our dreams.
Look at me in the eye and deny my existence,
As you try to walk right through me ignoring my survival,
You continue to push me down back into the shadows,
But it is time that I rise… it is time that we hold each other’s hand and rise together…
Rony Castellanos is an intern at NCTE.
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