Immigrant Youth From Across The Country Come To Texas For First Undocumented Led Escalated Action Under The Trump Administration
This action comes in response to the recent threats facing the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) Program and the introduction to the DREAM Act bill in Congress
Austin, TX- Immigrant youth from across the country are gathering in Texas to take escalated action and pledge their renewed commitment to winning permanent protection, dignity and respect for all 11 million undocumented immigrants.
What: The first and largest undocumented led direct action since Trump’s inauguration.
When: Wednesday, July 26th
Texas has become the battleground state in the struggle for immigrant rights in the Trump era. It leads the country on mass deportations and recently passed the most anti-immigrant statewide law. It was Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton who spearheaded the call for the repeal of DACA. Undocumented youth in Texas and across the country are confronting attacks on the immigrant community head on. For the DACAmented young people participating in this action, the threat of facing ICE retaliation is real- just as it was seven years ago when the first undocumented youth began risking arrest. Austin Mayor Steve Adler and Travis County Sheriff Sally Hernandez have said that the police department does not transfer immigrants over to ICE and we expect them to honor that commitment.
“With DACA under threat, we know that some will put their hope in DC politicians. But we also know that we won DACA not because of any politician, but because our community took fearless action. We marched, we walked-out, we stopped deportations and shut down detention centers. We took risks and put our bodies on the line to tell the people of this country that we were ‘Undocumented, Unafraid, and Unapologetic,’” said Maria Fernanda Cabello, a spokesperson for Movimiento Cosecha. “This moment calls for us to be brave again; to create a moral crisis that will change the narrative on immigration in this country.”
Immigrant youth have always known DACA was temporary, which is why we need permanent protection, dignity and respect for all. This moment is bigger than any piece of legislation. DACA is under attack while our parents, who were never even given the temporary protection DACA provides, are denied dignity and respect in a country that has never recognized them. It is time for the immigrant community to show this country that it depends on us. We will not stop fighting until we have won permanent protection, dignity and respect for our parents, our communities, and all 11 million undocumented immigrants in the United States.