[RECORDING] Briefing with Senator Dick Durbin on Dream Act and Immigration Reform
Link to the recording here: http://bit.ly/3sy5Zho
CHICAGO, IL — Today, U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee and co-sponsor of the bipartisan Dream Act with Senator Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), gave an update on the legislation and answered questions from advocates, university presidents and CEOs Friday at a briefing titled Fulfilling America’s Promise: Briefing with Senator Dick Durbin on Dream Act and Immigration Reform.
The Dream Act would provide a path to lawful status and citizenship to almost 2 million Dreamers, including DACA recipients and DACA-eligible young people. The introduction of the Dream Act is an important step in providing a pathway to citizenship to 11 million undocumented people living in the U.S., along with TPS holders, farm workers and essential workers.
To schedule interviews with advocates or business leaders, please contact hsoto@americanbic.biz and jose@unitedwedream.org. For a link to the recording, click here.
U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee and co-sponsor of the bipartisan Dream Act, said: “Today, we have an opportunity to provide a path to citizenship for Dreamers, TPS holders, farmworkers, and more. We are in a 50-50 Senate, so it is going to take all of us working together to get something done. We want to give immigrants an opportunity for citizenship, and the peace of mind of knowing that they and their families can stay in this country and be part of our future. Americans know we have a broken immigration system and are ready for reform. I look forward to moving immigration reform through Congress.”
Morelys, Youth Leader from United We Dream, said: “I am one of the hundreds of thousands of young people who never qualified for DACA but would be protected under bills like the Dream Act and Dream and Promise Act. Without any form of protection and relief, I live in constant fear that me or someone I care about could be detained and deported. I know as a Black undocumented immigrant, the likelihood of me being targeted by local and federal law enforcement is much greater than my white counterparts. Thank you to Senator Durbin for being a champion for immigrant youth. Congress must work to pass bills like The Dream Act that help all immigrant youth, including those who didn’t qualify for DACA, like me.”
Greisa Martinez Rosas, Executive Director of United We Dream, said: “Our deepest gratitude to Senator Durbin, who has been a champion for immigrant communities for decades. The beauty of this moment is that millions of people delivered a clear mandate in November – a new direction on immigration. Deportation and detention are not the way. Immigrant communities deserve every single opportunity to fight for a pathway to citizenship for all 11 million undocumented people. The Dream Act, along with its counterpart in the House of Representatives, the Dream and Promise Act, would provide a pathway to citizenship for millions of immigrant youth which includes DACA recipients and also young people who never qualified for DACA. Congress must prioritize every opportunity – including budget reconciliation – to pass legislation that provides citizenship without harmful tradeoffs for more enforcement. Congress must act swiftly to fast track bills like The Dream and Promise Act and the Farm Workforce Modernization Act by March 12th.”
Rebecca Shi, Executive Director of ABIC, said: “We thank Chairman Durbin for advancing a unifying vision of America — for a nation that is welcoming, strong, successful, and confident. Americans are nowhere near as divided on immigration as some politicians would lead us to believe. Immigration reform is popular and bipartisan: 89% of Democrats, 57% of Republicans support a path to lawful status for Dreamers, undocumented workers, TPS, farmworkers and essential workers. Their work is powering our recovery. Legalizing them will raise the wage floor for 900,000 American workers and contribute over 1.5 trillion in GDP. Immigration reform is good policy and good politics.”
The event is co-hosted by ABIC and United We Dream. Event co-sponsors: TheDream.us, Immigration Hub, National Immigration Law Center, US Chamber of Commerce, FWD.us, SEIU, UNITE HERE, Presidents’ Alliance on Higher Education and Immigration, United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, Americans for Prosperity, LIBRE, UnidosUS, United Farm Workers, Alianza America, NYIC, CASA, CHIRLA, FLIC, The Resurrection Project, MIRA Coalition, Arkansas United, National Immigration Forum.
ABOUT
The American Business Immigration Coalition (ABIC) (ABIC) promotes commonsense immigration reform that advances economic competitiveness, provides companies with both the high-skilled and low-skilled talent they need, and allows the integration of immigrants into our economy as consumers, workers, entrepreneurs, and citizens.
United We Dream is the largest immigrant youth-led organization in the nation, a powerful network made up of over 800,000 members, over 100 local groups and a reach of over 5 million per month. UWD’s vision is to build a multi-racial, multi-ethnic movement of young people who organize and advocate at the local and national levels for the dignity and justice of immigrants and communities of color in the United States.