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New York, NY, September 5, 2017 … The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) today denounced President Trump’s executive action repealing Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA). The repeal means that nearly 800,000 undocumented immigrants who were brought to the United States as children will lose the legal protections and work authorization they had gained.
Jonathan A. Greenblatt, ADL CEO, issued the following statement:
We are a nation of immigrants. The lives of hundreds of thousands of young immigrants who were brought to this country as children now hang in the balance. They are some of our best and brightest. They are doctors, lawyers, teachers, and members of the military. They are our neighbors, our friends, and members of our communities. They came out of the shadows, relying on a promise from the federal government that they would be protected. Now they are in danger.
This action by the president and his administration is cruel, unnecessary and inconsistent with the core values of our country. We support an immigration policy that is comprehensive, protects our security, reunites families and improves our economy while honoring our values as a nation of immigrants. We support a bipartisan effort to protect these young immigrants through legislative action and renew our call on Congress to act now.
This step follows a long list of actions and policies by this administration that have deeply hurt immigrants and their families. Less than two weeks ago, President Trump pardoned Joe Arpaio, who created what he himself described as “concentration camps” for immigrants in the Arizona heat.
Earlier this year, the White House issued an executive order withholding federal funds from sanctuary cities, which are trying to build and protect trust between local law enforcement and immigrant communities. One of President Trump’s first acts as president was issuing the so-called Muslim ban, which shut America’s doors to people fleeing for their lives and demonized immigrants and refugees.