Ending DACA would hurt Virginia’s economy
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| Dreamers and their allies protest the ending of DACA in Washington, D.C. [NAKASEC] |
President Trump’s decision to cancel DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) would have a devastating impact on Virginia’s economy.
It would cost Virginia taxpayers more than $711.4 million annually in lost GDP, reports the Legal Aid Justice Center (LAJC), an immigrant rights organization with offices in Falls Church.
DACA, established by President Obama through an executive order, allows certain eligible immigrants, known as “Dreamers,” who had been brought to the United States as children by undocumented parents, to apply for a protected status allowing them to stay in the country for a limited period without fear of deportation.
Trump announced Sept. 5 his intention to cancel DACA in six months unless Congress approves a broad immigration bill with a permanent solution on the status of Dreamers.
If DACA is eliminated, Dreamers could lose their jobs, drivers’ licenses, and their ability to go to college – and face the risk of being deported. Many of them come from places steeped in war and violence and don’t even know the language of their home country.
The 800,000 Dreamers in the United States contribute $460.3 billion to the nation’s GDP and $24.6 billion to Social Security and Medicare, said Rep. Gerry Connolly, who represents Northern Virginia in Congress.
“It is self-defeating to disrupt their economic contributions. This is ugly and un-American,” Connolly said. “Dreamers are Americans. They’re not pawns, they’re not aliens. They embrace the best of America. To uproot them violates our own values.”
Connolly announced plans to offer an amendment to the government funding bill that would prohibit the Department of Homeland Security from using sensitive information submitted through the DACA program for deportation proceedings. To apply for DACA status, immigrants had to submit personal information that now puts their whole family at risk.
“It is cruel and un-American to ruin the lives of young people who stepped forward in good faith to participate in a program that has proven to be successful. They trusted the government,” said Dae Joong Yoon, co-director of the National Korean American Service & Education Consortium (NAKASEC), an immigrant advocacy organization with offices in Annandale.
“These young people have jobs, attend schools, pay for housing, and support families. Six months may not be sufficient time for Congress to develop an acceptable legislative solution,” Yoon said. “Cutting off their means to make a living and denying them opportunities to live up to their potential actively harms not only these young people but our entire country.”
“When Virginia immigrant families suffer, our whole Commonwealth suffers,” LAJC states. “DACA was the ultimate ‘hand-up’ instead of a ‘hand-out,’ enabling families to lift themselves out of poverty through education and employment.”
Out of the12,134 DACA recipients in Virginia, an estimated 10,557 are contributing members of the labor force. Nearly 1,300 of them were enrolled at Virginia public colleges and universities last year, LAJC states.
The cancellation of DACA will lead to “more detentions and deportations of beloved members of our community, and further marginalize communities that already live in fear,” LAJC states.
LAJC also urges law enforcement officials in Virginia to stop helping ICE enforce immigration laws – which they are not legally required to do. “Now more than ever, it is clear that this President’s deportation machine indiscriminately targets all immigrants, regardless of their strong ties to the community or lack of a criminal record.”
The organization recently filed a suit charging the “collateral arrests” of immigrants in Annandale not charged with a crime is unconstitutional.
About a quarter of DACA recipients – 2,700 people in Virginia – have just one month to file their final renewal application. LAJC is mounting a major push to help them apply. Anyone interested in volunteering to help should contact [email protected].
19 responses to “Ending DACA would hurt Virginia’s economy”
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Oh good GOD Fairfax. Get over your liberal agenda!
Please just leave, so those of us who are here legally can find jobs!!!
The disturbing thing about this controversy is that no one is focusing on the parents of DACA kids. It's they who put their kids in this legal jackpot. Bringing them here illegally and raising them American was the height of callousness. Worse, it seems that illegals continue to pay cartel members to sneak even more kids into our country. Endangering kids in that manner alone justified Trump's action in cancelling DACA. He was also wise to place the futures of DACA kids in the hands of Congress. That's where such sweeping determinations rightfully belong. I didn't vote for Trump. I also don't believe DACA kids should be deported. Sending them to a country they've likely never seen is just too cruel. However, I believe it's time for Congress to forcefully deal with the irresponsible parents who put their kids in legal jeopardy. They've got to go and so do those other illegals who erroneously and unjustifiably believe they can stay in our country simply because they haven't yet been apprehended and deported.
Unemployed is super low in the area and if a lot of people all of a sudden leave, what do you think will happen to the economy? Here is a hint, it is not good. its so false to claim that others will come in and take these jobs. Most low wage companies have help wanted signs and its easy to find a job if you actually want one and are willing to work hard like a lot of these people are. The problem is most American's are lazy and don't want to work hard and do these jobs.
"LAJC also urges law enforcement officials in Virginia to stop helping ICE enforce immigration laws – which they are not legally required to do." This comment is a prime example of what makes these so called "immigrant rights" advocates so odious. Their objective isn't to promote immigrant rights. That's because those rights are limited to a hearing before an immigration judge. What these advocacy groups are really doing is attempting to block the lawful detention and deportation of illegal aliens. As part of that agenda, they are also responsible for promoting the myth that law enforcement officials are somehow limited to detaining only criminal aliens. In fact, all illegal aliens are subject to immediate detention at any time. It doesn't matter how long they've been here. So, I'm extremely pleased that – unlike Fairfax – there are law enforcement agencies in the Commonwealth who are willing to utilize their resources to help stem the tide of illegal immigration engulfing our nation.
Local law enforcement officials are under no obligation to enforce federal law. In fact, some police departments have been successfully sued because they "detained" individuals — at ICE's request — beyond their release dates.
Its a big mess made by both parties of Congress. I say send the Congress and their families back to Mexico, etc and leave DACA alone. Maybe not Mexico, they probably have their vacation/retirement homes there.
Well paying work requires training, schooling, education, skills — which many of the DACA youth have obtained as part of growing up American– their leaving doesn't open a job for someone who is unemployed or underemployed — skills are not pop-beads that can be easily replaced by "just popping another one in" — people who can't find a job may ask themselves — is there something more I can do to improve my skill set? — instead of blaming an immigrant for "taking their jobs"
Spot on.
Immigrants or undocumented "taking our jobs away" is called Fake News by the Right wing media! The current US unemployment rate is 4.4% which is considered full employment by almost every major US economist. If you are having a hard time getting a job in this economy and are directly competing with immigrants and the undocumented for one, then you should have studied more in school or go back to school to get a degree in something more useful.
If you're having a tough time getting a job in this economy, it might be a reflection of the fact that the job and training opportunities that were available to your father's generation no longer exist. The irony is that many of Trump's core supporters are the descendants of those Reagan Democrats who sacrificed a half century's worth worth of hard won gains labor gains. Instead of focusing on their complicity in undermining their own standard of living, the latest generation of blue collar culture warriors have bought in the GOP's deception that illegal immigration are somehow responsible for their plight. The bad news is that Trump's base isn't going to wise up. However, that's still no excuse for allowing our nation to be overrun by a horde of illegals. In the post-9/11 era, it's unwise to have a large population of unknowns inhabiting our country, especially since many are criminals. Furthermore, there is no shortage of foreigners who are willing to wait to legally enter our country. It's those people we should be admitting.
Good points and I agreed with you up until: "However, that's still no excuse for allowing our nation to be overrun by a horde of illegals. In the post-9/11 era, it's unwise to have a large population of unknowns inhabiting our country, especially since many are criminals."
Please search online for yourself, but DACA immigrants are well documented and vetted by the US government. Only a certain number of applicants are processed each year and an immigrant can lose their status if they commit a major crime. Applications are also reviewed and renewed every two years for compliance. There is nothing unknown about a DACA immigrant and we would probably be better off implementing a system like this for others. Secondly, undocumented people actually commit far less crimes than the average US citizen for fear of prosecution and deportation. Most crimes committed by undocumented people go unreported which often gives way crimes committed against women and children. Thirdly, vast majority of crimes being committed by the undocumented are against other documented (Brown on Brown so to speak) so it's funny to hear people's concern about this issue when the odds are that it will never concern them.
These "hoards" of people will probably be some of the first people helping to clean up our country after the devastation Harvey, Irene and other hurricanes will cause this year
Are lost jobs and training opportunities the result of immigration and the undocumented or the result of shifting industries and business practices and priorities? What people fail to realize is that the undocumented are the symptom or scapegoat to the problem and we'll never fully resolve these issues unless we're willing to diagnose the causes. As long as there are businesses small and large willing to hire hire them at low wages to maximize their profits, they will keep coming. If business are not willing to retrain their current work force to keep pace with evolving industry, they will keep coming. If our government is willing to give large businesses huge tax breaks with no incentive to produce more or hire more, they will keep coming. The sad reality is that the person or business that pays the most in taxes is worth the most in the eyes of the US government…the undocumented are just an easy target for us to blame all our problems on.
While people like to tout the 4.4% unemployment rate, it does not include the much larger number of Americans who have simply given up on finding a job.
While we cannot blame illegal immigrants for all of our woes, there is no doubt that ILLEGAL and UNCONTROLLED immigration negatively impacts wages and takes resources from our fellow Americans. The $15 an hour minimum wage debate may not have been so necessary if the labor market wasn't flooded with the multitudes of illegal immigrants (from all backgrounds) who have basically stymied any real wage increases in several areas of the economy with the restaurant and construction industries as merely the most evident examples.
Why do our own state, local, and federal governments subsidize, aid, and abet illegal immigration rather than build and fund interstate programs that would bring Americans from underemployed areas (e.g., Appalachia, Detroit) for these jobs. If we can subsidize food, housing, and education for illegal immigrants, why can't we do better for our fellow Americans? If you have traveled outside of the DC area, you would see the poverty, hopelessness, and lack of future that is present. The press had it right during the presidential election. In some areas, we have truly become a third world nation. Elite politicians and activists (right and left) have simply ignored the conditions affecting all within those areas. Further, poverty and hopelessness are not bigots. They treat everyone the same.
One of the things not often considered is that by condoning and supporting illegal immigration, we let the governments within the countries of origin off the hook for providing for their own populations. Those governments are happy that the smart and capable leave. That means fewer dissidents and opponents who could support real change within their own countries. If we applied the progressive idea of "think globally act locally" and pushed for real change in the countries of origin rather than enabling illegal immigration, the need to break up families at the source (their countries of origin), could be significantly reduced. Why isn't it the burden of the countries of origin to take care of their populations instead of us? Maybe we should sue these countries in international court to recoup the resources we have spent on what should be their responsibilities.
As for the other arguments against our governments (local, state, and federal) working to arrest and deport illegal immigrants, do they stand by and let others who are merely trying to improve their lot in life to get away with breaking our laws? Absolutely not. Prostitution, extortion, fraud, embezzlement, tax evasion, human trafficking, and selling drugs are all ways in which people find ways to better their standard of living. Do we condone those? Does law enforcement turn a blind eye to these? Do we simply say, "Oh, those are only the jurisdiction of the federal government?" Absolutely not. Local, state, and federal governments find a way to partner on these crimes. Why should illegal immigration (which is also linked to many of these other crimes) be any different?
I know. This post will be attacked as being bigoted but there has to be a better way on both sides. There has to be a better mechanism for legal and controlled immigration from ALL parts of the world, not just the countries to our south. To do otherwise is to deny other races, creeds, colors, and religions etc. the same opportunities offered by this great country – the great melting pot. And, there has to be a more pragmatic way to deal with the illegal immigrants already here. The problem is that any real effort to change anything is met with such vehement reactions from the left and the right that no real progress will ever be made. Inaction, or in some cases the wrong action, by both sides have produced these circumstances. We need to find a way to address everyone's concerns and come to a realistic compromise.
"Trump's Base" is much smarter and wiser than you. They know that neither political party is interested in supporting the blue collar middle-class.
The Democrats are more interested in pandering to their special interest groups such as the environmentalists (Hillary's still doing her best to put coal miners out of work when she isn't moaning about Russians and Comey) and special interest groups such as the illegal alien lobby – Democrats see them as future loyal Democratic voters.
On the other side, professional Republicans like Jeb and Romney support the agenda of Big Business which support large scale legal and illegal immigration to keep their cost of labor (which is workers' paychecks/wages) low.
Meanwhile, both the Democrats and Republicans are slaves to Silicon Valley and Amazon's CEO, Jeff Bezos, and their dreams of replacing human workers with robots; leaving the average woman and man as nothing more than "consumers" who will receive a paltry "living wage" by the government to buy the products pumped out by the robots owned by the wealthy few.
"Trump's Base" are much brighter than the fools who are slaves to the government and political parties which carry out what they are told to do by their wealthy overlords such as Soros and the Koch Brother's.
You couldn't be more correct, our government does not represent the middle class. Look how poorly Fairfax represents Mason District: section 8 housing galore, trash all over the place, terrible mass transit options, rich NIMBYs, and a middle class that is fleeing the district.
WTF are you talking about? There are no coal mines in Mason District.
"Trump's base are much brighter."
No. Just no. If you need that explained to you, you need more help than I can provide. You've been conned.
MAGA!