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California Senators Dianne Feinstein and Kamala Harris joined a growing number in Congress calling on the Trump administration to allow DACA recipients to travel abroad – a campaign spearheaded by a Cal State Long Beach professor and Southern California immigrant youth.
In a letter sent Tuesday, Feb. 12, 36 legislators from both chambers asked for documents and information relating to the administration’s policy shift in 2017, when officials began denying requests from those with DACA status who want to travel abroad for work, study or to visit sick and elderly relatives.
A provision in U.S. immigration law called advance parole allows non-citizens with legal status to travel internationally for humanitarian, educational and employment purposes. And until 2017, the government allowed DACA holders permission to leave and re-enter the country.
“We write to urge you to reconsider your harmful position and request that you provide us with detailed information on DACA recipients’ eligibility for advance parole,” reads the letter to Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen and L. Francis Cissna, director of the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.
The campaign to bring back advance parole for those who are protected under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, or DACA, has its roots in Southern California. Cal State Long Beach professor Armando Vazquez-Ramos, founder of the non-profit California-Mexico Studies Center, took a delegation of some 20 DACA holders to Washington D.C. last month to host a seminar on the topic and meet with legislators.
“This is a huge step forward and a direct result derived by our campaign to restore advance parole,” Vazquez-Ramos said Tuesday.
“We’re poised to return to D.C. during the spring for the second phase of the campaign with 50 Dreamers from throughout the U.S.,” he said.
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
February 12, 2019
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, U.S. Senators Kamala D. Harris and Dianne Feinstein (both D-CA) and Representatives Alan Lowenthal (D-CA) and Grace Meng (D-NY) led a group of lawmakers in a bicameral letter urging the Department of Homeland Security and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services to explain and reconsider their position prohibiting DACA recipients from receiving advance parole to allow them to travel internationally for humanitarian, educational, and employment purposes. DACA recipients were previously permitted to travel internationally and subsequently return to the United States in order to visit sick and elderly family members, study, or work.
“USCIS’ failure to continue to allow DACA recipients to apply for advance parole has cruelly denied them opportunities to address personal emergencies. Critical advance parole requests that USCIS has failed to consider include DACA recipients seeking to obtain specialized medical treatment, to visit a dying family member, or to attend funeral services of loved ones outside of the U.S.,” the lawmakers wrote.
The lawmakers continued, “Denying DACA recipients an opportunity to travel internationally for study and work is detrimental not only to their personal and professional wellbeing but also undermines the strength of the American economy to which they are contributing their knowledge and skills.”
In addition to Senators Harris and Feinstein and Representatives Lowenthal and Meng, the letter was signed by Senators Durbin (D-IL), Hirono (D-HI), Cortez Masto (D-NV), Booker (D-NJ), Udall (D-NM), Klobuchar (D-MN), Mendenez (D-NJ), Wyden (D-OR), Blumenthal (D-CT), Duckworth (D-IL), and Bennet (D-CO) and Representatives Holmes Norton (D-DC), Gomez (D-CA), Levin (D-CA), Carbajal (D-CA), Moore (D-WI), Meeks (D-NY), Vela (D-TX), Beyer (D-VA), Bonamici (D-OR), Soto (D-FL), Cisneros (D-CA), Brownley (D-CA), Pallone (D-NJ), Espaillat (D-NY), Sánchez (D-CA), Davis (D-CA), Schakowsky (D-IL), Barragán (D-CA), Correa (D-CA), Levin (D-MI), and Grijalva (D-AZ).
PDF of the letter is available here
Download the Press Release here
PRESS CONTACT:
Matt Lopez – 202-228-5648
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Dreamers secure congressional support to Restore DACA’s Advance Parole
Dreamers from across the country flew to Washington D.C. during the week of Jan. 14-18, 2019 to advocate for the restoration of DACA’s Advance Parole travel permit. This is an extended summary of what we accomplished and what are our next steps!
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ADVANCE PAROLE VOICES:
Lidieth is a #DACA recipient from Long Beach, CA who joined us in Washington D.C. to advocate for the restoration of DACA’s #AdvanceParole ! These are her thoughts from her experience in DC.
Watch Lidieth’s personal video regarding her experience advocating for DACA’s Advance Parole in Washington D.C. last month.
Please help us continue our work towards restoring Advance Parole for DACA recipients!
MAKE YOUR TAX-DEDUCTIBLE DONATION TODAY!
Check out our CrowdRise Campaign, or donate
Visit our campaign website: www.advanceparole.org
Follow the cause on social media: Facebook | Instagram | Twitter
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