Cardinal Cupich urges Congress to 'now act decisively and swiftly' on DACA

WASHINGTON (CNS) -- Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced Sept. 5 that the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program is "being rescinded" by President Donald Trump, leaving some 800,000 youth, brought illegally to the U.S. as minors, in peril of deportation and of losing permits that allow them to work.

Although the Department of Homeland Security will immediately stop accepting applications to the DACA program, current recipients would not be affected until March 5, which Sessions said will "create a time period for Congress to act -- should it choose."

He described the 2012 policy, popularly known as DACA and implemented under President Barack Obama, as an "unconstitutional exercise of authority by the executive branch."

DACA does not provide legal status for youths who were brought to the country without legal permission as children, but it gives recipients a temporary reprieve from deportation and employment authorization in the United States -- as long as the applicants meet certain criteria.

In a Sept. 5 statement, Cardinal Cupich said, “Today President Trump ended the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program and the dreams of nearly a million young people covered by the executive order and applying for inclusion. In the past the president stated that the Dreamer story ‘is about the heart,’ yet today’s decision is nothing short of heartless. The Dreamers are now left in a six-month limbo, during which Congress is supposed to pass comprehensive immigration reform, a feat they have been unable to achieve for a decade. In fact, this inability to agree on a just immigration system led President Obama to sign the executive order protecting minor children brought to this country by their parents.”

The statement continues, “As the considerations of the ‘heart’ seemed to be insufficient to keep protection in place, Congress must now act decisively and swiftly. An immediate first step is for our leaders to pass legislation that will protect those previously covered by the DACA program, while they deal with the long-overdue comprehensive reform of our immigration system. They must be guided by compassion and respect for human dignity, and honestly consider the substantial evidence that deporting these young Americans would do great economic harm to the states where they reside.

“With the bishops in this country, we remain committed to upholding the dignity of all persons and the fundamental right of all to live free from fear in the nation founded on that promise.”

In the days leading up to the decision, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, along with other Catholic organizations, asked the president to keep the program.

A Sept. 5 statement from the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops called the cancellation of DACA "reprehensible" and something that "causes unnecessary fear for DACA youth and their families."

"Today, our nation has done the opposite of how Scripture calls us to respond. It is a step back from the progress that we need to make as a country," they said, adding that the decision by the Trump administration is a "heartbreaking moment in our history that shows the absence of mercy and goodwill, and a short-sighted vision for the future."

The bishops also urged Congress to "immediately resume work toward a legislative solution."

They told DACA recipients: "You are children of God and welcome in the Catholic Church. The Catholic Church supports you and will advocate for you."

The statement was signed by Cardinal Daniel DiNardo of Galveston-Houston, USCCB president; Los Angeles Archbishop Jose Gomez, USCCB vice president; Bishop Joe Vasquez of Austin, Texas, chairman of the Committee on Migration; and Bishop Joseph Tyson of Yakima, Washington, chairman of the Subcommittee on Pastoral Care of Migrants, Refugees, and Travelers.