ALTON – The Board of Directors of YWCA of Alton is dismayed by the action of President Trump in proposing to end the DACA program which has, since its inception in 2012, allowed nearly 800,000 young men and women, brought to the United States as children, without benefit of legal immigration status, to come out of the shadows and live a normal life in the only country most of them know.
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To qualify as a Dreamer, these young people must have passed through a rigorous vetting process and have NO criminal background. Ninety one percent of Dreamers are employed. They serve in the military. The average age of a Dreamer is 22 years. Many Dreamers are in school. Dreamers speak English. More than half of the Dreamers arrived here before their 6th birthday, so English is the language they have grown up with. Five percent of Dreamers have started a business.
There are over 44,800 Dreamers in Illinois, who pay $131,000,000 in state and local taxes each year. Nationally, it is anticipated that Dreamers will contribute over $433 billion to the country’s GDP over the next 10 years. Ending the DACA program will cost employers over $2 billion of the next two years. Contrary to what Attorney General Sessions said in announcing the end of DACA, Dreamers are NOT draining Social Security. Dreamers are too young to receive Social Security benefits and in fact, contribute millions of dollars to Social Security. Dreamers cannot receive SSI, food stamps and other public aid.
Gail Donnelly Bader, President of the Board of Directors of the YWCA of Alton, said that the Board of Directors adopted this position due, in part, to the fact that, when DACA started, this country promised these young people that if they came forward, gave their information and presented themselves as undocumented persons, the U.S. government would not use that information against them. Now, certain members of the administration are telling them to leave the country or they will be deported. “It’s a question of fundamental fairness to the Dreamers who came forward to do the right thing,” Bader stated. “It is also a question of saving families and saving lives. Part of our mission is promoting peace, justice, freedom and dignity for all. Our vision is self-sufficient families building healthy, strong and just communities.”
In support of their mission and vision, the YWCA of Alton is sharing information on pending legislation which will protect Dreamers, being the DREAM act, now pending in the Senate, and the HOPE Act, now pending in the House of Representatives. These acts seek to legislatively reinstate protection for these Dreamers. Illinois Senator Dick Durbin (Democrat) and South Carolina Senator Lindsay Graham (Republican) co-sponsored the Dream Act in the Senate, which is filed as S.1615. In the House, the Hope Act is H.R.3591. The YWCA of Alton and YWCA USA support these pieces of legislation which will provide a pathway to citizenship for these young people who really have known no other home than here in the United States. The YWCA of Alton also asks voters to contact their Members of Congress and urge him or her to vote for the DREAM Act or the HOPE Act, as applicable.
Senator Dick Durbin: (202) 224-2152; durbin.senate.gov;
Senator Tammy Duckworth (202) 224-2854; duckworth.senate.gov;
Representative Rodney Davis (IL 13) (202) 225-2371; rodneydavis.house.gov;
Representative Mike Bost (IL 12) (202) 225-5661; bost.house.gov;
Representative John Shimkus (IL 15) (2020 225-5271; Shimkus.house.gov
Established in 1918, YWCA of Alton is part of the largest and oldest women’s organization in the world. YWCA of Alton tailors our programs to meet the unique needs of our communities, as aligned with three key national platforms: racial justice and civil rights, empowerment and economic advancement of women and girls, and health and safety of women and girls.
YWCA of Alton is proudly sponsored by Morrissey Contracting Company, Inc., Phillips 66 Wood River Refinery, and Simmons, Hanley and Conroy, a national law firm.
