Dear Members of the Fordham Family,
Since 2012, the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) has provided a measure of hope and stability for thousands of children and young adults who are in this country as a result of choices made by their parents. DACA has allowed nearly 800,000 young people the opportunity to work and study without the threat of deportation. They are high school and college students; they are parents of young children, homeowners, teachers, and taxpaying workers. Many of these young people have known no home other than the United States. Without Congressional action soon, the DACA program will end on March 5, 2018 – putting hundreds of thousands of young people at risk of deportation to a country that they do not know; or cause U.S.-born children to lose their parents to deportation.
Fordham University has been steadfast in its support of the DACA Program through our advocacy efforts in Washington, D.C., and will continue to actively and aggressively engage federal policy makers in an effort to either reverse the order or secure a legislative remedy. On Thursday, February 1, Fordham is joining its fellow Jesuit colleges and universities in a nationwide campaign to contact elected officials in support of the DREAM Act (Durbin-Graham). This legislation would allow these young people who grew up in the United States to continue to contribute to the country they love, and offer a pathway to citizenship.
Here’s how you can help on February 1:
- Join your colleagues from around the nation by calling House Speaker Paul Ryan at (202) 225-0600 and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell at (202) 224-3135 and urge the leaders to come together and take immediate action in support of the DREAM Act.
- Take a moment and write your legislators in support of the DREAM Act and urge your friends and families to do likewise. In coordination with Fordham, The Ignatian Solidarity Network (ISN) has developed an electronic message which will self-populate with your elected representative’s information depending upon the constituent address provided.
Since 1841, Fordham University has embodied the immigrant experience. It was built by immigrants, and it provided countless new Americans with the opportunity to earn an education. With your help, we can insist that those opportunities remain in place and affirm the highest promise of the American dream
For more information regarding the University’s advocacy efforts, please contact the Office of Government Relations and Urban Affairs.
Lesley A. Massiah-Arthur
Associate Vice President
Government Relations and Urban Affairs
