SUNY Student Assembly Reaffirms Support for DACA

The following statement was issued today by Student Assembly President and SUNY Trustee Marc J. Cohen. 

“The SUNY Student Assembly strongly reaffirms its support for the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program.

“DACA is a program designed to assist young people who came to this country without legal status through no fault of their own. For most DACA recipients, the United States is the only home they have ever known. Since 2012, DACA has worked to help students, regardless of their immigration status, to access primary and secondary educational opportunities. The program has allowed these students to innovate and invent, to contribute to our economy, and to work toward a better life for themselves and their families.

“Students must be given the right to live and learn in safe, welcoming, and inclusive campus environments. Regardless of one’s position in the larger immigration debate, DACA recipients are Americans, through and through. These Americans came out of the shadows because they were promised legal protections. Pulling the rug out from beneath them would be a historic betrayal.

“We condemn the hateful rhetoric against undocumented students that emanates from the halls of power in Washington, and hope that love and compassion prevail. Now is the time to stand up and speak out for those who cannot do so themselves. We applaud the bipartisan support for protecting the legal status of DACA recipients, and encourage our federal leaders to act legislatively with all deliberate speed to protect these Americans and the vital role they play in our country.”  

UPDATE: 2:35 PM (EST)  

SUNY Student Assembly Response
to President Trump's Decision to End DACA

“The SUNY Student Assembly is deeply disturbed by the news that President Trump has decided to end the DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) program. DACA has given over 800,000 undocumented Americans the opportunity to come out of the shadows and be embraced by the only country they have ever known.

“This harmful, discriminatory decision will not impede the Student Assembly’s advocacy efforts on behalf of undocumented students. To the contrary, we stand more committed than ever to fighting for these vital members of the SUNY community on the local, state, and federal levels.

“To the undocumented students across the SUNY system who will go to sleep tonight afraid, we have one message: We will fight as hard as we can to ensure that you are afforded the rights entitled to you as Americans. We will double down on our efforts to convert the bipartisan support which has been expressed for dreamers, into a permanent legislative solution for DACA recipients.

“We urge all federal lawmakers to put partisanship aside and act to protect those whose status is now in jeopardy. Let's not allow innocent young people to suffer at the hands of polarized, partisan politics.”

 

Source: SUNYSA