DACA Protections Vital to Community Wellbeing

June 18, 2020, LOS ANGELES -- Green Dot Public Schools celebrates the Supreme Court of the United States’ 5-4 decision to uphold Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA). 

The Obama-era program, enacted in 2012, protects nearly 700,000 children who were brought to the United States with their parents. Known as Dreamers, these people have grown up working and contributing to American society and have never lived anywhere else. 

Today’s ruling is a victory for the DACA recipients and their families, and also represents a watershed moment for the communities we serve, helping lift the threat of deportation, family separation and alleviating widespread confusion and anxiety. Our educators and schools have directly felt the impact of the increasingly toxic rhetoric and actions toward the Latinx community broadly, and immigrants in particular. No student should have to come to class with a “go bag.” No student should suffer the anxiety of wondering if “today’s the day.”

At Green Dot, we stand with the hundreds of thousands of recipients, especially those whom we serve and whose experiences and perspectives are part of the fabrics of our communities and the education model we provide. We have been vocal about DACA and comprehensive immigration reform: our alumni and teachers bravely shared their experiences as Dreamers, our schools held workshops on how to navigate the DACA application system, and our leadership met with elected officials to demand reform to immigration policy. United Parents and Students conducted direct actions and advocacy efforts to help combat enforcement actions by ICE at schools. 

Today’s decision will help ensure that all Green Dot students will remain on track to graduate prepared for college, leadership, and life. We were founded to provide a high quality public education to historically underserved communities. We applaud this decision to provide opportunity to all, regardless of background.