To the Editor:
As the immigration debate rages on, Florida Senators Marco Rubio and Bill Nelson need to make providing permanent protections for Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) recipients a priority heading in the new year.
The 800,000 DACA recipients have had their lives tossed back and forth by Congress and the courts since March of last year, unable to plan and invest in their futures in the U.S., even though they’ve lived here the majority of their lives.
Eighty-six percent of Americans support a long-term legislative solution for Dreamers, including eight in 10 Republicans, and removing DACA authorized workers would result in the loss of more than $1.4 billion in annual GDP in Florida alone.
Partisan politics have gotten in the way of a solution for Dreamers, yet they bring so much to our Florida communities.
I hope the new Congress passes a legislative solution in the new year. Dreamers and Florida communities need one.
Maria Rodriguez
Tallahassee