Mayoral Candidate Rick Caruso Announces Steps to Protect DREAMERs, Calls for Bold Action by City and Unity Among Residents in Defense of Immigrant Rights
After the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals ruling that continues to leave hundreds of thousands of DREAMERs in limbo, Rick Caruso today announced a series of actions to protect those who will be impacted by the decision.
Los Angeles, CA (October 6, 2022) – After the release of an opinion by the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals that continues to leave the landmark Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program that provides deportation relief and work authorization for some immigrants who arrived in the United States as children, in limbo, mayoral candidate Rick Caruso laid out plans to defend DACA recipients in Los Angeles.
The 5th Circuit Court of Appeals decision in State of Texas v. United States, is a politically-motivated lawsuit threatening to leave millions of Dreamers- including nearly 200,000 in the Los Angeles area — without work authorization and exposed to the risk of unjust deportation.
Caruso released the following statement in light of the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals’ decision:
“As mayor, I will use the full power of the office starting on day one to defend Dreamers. And I’m not waiting. If and when activist courts intervene and attempt to undermine the equal rights of DACA recipients, I will do everything I can to stand with them and their families, and I call upon all Angelenos to do the same. We can’t let our city be divided on this. We must remain unified.
Like so many, my grandparents were hard-working immigrants who built their lives here in Los Angeles. And like countless other immigrants, they did their small part to help build this into the greatest city on Earth. LA has thrived because of the hard work and imagination of generations of immigrants that have dared to dream big and call this city their home. It’s why we are the envy of the world. We owe a debt of gratitude to our immigrant fore-parents, and I intend to honor this debt as a grandson and as Mayor of Los Angeles.
It makes my blood boil to think there are hundreds of thousands of our neighbors living in fear, anxiously waking up every morning and hitting refresh on Google to see how their future will be limited by some distant courts. And to add insult to injury, they have to turn on the news every night and hear the latest stupidities from the governors in Texas and Florida who act like carnival barkers scapegoating immigrants for political attention. It’s enraging on so many levels. On a human level, on a political level, and on a moral level. But also economically, it’s clear people can’t live up to their full potential while they are being bullied and terrorized. And particularly at this time when we need the creativity, work, and leadership of immigrants more than ever,
Los Angeles is being uniquely harmed by a situation that seems to keep moving from bad to worse. We need a mayor who will stand up forcefully for what’s right.
“On day one of my administration, I will take a series of steps to reverse the ongoing damage being done by those who are putting up roadblocks for Dreamers and their families. I will convene and enlist a team across agencies and task them to use every single tool at our city’s disposal to prevent DACA recipients from taking one single step backward on their route to full citizenship. We will work to expand educational opportunities for immigrant families. Moreover, we will craft a policy to ensure that the city is not discriminating against young immigrants in its hiring policies. I will invite other mayors from across the country to Los Angeles so that we can engage, proactively, in federal courts – and in the court of public opinion- to defend our cities.
“But we can’t wait. As a resident of Los Angeles, I will stand shoulder to shoulder with DACA recipients and their families, and I will join others to prevent their lives from being further disrupted by ugly political games. I am fortunate to have hired many people with DACA, and I don’t plan to see their employment ended by a distant court in Texas.
Enough is enough.
The stakes for Dreamers and their families could not be higher, and we must not let them down. I am calling on others- including the current administration, business leaders, and all Angelenos- to do their part. We must remain unified even as others seek to divide us. Los Angeles has a unique obligation at this moment to remain a beacon of the American Dream, and our opportunities are limitless as long as they are shared by all.”
