June 15, 2018
HACU Statement on Newly Introduced Immigration Bills
The Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities (HACU) shares the concerns of all Americans of good will in deploring the new practice of separating immigrant children from their parents or other relatives detained as they reach the United States in search of a better life and asylum from violence. A recent letter from the American Psychological Association to President Trump noted: “As psychologists, we have documented multiple harmful effects of parent-child separation on children’s emotional and psychological development and well-being and urge that the current policy of family separation be reversed.” Antonio R. Flores, President and CEO of HACU, added: “This ill-advised government practice is not only hurtful to the children and families involved, but it is toxic to the very fabric of American life. Such cruel treatment of children is un-American and should be ended immediately.”
Flores expressed his disappointment that Speaker of the House Paul Ryan has scheduled votes on two partisan immigration bills: 1) Securing America's Future Act of 2018 (H.R. 4760) and 2) Border Security and Immigration Reform Act of 2018 (Speaker Ryan’s bill). Neither bill has bipartisan support or provides a reasonable solution for DREAMers.
H.R. 4760 does not even address the situation of the 800,000 DACA recipients or DREAMers as it focuses on enhanced border security. The Ryan bill would end the policy of separating families detained at the border and offer longer-term protections to current DACA-eligible immigrants and eventual paths to green cards and citizenship, but it also provides funding for the border wall.
HACU has been a longstanding champion for the passage of the DREAM Act, first introduced in 2001, which would regularize the situation of undocumented immigrants brought to the U.S. as children and would offer a path to eventual citizenship. Numerous polls indicate that the vast majority of Americans sympathize with the plight of the DREAMers and support legislation that would allow them to remain legally in the U.S.
HACU appeals to President Trump to put an immediate end to the inhumane practice of breaking up immigrant families and urges Congress to act swiftly to pass a “clean” DREAM Act. These would be important steps in restoring American faith in the fairness and wisdom of our institutions and American pride in being a beacon of freedom and democracy in the world.