FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: June 18, 2024

WASHINGTON, DC—On the 12th anniversary of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, the Biden administration is set to announce new executive actions that would provide much-needed relief for some long-settled immigrants. The actions will protect immigrant spouses of U.S. citizens from deportation, provide them with work authorization, and remove barriers from their pathway to citizenship through “parole in place.” The administration also announced a new initiative to expedite work visas for some DACA recipients and other DREAMers.

While a distinct and hard-won victory for hundreds of thousands of immigrants, today’s executive actions come shortly after President Biden issued what he called a “ban” that grants him the authority to temporarily and arbitrarily limit the number of people permitted to claim asylum at the U.S. southern border, effectively barring people from due process and their legal right to request asylum for extended periods.

Advocates and leaders of the Fairness to Freedom campaign welcome today’s executive action that will shield many families from separation and reduce barriers to pathways to citizenship for beloved spouses and children across the country. The campaign calls on the President and Congress to build upon this protection for spouses and DACA recipients by updating our immigration system to ensure safety and due process, including access to legal representation and pathways to protection for more immigrants to promote stability and prosperity in our communities.

"Any policy action that works to keep families together is cause for celebration, and we are extremely proud of the courageous immigrants and advocates that have spoken up out of love for their families and others to push the Biden administration for this win for our communities,” said Shayna Kessler, director of the Advancing Universal Representation initiative for the Vera Institute of Justice. “This is one step in the right direction in an expansively unjust and outdated immigration system that requires many more steps to ensure equitable support and accessible pathways. Our immigration system needs new and restored pathways, further reforms that strengthen family unity, and guaranteed access to quality legal representation to help people defend their rights. This is only the beginning and we will continue our advocacy for sensible solutions to help bring fairness to our immigration system and long overdue stability to our communities.”

Nicole Melaku, executive director for the National Partnership for New Americans, said, “Today’s actions are a result of field-wide organizing and should serve as a guiding light for the work ahead. We welcome and celebrate this move by the administration, but we’ve long said that our communities need permanent solutions that not only reduce barriers to current pathways, but create expanded pathways and provide public defenders in immigration proceedings for the millions of people who have built their lives in the United States. While this hard-won victory for our communities will bring relief to hundreds of thousands of families, there are many who will not qualify for relief. There is much more to be done. Congress, with the administration’s support, must enact long-overdue reform that will provide stability, due process, and greater access to pathways to citizenship. Until that day comes, our communities across the country can count on NPNA members to be on the front lines to provide community education, legal services, and support for the individuals who may be eligible for the immigration relief announced today."

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PRESS CONTACT: Melissa Stek, melissa@masadc.com, 616-550-8039

Fairness to Freedom: The Campaign for Universal Representation was launched by the National Partnership for New Americans and the Vera Institute of Justice in April 2022 with a coalition of over 200 organizations and legal service providers. The campaign’s goal is to support the passage of the Fairness to Freedom Act to establish a federal right to representation for all immigrants facing deportation.