John,
Last night, President Biden highlighted the need for border and immigration solutions during his State of the Union address. He urged Congress to "...come together on immigration – and make it a bipartisan issue once again," calling on them to work on "a pathway to citizenship for Dreamers, those on temporary status, farm workers and essential workers." These reforms are not only long overdue, but they also have bipartisan consensus.
Urge Congress to pass much needed updates to our immigration system this year.
We already know an overwhelming majority of Americans across the political spectrum want lawmakers to work together on key immigration reforms — from providing a permanent solution for Dreamers and
Temporary Protected Status (TPS) holders to modernizing our agricultural workforce and enacting secure, humane, and sensible border solutions. Now, it’s up to Congress to advance those much-needed legislative reforms.
Fixing our immigration system now can also alleviate the pressures and shortages faced by key industries critical to our economy. America’s agriculture and food industries rely heavily on migrant labor — and with increased migration, these industries can offset the pressure and losses they suffered in the past several years. As many as 78% of farmworkers — including the
undocumented, temporary guest-workers, green card holders, and naturalized citizens — were born outside of the United States. They are crucial to helping to maintain our food supply and ensure Americans have food on their tables. Through better legal-immigration pathways, industries can address labor shortages, work to alleviate supply chain issues and help the U.S. economy grow and flourish.
Tell Congress to work to support meaningful, bipartisan immigration reforms.
Dreamers have contributed to our economy and our communities — as doctors, teachers, engineers and more. Over 600,000 current Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals or DACA recipients have studied, worked and built lives in the U.S. They are vital members of our communities and essential to the U.S. However, because DACA was created as an executive action and not permanent legislation, those under the program are living in a state of uncertainty, wondering when the program will be revoked by the courts. Dreamers can’t continue to live in limbo and need permanent legislative solutions now.
Over 130,000 Temporary Protected Status (TPS) holders are identified as essential critical infrastructure workers and work in areas including construction, cleaning, driving/delivery and farming. Like Dreamers, they are vital members of our communities. Although TPS holders are eligible to work, own homes and pay taxes, they do not have a direct pathway to lawful permanent status and recipients are not eligible for most federal benefits, such as financial aid for college. TPS holders also urgently need bipartisan immigration solutions for a more secure future for themselves
and their families.
Ask your members of Congress to address immigration reforms that support our Dreamers and TPS holders.
Meaningful, bipartisan immigration reforms are possible. We just need to keep pushing Congress to make them a reality.
Thank you for your advocacy,
Becka Wall
Vice President of Digital Communications
National Immigration Forum
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