Dear MoveOn member,
By now, you've probably heard about Leader Nancy Pelosi's marathon "magic minute" speech on the House floor. Yesterday, she spoke for eight hours straight about the stories and plight of our nation's Dreamers, whose lives have been dangling in chaos since Trump ended DACA.1
Today, we must stand with immigrant youth. Every Democrat needs to know—from those who have said they'd oppose any continuing resolution without protections for Dreamers to those on the fence—that MoveOn members believe "No dream, no deal." And that we'll get their backs if they vote the right way.
Will you make a call to stand with Dreamers now?
You can call:
- Rep. Meeks - (202) 225-3461
You can say:
"I urge you to vote against any budget deal that does not include protections for Dreamers who urgently need relief. Republicans can't continue to kick the can down the road in this crisis that President Trump created. We need a clean Dream Act now."
Yesterday, Representative Pelosi told the stories of many immigrant youth whose lives are in legal limbo and uncertainty following Donald Trump's cruel, unilateral action to end the Deferred Action for Children Arrivals (DACA) program in September. One of those stories is that of Cristina Velasquez, a Georgetown student and Walsh Scholar who works two part-time jobs while in school.2
For the past two summers, Cristina served high-achieving, low-income students. She taught sixth and eighth grade literature in San Francisco, CA, and tutored middle school students in Miami, FL. See, Cristina's dream is to become a teacher, and she already has a plan to begin achieving that dream with Teach for America next summer.
But Cristina—and over 1 million young people like her—are in real danger today. And while Pelosi's historic speech and words are important, action is what matters most when it comes to protecting Dreamers like Cristina, whose futures are in chaos.
That's why hundreds of immigrant youth and allies joined together in the halls of the Senate yesterday to visit offices, raise their voices in song, and even sit down to risk arrest, holding signs that read,
"Our. Lives. Are In. Danger. Pass. The. Dream. Act. Now!"
photo credit: Daniel Altschuler
Trump created this moral crisis by ending DACA last fall. And Republican Congressional leaders have refused to take action, denying the request of members of both parties to vote on the popular, bipartisan Dream Act. Now, Senate leaders have crafted a spending deal that leaves immigrant youth out in the cold, hanging on the slim promise that McConnell will keep his word to introduce bipartisan legislation that is truly bipartisan (like the Dream Act)—and not just an anti-immigrant wish list from the GOP—and on the even slimmer promise that the White House will stop using Dreamers as poker chips to try to ram through laws that rip families apart or build $25 billion walls.
But here's what's also true: Leader Pelosi and House Democrats still have the power to stand firm, use their leverage, and reject any spending bill without a clean Dream Act attached—including the current Senate compromise.
Doing so would force the Senate to rethink their strategy and likely strip out pieces of the spending compromise that weaken Democrats' leverage in a final bill (such as lifting military spending caps). This would give Democrats more room to finally get a Dream Act done, without harming immigrant families.3
We must stand with the Dreamers that Rep. Pelosi put a face to today, young people with dreams of service like Cristina Velasquez, who are in the fight of their lives—and demand action for a clean #DreamActNow. We can't afford any more heartbreaking delays that threaten to tear families and communities apart.
This deal is moving fast. We have a narrow window to act.
Will you stand with Dreamers and make a call to your representative now?
You can call:
- Rep. Meeks - (202) 225-3461
You can say:
"I urge you to vote against any budget deal that does not include protections for Dreamers who urgently need relief. Republicans can't continue to kick the can down the road in this crisis that President Trump created. We need a clean Dream Act now."
Then click here for a script or to tell us how your call went. We'll track the number of calls MoveOn members make and report this volume of constituent energy back to the Hill and the press.
Thanks for all you do.
–Corinne, David, Jackie, Manny, and the rest of the team
1. "Pelosi sets record with 8-hour marathon speech on DACA," CNN, February 7, 2018
https://act.moveon.org/go/33551?t=16&akid=198512%2E10220574%2EchwpPp
2. "GEORGETOWN CONTINUES TO VOICE SUPPORT FOR RIGHTS OF UNDOCUMENTED STUDENTS," Georgetown University, December 13, 2017
https://act.moveon.org/go/33552?t=18&akid=198512%2E10220574%2EchwpPp
3. Tweet by Ben Wikler, Twitter, February 7, 2018
https://act.moveon.org/go/33553?t=20&akid=198512%2E10220574%2EchwpPp
Want to support our work? The MoveOn community will work every moment, day by day and year by year, to resist Trump's agenda, contain the damage, defeat hate with love, and begin the process of swinging the nation's pendulum back toward sanity, decency, and the kind of future that we must never give up on. And to do it we need your ongoing support, now more than ever. Will you stand with us?
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