(Sacramento) –Assemblywoman Cristina Garcia (D-Bell Gardens) and Senator Connie M. Leyva (D- Chino) released the following statements after President Trump moved today to end the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program:
“It’s been our nations’ promise to every immigrant since the country’s founding, that if you work hard and follow the rules, you’ll be rewarded with the American Dream,” said Chairwoman Garcia. “Today’s actions strip that promise and those dreams from children who embody what it is to be American. America is first and foremost a nation of immigrants who came to this land to pursue their dreams; so this heartless decision affects each and every one of us. And each and every one of us should be ready to take action to correct this injustice. Today’s announcement does nothing to protect our country or strengthen our economy. It serves only to destroy families, punish our best and brightest students and continues to turn America into a country known for hypocrisy and bigotry. As Chair of the Legislative Women’s Caucus, I urge congress to take swift and finite action to defend the promises we’ve made of the American Dream to these children and their families. To let Trump’s actions go forward unanswered would be one of the greatest tragedies in the history of our country’s democracy.”
"As State Senator representing the Inland Empire and the state with the most Dreamers, I find it appalling that President Trump would take this misguided action on DACA,” said Senator Leyva, Vice Chair of the Caucus. “These young people enrich our local communities, strengthen our country and are a reflection of the values that make America great. To shut the door of the country they call home in their face is not only wrong—it is inhumane and contrary to who we are as Americans. I will fight alongside our federal and state representatives in the weeks and months ahead to ensure that Dreamers are able to continue living, working, studying and making a life for themselves and their families in the United States."
###