DREAMS INTO NIGHTMARES 1
DACA’s Uncertain Future Turns Dreams into Nightmares
Miami Dade College
DACA’s Uncertain Future Turns Dreams into Nightmares
DREAMS INTO NIGHTMARES 2
On June 15th, 2015, President Barack Obama announced a new Department of Homeland
Security immigration policy: DACA or Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals. This program
would benefit thousands of undocumented students that were brought to the United States from
their native countries by their parents when they were very young children, and had been living
here ever since. Unfortunately, these young immigrants who are sympathetically called
“Dreamers” are facing an imminent threat of deportation after Attorney General Jeff Sessions
announced the rescinding of the program last September, calling it “… a disrespect for the
legislative process…” (Teague, 2017). Dreamers have so much to offer our country with only
one request in return: to be given the opportunity to study, work hard and live in a safe and
secure environment, free from the oppression that many would face in their home country. Anti-
Dreamers advocates claim that DACA is unconstitutional and an abuse of executive power by
President Barack Obama. They also believe that DACA encourages illegal immigration by
rewarding undocumented immigrants, and that it takes education spots from American students
and makes it more difficult for them to obtain tuition assistance. However, most Americans -70
percent to be precise (Samuels, 2018) – favor allowing DACA recipients to stay in the country
while a more definitive immigration plan is established, mainly for the following reasons:
Dreamers are contributing to the American economy and communities, if they were to be
deported they would likely be sent into dangerous conditions, and because they ARE Americans.
The United States is strongest when it embraces the diversity of ideas and contributions
from people from different backgrounds. DACA beneficiaries offer great contribution to the US
economy and society as well. It is estimated that approximately 91 percent of DACA registrants
are currently employed, and over 5 percent have launched their own businesses (Samuels, 2018).
They add value to the workforce by possessing the necessary skills and education. It is
DREAMS INTO NIGHTMARES 3
anticipated that as they graduate from college or other graduate programs, their earning potential
will increase, giving them greater expendable income, which equals greater consumption. If they
were allowed to stay in the United States, they would add a $350 billion to the economy over a
period of 10 years, compared to excluding them from being able to legally work. They also
contribute $1.4 billion in federal taxes, $2 billion in Social Security taxes, and $470 million in
Medicare each year (Samuels, 2018). As if all these contributions weren’t a clear enough
indication that they are not a burden on the economy, but the opposite, their drain on the federal
government is also minimal: they do not qualify for any means-tested benefits and are denied
health care assistance. The cost of deportation would be a great hit on the US Economy.
Removing the thousands of young immigrants from the workforce would cost the federal
