Search the Community

Hello fellow dreamers, Long story short, I got arrested for a DWI in Texas. Blood level was.09, barely over the legal limit. The level was low enough that I got a pre-trial diversion to get this case dismissed after year probation. I am done with the probation this week and the case will be dismissed and expunged. Has anyone renewed their application with a DWI dismissed in Texas? I know here in Texas you cant get it expunged unless you get that pre-trial contract. Which is hardly ever approved with the District attorney.

Hello, My name is Alby and I have experience filing for several USCIS forms and expungement of DUI’s. Ask me anything!

When you resubmit your application do you need to fill a new copy or can you fix the mistake on your rejected package. Thanks

I have a deportation order due to my parents applying for political asylum. It was denied but we entered the US legally. I am waiting for my i130 application since my husband (US Citizen) requested me. However, I can't receive a green card right away because I have that deportation order hanging over me. I need to re-open my deportation case with USCIS and ICE. Has anyone been able to open their deportation case?

Anyone still trying to renew despite the court challenges?

I requested a new employment card due a misplacement and the expiration date changed. Did the DACA date changed too or have a different date? If so how do I have to renew?

WASHINGTON — The government is set to run out of money on Feb. 8 unless Congress passes another short-term spending bill, but the fate of undocumented immigrants brought to the country as children threatens to derail those negotiations once again. Last month, the government briefly shut down when Senate Democrats voted against a short-term spending bill because it didn’t include legal protections for 1.8 million undocumented immigrants who came to the U.S. as children. The immigrants, nicknamed “DREAMers,” received deportation protection under an Obama-era program called Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals. But President Trump announced in September that he was ending the program and gave Congress until March 5 to come up with a legislative solution. There is bipartisan agreement that there need to be protections for the group, however what else the bill should include is still very much up for debate. Democrats voted to re-open the government last month after Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., said he intended to bring immigration legislation to the floor after Feb. 8 — so long as the government stays open. Assuming GOP leaders are able to muscle enough votes to keep the government funded this week, McConnell is likely to bring some immigration bill to the floor this month. But what that bill ends up looking like is anybody’s guess. Here are the main immigration proposals being discussed at the White House and in Congress: The Trump plan The White House plan would provide a path to citizenship for up to 1.8 million undocumented immigrants who came to the U.S. as children. That number is more than double the number of “DREAMers” who qualified for the Obama-era program. However, in exchange the Trump administration has asked for $25 billion to build a wall along the southern border. The White House plan would result in at least a 25% reduction of legal immigration because it would end the diversity visa lottery and drastically narrow family-based immigration. Senior White House adviser Stephen Miller listens as President Trump speaks during a meeting with lawmakers on immigration policy in the Cabinet Room of the White House on Jan. 9, 2018. (Photo: Evan Vucci, AP) When White House adviser Stephen Miller presented the plan to congressional staffers and Trump allies and surrogates last month, he pitched it as a compromise. But so far, the plan seems to only have inflamed the right and left. Many Democrats say the plan goes way too far in curbing of legal immigration, while hard-line conservatives say they’re uncomfortable with the proposed path to citizenship. The hardliner plan Some conservatives are viewing the DACA negotiations as an opportunity to get nearly every immigration enforcement measure they’ve ever wanted. That idea is brought together in a bill filed by Rep. Bob Goodlatte, R-Va., chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, and Rep. Michael McCaul, R-Texas, chairman of the House Homeland Security committee. Chairman Bob Goodlatte questions witnesses during a House Judiciary Committee hearing concerning the oversight of the U.S. refugee admissions program on Capitol Hill on Oct. 26, 2017. (Photo: Drew Angerer, Getty Images) The “Securing America’s Future Act” mirrors the White House proposal by funding the border wall, ending the diversity visa program, and limiting family-based immigration. But it also cracks down on so-called “sanctuary cities” that do not fully cooperate with federal immigration enforcement efforts; requires employers to use the E-Verify system to check the immigration status of job applicants; provides funding to hire 10,000 new federal immigration agents; and cuts at least 200,000 green cards a year given to foreigners. In exchange, the bill would provide temporary legal status to fewer than 800,000 DREAMers, requires them to renew their protections every three years, and provides no pathway to citizenship for them. The progressive option On the other end of the spectrum, some liberals are pushing for something far simpler: protections for DREAMers and nothing else. Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill. (Photo: Jack Gruber, USA TODAY) That is the premise behind Democrats who are pushing for the DREAM Act, a bill that has been introduced since 2001 that gave this population of young undocumented immigrant their name. First filed by Sens. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., and Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, the bill allows nearly all undocumented immigrants brought to the country before their 18th birthday to become U.S. citizens after a 13-year waiting period. That proposal took center stage during an on-camera White House meeting in January when Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., asked Trump if he would support a “clean” version of the DREAM Act. The president said he would “like to do that,” before quickly being reined in by House Majority Leader Rep. Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., who clarified that the president needed border security in exchange for any protections for DREAMers. The bipartisan plans For any bill to be signed into law it must get bipartisan support in the Senate. While Republicans have enough cushion in the House to pass legislation without a single Democrat, in the Senate legislation requires 60 votes to pass. The Senate GOP has a 51-49 majority so they’ll need at least nine Democrats to support any legislation. There have been various bipartisan coalitions in both the House and Senate which have attempted to create compromise legislation, though so far none of them seem to provide enough immigration enforcement to get the White House on board. Sen. Chris Coons questions witnesses during a September 2016 Senate Judiciary Committee hearing. (Photo: Suchat Pederson, The News Journal/USA TODAY) Some of the former “Gang of Eight” members who came up with a comprehensive immigration reform bill in 2013 have gotten back together and hashed out a compromise that addresses the “four pillars” the White House is calling for: Protections for the DREAMer population, some funding for border enforcement, and changes to the visa lottery and family-based immigration. The proposal being touted by Durbin and Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., could have close to enough support to pass the Senate but the White House has dismissed it as dead on arrival. There’s also a more narrow bill in both the House and Senate that would address protections for "a little more than 1.8 million" DREAMers and border security, according to Sen. Chris Coons, D-Del., one of the leading sponsors of this approach. The bill would bolster use of technology for border security and call on the Homeland Security secretary to submit a border security strategy to Congress within a year for review. The bill does not deal with family-based migration or the visa lottery system, both provisions Trump has insisted be included. The House version of the bill — introduced by Reps. Will Hurd, R-Texas, and Pete Aguilar, D-Calif., — has more than 50 bipartisan co-sponsors. Sens. John McCain, R-Ariz., and Coons announced the Senate version Monday. Coons told reporters he saw the bill as the minimum that should be passed and would be open to adding provisions to deal with other issues. The punt plan Some lawmakers are discussing the possibility of extending the March 5 deadline to buy more time to hash-out a deal. “That’d be a real loss. But that’s probably where we’re headed, OK?” Graham told Politico. Other lawmakers pushed back saying that Congress needed to work under the deadline the president had originally given. Coons described it as “plan z” and said it was a “terrible idea.” Still others are pointing to the courts as a reason to delay any action. A federal judge in California ordered the Department of Homeland Security to resume DACA, the program at the core of the ongoing battle. The department is now operating DACA, waiting for the Supreme Court to issue the final verdict on its legality. That means the program may survive until sometime this summer, the earliest the court could rule, even without Congressional action. Source: https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2018/02/05/what-immigration-plan-congress-going-vote-daca-dreamers/307091002/

White House Chief of Staff John F. Kelly said Tuesday that President Trump is not expected to extend a March 5 deadline for when legal protection and work permits begin to expire for young immigrants known as “dreamers” — raising the stakes for lawmaker struggling to reach a solution. “I doubt very much” Trump would extend the program, Kelly told reporters during an impromptu interview at the U.S. Capitol. He told reporters that he was “not so sure this president has the authority to extend it” because the Obama-era Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program that protects roughly 690,000 undocumented immigrants was not based on law. Kelly’s comments come as lawmakers are trying to come up with a plan to grant permanent legal protections to dreamers and resolve other aspects of the immigration system. Kelly also said he would recommend against Trump accepting a short-term extension of the program legislative patch. “What makes them act is pressure,” Kelly said of Congress. Trump announced the end of DACA in September, giving lawmakers until March 5 to come up with a permanent solution. But a federal court last month ordered the Department of Homeland Security to continue accepting applications for DACA, prompting some lawmakers to say that they would have more time to resolve the issue. Attorney General Jeff Sessions is appealing the court ruling, and unless higher courts rule on the legality of the program, DHS will be required to continue renewing DACA visas. Last month, Trump unveiled a four-part plan to deal with urgent immigration issues and used his State of the Union address to endorse a plan that would legalize the status of 1.8 million dreamers — more than the actual number of young immigrants currently protected by DACA. Kelly called Trump’s endorsement of legalizing a larger pool of immigrants “stunning and no one expected it.” “There are 690,000 official DACA registrants and the president sent over what amounts to be two and a half times that number, to 1.8 million,” he said. The difference between [690,000] and 1.8 million were the people that some would say were too afraid to sign up, others would say were too lazy to get off their asses, but they didn’t sign up.” Kelly said he couldn’t believe that lawmakers would vote against Trump’s immigration plan given how “generous” it is. “If before the champions of DACA were members on one side of the aisle, I would say right now the champion of all people who are DACA is Donald Trump — but you would never write that.” About 800,000 have applied for and received DACA protections since the program began in 2012. The nonpartisan Migration Policy Institute has estimated that at least 1.3 million people are immediately eligible for the program. Immigration reform advocates have said in the past that many people brought to the country illegally as children did not apply for DACA because they did not meet the age or educational requirements, couldn’t afford the application fees ranging from $400 to $500 or fear handing over personal information to the federal government. With talks continuing across the Capitol, the White House rejected a new plan Monday from Sens. John McCain (R-Ariz.) and Christopher A. Coons (D-Del.) that would grant permanent legal status to dreamers and bolster security along the U.S.-Mexico border. Trump tweeted Monday that the proposal is a “total waste of time” because it doesn’t immediately authorize spending the billions to build new barriers along the border. The new legislation, which was also introduced in the House last month, orders DHS to craft a comprehensive U.S.-Mexico border strategy but stops short of authorizing the billions of dollars that Trump and conservative Republicans want for border security construction projects. The bill also does not address changes sought by Trump to curtail family-based legal migration — derided by conservatives as “chain migration” — and end a visa lottery system used by immigrants from countries that don’t benefit from other visa programs. On Tuesday, Trump amplified Kelly’s comments, tweeting that “nearly 7 in 10 Americans support an immigration reform package that includes DACA, fully secures the border, ends chain migration & cancels the visa lottery. If D’s oppose this deal, they aren’t serious about DACA-they just want open borders.” In a separate tweet, Trump said that “We need a 21st century MERIT-BASED immigration system” and added that current family-based legal immigration programs and the diversity visa lottery “are outdated programs that hurt our economic and national security.” At the Capitol, Kelly reiterated the administration’s position that dreamers “are not a priority for deportation” presuming they avoid breaking the law. Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen has said previously that her department would not target dreamers for deportation. But Nielsen said in an interview last month with CBS News that DHS will “enforce the law.” With lawmakers deadlocked on how to proceed, the top negotiators for each party spoke out on the Senate floor Tuesday and accused the other side of inaction. Sen. Richard J. Durbin (D-Ill.), the lead Democratic negotiator on immigration, said that his party is “willing to support a broadly unpopular and partisan proposal — the wall — in exchange for a broadly popular and bipartisan proposal” that would legalize the status of dreamers. “But the president will not take yes for an answer.” Source: https://www.washingtonpost.com/powerpost/white-house-chief-of-staff-trump-not-expected-to-extend-daca-deadline/2018/02/06/7e459e4a-0b54-11e8-95a5-c396801049ef_story.html?utm_term=.ba4ddb2475e0

Hi, my DACA is set to expire November 14, 2018. The usual advice was to apply 120 days before. I have heard conflicting advice. Should I be reapplying now even though I am 10 months before my expiration date? My mom has heard of others with a November 2018 expiration reapplying now and I was shocked. What do I do?

A blame game will consume Washington if the government shuts down this Friday But first, lawmakers from both sides of the aisle must play the dare game. Republicans will essentially dare Democrats to vote no on an interim spending plan to avoid a shutdown. If Democrats vote yes, the government remains open. But if Democrats cast nay ballots, Republicans will try to turn that decision against vulnerable lawmakers in the midterm elections. By the same token, Democrats will dare Republicans to reject the same stopgap plan. This is a hope that the GOP -- wielding majorities in both the House and Senate and President Trump occupying the White House -- will present themselves as incapable of governing. A nay vote by Republicans could trigger a government shutdown. Democrats will cast the shutdown as emblematic of the bedlam associated with the Trump presidency. The irony is that neither side truly wants to stumble into a government shutdown this weekend. But Republicans and Democrats alike are daring the other side to do so. If the government shutters, only then will the sides engage in a ritualistic tournament of blame. Here’s what’s at stake: House Republican leaders hope to approve an interim spending bill to run the government through February 16 and avert a shutdown. Latched to the package is a multi-year extension of a popular health care coverage plan for children. The bill is notably devoid of any DACA language to help persons brought to the U.S. illegally by their parents. But here’s the problem: Republicans may lack the votes on their side to pass the plan unilaterally without seeking Democratic support. Conservatives and members of the Freedom Caucus balk over a host of issues. Many Republicans seethe that their leaders authored a fourth emergency bill to fund the government and not a full-blown plan for the balance of the year. Republican defense hawks are apoplectic they haven’t secured a hike in military spending. Some GOPers like Reps. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, R-Fla., and Carlos Curbelo, R-Fla., won’t vote yes because the party has yet to address DACA. House Republicans can only lose 23 votes on their side of the aisle before needing Democrats to fill the void and approve the Continuing Resolution or “CR,” Congressional shorthand for the caretaker spending package. Democrats won’t budge unless they marshal a DACA fix. “It needs to be in the CR,” said House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer, D-Md. House Republicans whipped the CR Wednesday afternoon to assess their internal vote tally. A senior Republican source described the whip count as “standard” starting place for most bills of this magnitude. “They do not have the votes,” augured House Freedom Caucus Chairman Rep. Mark Meadows, R-N.C. “Now I’m not saying they won’t have the votes….” Meadows described the circumstances as “fluid.” But the North Carolina Republican doubted there would be a government shutdown “because nobody wants one.” However, Meadows observed that Republican leaders continue to punt, repeatedly engineering provisional bills which fund the government for short spurts. Congress OK’d the first CR in September, followed by two encore CRs in December. “At some point you have to decide why the fourth CR is different than the second or the third and I don’t think there’s a compelling case,” said Meadows. Meadows observed the House is scheduled to be out of session next week and then meet in abbreviated stints in late January and early February. That almost stretches until when the funding would again lapse. Lawmakers of both parties scratch their heads as to how they can forge a pact between now and mid-February. So, the House is slated to vote on the CR today. Will it work? “Yes,” predicted Rep. Mike Simpson, R-Idaho. “Because we don’t want to be here Saturday.” Then there’s a question if such a measure could make it through the Senate. The bill must hurdle the threat of a filibuster by commanding 60 yeas. Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., is still out, convalescing after surgery. That means the GOP has only 50 members with which to work. If Republicans stick together, they’d have to enlist the support of at least ten Democrats to crack the 60 vote threshold. “That is a high bar,” conceded Sen. James Lankford, R-Okla., when asked if all Republicans would vote in lockstep. “I don’t think it’s a given that everyone votes yes,” said Sen. John Thune, R-S.D., the third-most senior Republican in the body. “It will take a little whip work to get there.” The whipping could start with Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., a fierce advocate of boosting defense spending. “I’m not going to vote for a CR. You’re destroying the military here,” said Graham. Graham says short-term spending measures disproportionately wound the military compared to other areas of government. It makes it hard for the Pentagon to plan and train. “I think we’re back in the land of the CRs,” said Graham. “Anybody who thought you could get defense funding without doing DACA was pretty naïve.” Even so, could some Senate Democrats feel pressure to vote for the CR based on the children’s health insurance program provision alone? Consider Democratic senators facing re-election this fall in competitive states. Republicans would love to dare Sens. Joe Donnelly, D-Ind., Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., and Claire McCaskill, D-Mo., to vote against children’s health insurance. A roll call vote like that would supply Republicans with good political fodder. But again, Republicans must supply sufficient votes from their side. That’s far from a certainty. Otherwise, the government shuts down. Or, Republicans have to turn to another tactic. Aside from the current gambit, it’s likely Congress can try two other approaches to avoid a shutdown. Lawmakers could adopt a clean CR, simply re-upping all funding at current levels. But senior sources say there’s no way to decouple children’s health dollars from the spending package. The other option is a CR loaded with a DACA fix. That maneuver would command the votes of some Republicans and scores of Democrats. But Republican leaders may not be leaders much longer if they take that approach. So, what happens today? “We’ll learn something soon about (House Speaker) Paul Ryan, R-Wis.,” said one House Republican about the current CR scheme. “We’ll know if Ryan can pull this off, or if he’s only good at passing tax reform.” “If there is a shutdown, our fingerprints aren’t on it,” said Rep. Louise Slaughter, D-N.Y., of her Democratic colleagues. So first, there’s the dare game. We’ll likely know today which side won the dare. But if the government shuts down, we may have to wait until November to see who emerged victorious in the blame game. https://t.co/NwiuyHxInG

Phoenix immigration activists on Sunday continued to press U.S. Sen. Jeff Flake for a "clean" Dream Act, flooding his office with calls to legalize the status of young immigrants known as "dreamers" without agreeing to a border wall. The five-hour phone drive, held as part of Promise Arizona's "Souls to the Phones" campaign, aimed to make at least 1,000 calls to the Arizona Republican's office. The effort was set to begin at noon, but the first volunteer showed up at 10 a.m., according to civic-engagement organizer Lupe Conchas. “We’ve had a good 20 people come through and each one of those 20 people, their goal was to do 20 or more calls,” Conchas said about 4 p.m. Sunday. The organization will host a similar effort Tuesday from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. at its headquarters, 701 S. First Street. The Promise Arizona campaign is part of a larger push for Congress to adopt legislation that would create a pathway to citizenship for immigrants brought to the country illegally as children. Flake is a leader of the bipartisan group urging a compromise to save the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA, program, which Trump plans to end March 5. "We’re focusing on Sen. Flake because he has been one of the lead negotiators…and we want to be sure he’s hearing the voices of his entire constituency regarding what they want to see as part of a ‘clean Dream Act,” volunteer organizer Laura Perez said in a statement. A spokesman for Flake did not immediately respond to an email from The Arizona Republic seeking comment. But the senator said Sunday on ABC's "This Week with George Stephanopoulos " that Democrats and Republicans were "trying to come forward with a compromise," Some Republicans say they will support the Dream Act if the legislation includes a provision to fund a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border, while Democrats have argued for the exclusion of border-security measures. "I think we have (found a compromise), and you’ll see that this week," Flake said. The Dream Act debate has intensified since the Trump administration announced in September that it would phase out DACA, the Obama-era program that protected up to 800,000 young migrants from deportation. A federal judge in California recently ordered immigration officials to accept DACA renewal applications until a lawsuit against the Trump administration is settled. The Department of Justice could appeal the judge's order, however. More than 25,000 people in Arizona have received DACA status, which allows them to get a two-year work permit and a Social Security number. A delegation of Arizona dreamers is expected to travel to Washington, D.C., this week to lobby lawmakers. Source: https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/phoenix-breaking/2018/01/14/daca-recipients-activists-continue-push-flake-clean-dream-act/1032820001/

Hi all I hope I can get some answers. I applied back in September and got my approval notice on October 23rd. Well I still have not received it. I contacted USCIS and they sent me an email with a tracking # confirming it was delivered to my house on October 26th, I spoke to my local postal office and they also confirmed it. Also on the email they said that I have to "prove" that my card got lost in the mail if not I have to re apply for the I-765 and pay the fee again! Just think is not fair as I didn't lose it myself. This is really frustrating as I am about to lose my job. Has anyone ran in this situation and what was the outcome? Did you had to pay the fee again? Did they take a long time to reissue it? Thank you!

https://news.google.com/news/video/GpltAT1rxLY/dA2Q0qEOo6SudTMr4ogmHuAH_HrYM?hl=en A wide ranging group of House Republicans said on Thursday that they are prepared to work to pass new legislation that would assist those in the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, or DACA, by the end of the year. "No bill is going to be perfect, but inaction is just not acceptable," said Rep. Dan Newhouse, R-Washington. He added, "I can tell you almost every single Republican agrees that it's the responsibility of Congress not the administration to make immigration law." The Republicans renewed efforts to provide immigration reform come after President Trump charged members of Congress to come up with a fix to existing legislation after official rolling back the Obama-era program back in September. He gave them a 6-month window for such a task. Rep. Joe Barton, R-Texas, said he would like to see legislation done by the end of the calendar year and was optimistic of it gaining Democratic support. "When a bill comes to the floor, whatever bill it is, I predict it will have a vote with well over 300 votes to send the bill to the Senate," suggested Barton. Rep. Fred Upton, R-Michigan, echoed that timeline, charging his colleagues to "take up the president's challenge, let's get it done and say Merry Christmas to a lot folks across the country." Senate Republicans had previously offered their own potential fix to the DACA program, with Senators Thom Tillis, James Lankford and Orrin Hatch unveiling their latest immigration reform effort, the SUCCEED Act (Solution for Undocumented Children through Careers Employment Education and Defending our nation), which they called a "fair and compassionate" merit-based solution to issues facing undocumented children currently in the U.S. But as late as last month, the Trump administration was reportedly finalizing the details of a set of immigration principles that could upend efforts to come up with a permanent fix for the status of young immigrants who came to the country illegally as children. The principles, according to people familiar with ongoing discussions, were expected to include elements of proposed legislation that would dramatically reduce legal immigration rates. Also to be pursued was an overhaul of the green card system to prevent extended family members, including siblings and adult children, from joining permanent residents in the U.S. Source:https://www.cbsnews.com/news/house-republicans-talk-daca-fix-negotiations-live-stream/

The march began at Hope College and ended with a rally at city hall on Tuesday. Roberto Jara marched for the dozens of of kids he has worked with, who have been recipients of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals Act. Jara, executive director of Latin Americans United for Progress in Holland, was joined by about 200 Hope College students and community members from Holland as they marched to city hall and rallied to advocate for the implementation of a clean DREAM Act and immigration reform in the U.S. The DREAM Act stands for the Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors Act and is legislation that would protect undocumented immigrants brought to the U.S. as children. The march started at Grove Point in the middle of Hope College’s campus at about 11 a.m. Afterwards, marchers rallied inside Holland City Hall and listened to a number of speakers, including Jara and Mayor Nancy DeBoer. “We need to call for our legislators to be leaders and make America great once again,” Jara said at the rally. “What really makes it great is that we have open arms and that we are welcoming and that we welcome people from all over the world. That’s what makes America great.” Attorney General Jeff Sessions made an announcement on Sept. 5, declaring the Obama Administration’s Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, or DACA, “an unconstitutional exercise of authority” that must be revoked. Congress has until March 5 to come up with a legislative workaround to replace DACA partially or entirely. Marchers chanted, “No hate, no fear, immigrants are welcome here,” and “Hey, hey, ho, ho DACA students are here to stay,” as they made their way through downtown Holland. Members of the women’s protest choir Persisterhood joined the march and chimed in their own singing at points. Jocelyn Gallegos, a sophomore at Hope College and president of the Latino Student Organization, helped organize the rally and said it’s important to inform people of what the DREAM Act would do. “The DREAM Act is a segue to citizenship for all these people, who have so much potential and have so much to offer the country as a whole,” Gallegos said. Alejandra Gomez Limon, a senior at Hope College who helped organize the march and spoke at the rally, said it’s important to give people a platform to advocate as well as educate others. “I hope this is going to be a kickstart for what’s to come and it allows us to see how to go forward,” Gomez Limon said. “We have the six month deadline with DACA and this is really to get the movement started.” Amari Brown, a freshman at Hope College, attended the march and rally with Hope College sophomore Brandon Fuller. Both said they attended the events to show suppport for DACA recipients. “I hope it brings attention to the issue,” Brown said. “The worst thing that could happen at this point is for people to forget or stop thinking it’s important. We need to keep making noise then legislators will hear that and make the necessary changes.” DeBoer said the publicity from the event and the large turnout will make people pay attention to the cause. Other speakers at the rally included Cady Short-Thompson, provost at Hope College, and Rev. Gordon Wiersman, a co-pastor at Hope Church. Short-Thompson said we are all immigrants and shared stories of how the DACA rescindment has impacted the lives of recipients from an article published by the Los Angeles Times. Wiersman said the community will have to come together with dignity and respect to welcome everyone. “Part of what I want to say, as a person of faith, is that things like justice, hospitality and human dignity belong at the center of our political dialogue rather than fear and division,” Wiersman said. Jara became emotional while speaking at the rally and said this is not the America he grew up in. “I had my share of discrimination, but I knew America’s ideals and I knew this is my home,” Jara said. “Since last November, when I talk to kids I see the hopelessness in their eyes because they feel they are living in a country that hates them and hates their family.” — Follow this reporter on Twitter @SentinelJake. Source: http://www.hollandsentinel.com/news/20171101/hundreds-join-daca-march-in-downtown-holland

http://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/visuals/95008979-132.html Artists with a traveling art installation began pasting photos of San Diegans’ faces on a Liberty Station building on Monday to show support for dreamers and push Congress to pass a bill to protect them by the end of the year. The Inside Out/Dreamers project hopes the community-created public art will catch the attention of Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Vista, and convince him to support the DREAM Act, which would give green cards to unauthorized immigrants who were brought to the U.S. as children. Photo booth trucks from the project are traveling to more than 30 strategically-selected cities around the U.S. to target members of Congress the group hopes to sway in favor of the DREAM Act. “It’s a platform for everyone who believes that we need to sort out the situation for dreamers by December,” said Jaime Scatena, the truck’s lead artist. Activist groups across the U.S. who support dreamers have pressured Congress to pass a bill to protect them since the Trump administration ended the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, or DACA, in September. After participants sat in the photo booth area to have their pictures taken, the truck printed larger-than-life copies of the photos through a slit in its side. A small crew worked with Scatena to paste the prints in a row that they hoped would eventually wrap all the way around the building. The paste is water-based and non-toxic, Scatena said. After about two hours, they had more than 13 black-and-white photos on the wall and a stack ready to go up. A small line of people waited to be photographed in front of the truck’s polka dot background. Cat Darby, a visual artist and writer who works nearby, was excited to participate after she heard what cause the project was supporting. “This is wonderful, and I think more people should be aware of the situation,” Darby said. “Visuals are a way to get the message to the public.” The Inside Out Project was started in 2011 by French street artist JR. It allows groups to start public art campaigns for different causes. Artists affiliated with the project have printed several hundred thousand photographs around the world. The Inside Out/Dreamers initiative is a collaboration between The Inside Out Project and the Emerson Collective, a social justice organization founded by Laurene Powell Jobs. The project asked local activists to talk about why they want Congress to pass the DREAM Act as the artists worked. Itzel Guillen, a DACA recipient, emphasized that people who support dreamers should be pushing for a “clean DREAM Act,” which would mean no additional enforcement measures added in as compromises to the protections given to the immigrants affected by the end of DACA. “Anything that came with strings attached would hurt our communities,” Guillen said. “San Diego County would be one of the communities that would be hurt by any legislation that would include more money for agents and more money for walls. This would put our families at risk.” Guillen, who works as an organizer at Alliance San Diego, said she appreciated the art community’s support on the issue. “They made a really bold statement supporting the DREAM Act,” Guillen said. “That was something I hadn’t seen before, using an art project to uphold the voices of DACA recipients and give them a space to speak their truth.” The photo booth truck will be taking photos at the Arts District Liberty Station again on Tuesday from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Source: http://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/news/immigration/sd-me-dreamers-art-20171030-story.html

Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) said Wednesday that she won't back a bill that allows the federal government to spend money unless Congress has a legislative fix to address the legal status of hundreds of thousands of people brought to the country illegally as children. "I will not vote for an end-of-year spending bill until we are clear about what we are going to do to protect and take care of our DACA young people in this country," Harris said. "Each day in the life of these young people is a very long time, and we've got to stop playing politics with their lives." President Trump announced in September that he was giving Congress until March before the program would shutter and recipients would begin losing work permits and protection from deportation. An estimated 200,000 of the nearly 800,000 recipients of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program live in California, giving the Golden State an outsized stake in resolving their legal status. Harris spoke at a Capitol Hill news conference Wednesday with other members of the California delegation to urge quick action on the issue. "It is absolutely urgent that we pass the legislation," House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-San Francisco) said. "We are determined that the Dream Act will be the law of the land before the year is out." Democrats and Republicans are negotiating the details of a fix, and when something could pass. Pelosi has hinted that if Republicans don't have the votes within their party to pass the end-of-year spending bill, which Congress has to pass to keep the government open, Democrats will offer their votes — for a price. The Huffington Post reported that House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) told conservative Republicans behind closed doors this week that a DACA fix could be added to the spending bill, something sure to infuriate some in his party. Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) said a "bipartisan consensus" is coming together on a DACA solution that will include border security, though he didn’t provide additional details besides no border wall. Durbin said he is aiming to get a DACA fix passed before Congress considers the spending bill, which is expected to be one of the last major things lawmakers do this year, but that many Democrats in the House and Senate share Harris’ sentiment. “There are few opportunities and many things to do before the end of the session, before Christmas. We are seizing any available opportunity to move the Dream Act,” Durbin said. “Many of us feel we couldn’t in good conscience go home for Christmas without seeing this law passed.” Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) said that with Trump's urging, Congress should find a fix and there is "no reason not to go ahead." "I view this bill as the most important thing we can get done now — both political parties," Feinstein said. "The president is for it, hopefully he doesn't want an arm and a leg for it, but he understands how important this is and we can get it done." Source: http://www.latimes.com/politics/la-pol-ca-harris-dream-act-20171025-story.html

It remains to be seen whether Ryan will actually include a DACA fix in the December spending bill, and if so, what the fix will look like. Here, the 30 to 40 moderate House Republicans and the Big Five Republicans in the Senate (Jeff Flake and John McCain of Arizona, Susan Collins of Maine, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Bob Corker of Tennessee) can finally throw their weight around. Without those moderate House members and the Big Five, a budget won’t get passed. It is within their power to end the GOP’s torment of “dreamers,” get the president and their own party off the hook and demonstrate that not all Republicans are xenophobic captives of talk radio and Fox News. House moderates and the Big Five should not overplay their hand. While funding for the wall is a non-starter, they would be wise to include a reasonable amount of funding for border security, but much more importantly, visa overstay prevention, which is a much bigger problem that President Trump routinely ignores. This may mean that the House will need a large number of Democratic votes to pass a budget with a DACA fix included. House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), who runs her party with an iron fist, will no doubt be able to field a sufficient number of votes, but Ryan will need to then put to a vote a budget that many hard-liners in his party will oppose due to the DACA fix. Now, passing a DACA fix might not be all that hard to accomplish. Once a few Republicans hop on the DACA-fix bandwagon, others will follow. In fact, some very conservative Republican senators (James Lankford of Oklahoma and Thom Tillis of North Carolina) already have introduced their own DACA fix. The House will need to vote first on a spending legislation, but even if the DACA fix is not in that version, the Senate with an overwhelming show of support for DACA can send the spending legislation back with the DACA fix included, thereby forcing the House’s hand. The irony should not be lost on the Trump cultists: The first true legislative achievement (besides confirming Neil M. Gorsuch to the Supreme Court) could very well be a massive, bipartisan spending bill with a giant provision for “amnesty” — the favorite word of anti-immigration advocates — to legalize 800,000 “dreamers” who came here as children, through no fault of their own. And if that weren’t sweet enough for Trump’s opponents, the second legislative accomplishment might be passage of the Alexander-Murray health-care bill to stabilize Obamacare. Trump would then be able to congratulate himself for his brilliance (He has an Ivy League education, don’t you know?) in accomplishing what President Barack Obama could not — a permanent DACA fix and a new lease on life for the Affordable Care Act. Someone will need to break the news to Stephen K. Bannon and Attorney General Jeff Sessions — two of the leaders of the anti-immigrant chorus — that Trump is either the world’s worst negotiator or snookered them both by posing as an anti-immigrant hawk. https://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/right-turn/wp/2017/10/26/could-a-daca-fix-get-done/?utm_term=.5d868117b8b5

In a time where intense political tension surrounds the future of immigrants and Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) recipients, one student organization is taking a stand for immigration rights. Advocates for Immigrants & Refugee Rights (AIRR) at Florida State University Law had their first lunch meeting of the semester to discuss and debunk many stigmas surrounding immigrant and refugee populations. AIRR proudly hosted two FSU alumni to lead the discussion regarding immigration policy, Vania Llovera M.S. and Leonardo Arias L.L.M. Both Llovera and Arias work extensively in the realm of immigration. Llovera is currently the Assistant Director of the FSU Center for the Advancement of Human Rights and is the Executive Director for the Big Bend Coalition Against Human Trafficking. Arias is a recent FSU Law graduate that practices in civil litigation, family, immigration and nationality. Arias explained how the United States’ system to process immigrants is overtly unjust and requires applicants to struggle through years of paperwork, political abuse and a slim chance of acceptance. Applicants can wait upwards of 21 years to even get a response. “I want the immigration system to be more fair,” Arias stated. “The current system is incredibly biased against immigrants and makes it difficult to come into this country. As an immigrant, I see this place as my country. I left my old country for political, social and economic reasons and I don’t intend to go back.” Arias arrived in the United States from Cuba several years ago. Similarly, Llovera follows up Arias’ discussion by directing focus to the human side of immigration. She states that the anti-immigration wave comes not from an economic standpoint that most argue for, but by social and racial friction. Of the 800,000 DACA recipients (also called Dreamers), over 90 percent of them are employed. Deporting all of the Dreamers would cost the U.S. economy over $400 billion in the workforce. Llovera continued on by pointing out how immigrants into the U.S. often are victims of widespread violence and corruption. “A lot of illegal immigrants say that they are here for better opportunities," Llovera said. "What they don’t say is that they might’ve died if they had stayed in their old country. They wouldn’t be here without a good reason.” Llovera’s family fled to the U.S. after the Salvadoran Civil War broke out in the 1980’s. When asked about the anti-immigration wave that’s been navigating the globe, Llovera replied expressing how unfair politics are in regard to immigration. “I’ve never seen anything this harsh against immigrants. I don’t know how it got this bad but it’s all political nonsense," Llovera said. He explains that he hopes that people realize how much of a mistake anti-immigrant systems actually are. He cites the the ‘build a wall’ campaign as part of the hysteria around immigration. "There’s no geographical way he can do that across the border," Llovera said. "Even so, why is Canada not being blocked?” This comes as a response to President Donald Trump’s longstanding promise to build a 2,000 mile long wall across the Mexico-United States border. President Trump has infamously had an anti-immigration stance since his first campaign day. Back in September, President Trump announced that he would be ending DACA, the Obama-era act that protects children of illegal immigrants from deportation. While recent polls not only show that around 70 percent of Americans are in favor of DACA, they also greatly prefer paths to citizenship for illegal immigrants rather than deportation. Even so, President Trump has made deportations the forefront of his administration. Last week, Rosa Maria Hernandez, a ten-year-old with cerebral palsy, had to undergo emergency gallbladder surgery. Her parents brought her into the U.S. when she was a baby. When Border Patrol stopped her ambulance and discovered that she was an undocumented immigrant, they escorted her to the hospital, guarded her room and proceeded to detain her. Hernandez, a young child with a severe illness stolen from a hospital, may be the next deportee. The recent spike of strident anti-immigration policies goes beyond DACA and the millions of Americans that will suffer as a result. Lawmakers and leaders of Florida stand together in defiance of this plague. On September 6, one day after President Trump announced that he would be ending DACA, FSU President John Thrasher emailed his students about his unwavering devotion. “As a state and nation, we have already invested in the education of these students as they pursue studies in business, education, high-tech and other critical areas," Thrasher said. "Let’s allow these young people to continue to contribute to the economy and their communities as they pursue their dreams here in America. I think it’s the right thing to do and we will help out students with resources and other services during this period of uncertainty.” On October 10, eight Florida mayors signed a petition demanding that congress act to protect DACA. The petitioners include Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer, Aventura Mayor Enid Weisman, Miami Gardens Mayor Oliver G. Gilbert III, Miramar Mayor Wayne M. Messam, Oakland Park Mayor John Adornato II, West Palm Beach Mayor Jeri Muoio, Sunrise Mayor Michael J. Ryan, and Weston Mayor Daniel Stermer. In the letter, they state an appeal to protect Dreamers as well as immigrants in this country: “We write on behalf of the nation’s mayors to urge you to quickly pass bipartisan legislation that would enable Dreamers, who are people who have lived in America since they were children and built their lives here, to earn lawful permanent residence and eventually American citizenship if they meet certain criteria. We pledge to work with you in this effort and to do whatever we can to assist you in seeing it enacted into law." The future of dreamers and immigrants remains a constant battle between mayors and organizations like AIRR against the Trump administration. Source: http://www.fsunews.com/story/news/2017/10/29/student-organization-shows-support-daca-recipients-and-immigrants/811195001/

The past couple of months have been tough for undocumented immigrants in Houston. In late August, Hurricane Harvey struck the Texas city, killing dozens of people and displacing hundreds of thousands. Days later, the Trump administration ended the Deferred Action for Child Arrivals or DACA program, putting nearly 700,000 young undocumented immigrants at risk of losing their jobs and being deported when their protections expire. For 29-year-old DACA recipient Oscar Hernandez, a lead organizer with the Houston chapter of immigrant rights group United We Dream, it was time to help out. “Here in Houston, we had a lot of folks who lost everything during the hurricane,” Hernandez told HuffPost earlier this month. “What does it mean to have to replace everything in your house, while also trying to get the $450 needed to file the [DACA renewal] application? So it’s been extremely challenging for undocumented youth across the country, but especially here in Houston.” Read More: https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/united-we-dream-houston-immigrants-daca-harvey_us_59e697b5e4b00905bdad5a7f

UC Davis Chancellor Gary S. May spoke at a Capitol Hill news conference today (Oct. 25) in support of the Dream Act — legislation that would counteract President Donald Trump’s decision to end DACA, or the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program. DACA affords illegal immigrants known as “Dreamers,” who came to the United States as children, the right to stay in the country. But Trump says, no more: DACA ends March 5. “The idea that DACA students could be deported as early as March 6 is chilling to me,” said May, who appeared at the news conference as a representative of the UC system. The news conference, organized by congressional Democrats and carried live on the Senate Democrats YouTube channel, included remarks by Sens. Dianne Feinstein and Kamala Harris of California, Dick Durbin of Illinois and Kirsten Gillibrand of New York; and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi of San Francisco, among other representatives. UC Regent Richard Blum also spoke, along with other leaders in higher education, including Chancellor Kristina Johnson of the State University of New York. Two “Dreamers” also gave remarks: Nejvi Bejko, who came with her parents to the United States from Albania at the age of 9 and today is an aspiring designer, a graduate of Michigan State University; and Leezia Dhalla, who was 6 when she moved to Texas with her parents and subsequently graduated from Northwestern University UC Davis ‘Dreamers’ Chancellor May spoke about the “Dreamers” who attend UC Davis, saying “they represent some of our most dedicated and inspirational students.” And those who have graduated, he said, “have blossomed with careers in medicine, law, social work and much more.” Read UC Davis student Karla Ornelas' op-ed in The Sacramento Bee: “A ‘Dreamer’ Wants to Give Back to the Central Valley.” “These students contribute to a rich diversity of cultures and perspectives that is integral to the success of our university as a global university,” May said. “They are paving the future for themselves and their families so they can give back to our society.” The chancellor continued: “We must give the best and brightest a chance to shine, no matter where they happened to be born, or how they were brought here as children. … They deserve to pursue a college education without fear of deportation.” Pelosi: Dream Act will be law by year’s end Trump announced Sept. 5 his decision to rescind DACA and tweeted a few hours later that “Congress now has six months to legalize” the program. A bipartisan slate of legislators already had moved to do just that, through the Dream Act of 2017, introduced in the Senate in July but not yet voted on. “We are determined that this Dream Act will be the law of the land before the end of the year,” Pelosi said at today’s news conference. “We reach out to our Republican colleagues with great anticipation that what they say about supporting the Dreamers will be reflected in their vote on the bill.” She thanked President Trump “for his commitment to support the Dream Act” and added: “He’s told us if it comes to his desk he will sign it.” Source: https://www.ucdavis.edu/news/chancellor-may-democrats-back-dream-act/

for those who have their 3rd renewal daca approved, how long did it take? for those who have a clean record and nothing outstanding about about their cases. From point A to Z. and did it get approved around the time your work permit was set to expire?

There is a question that isn't being answered by the daca community. What if your daca has expired before september 5 2017 because you did not renew during the recommended time. what most people are answering is : If you have DACA and your DACA expires between now and March 5, 2018, you can submit your application for a two-year renewal by October 5, 2017. After October 5, 2017, USCIS will no longer accept any renewal applications. If your DACA expires March 6, 2018 or later you will not be able to apply for renewal. but they have not addressed what if your daca expired before september 5 2017. does anybody know the answer to this?

Hey guys, Qualifying for DACA with a DUI is possible! I went through an attorney because I was also afraid of being referred to ICE. Thankfully everything worked out and I just received permanent residency. I documented my experience via a blog because there was too much helpful information I wanted to share that could help you: Good luck too everyone! November 2015 – DACA Filed December 2015 – Biometrics Appointment May 27, 2015 – DACA Approval June 23 2016 – Advanced Parole Filed August 30 2016 – Advanced Parole Approved November 8 2016 – Adjustment of Status Submitted November 28 2016 – Biometrics Submitted March 11 2017 – Approved for Interview April 11 2017 – Interview June 12 2017 – Green Card Approval June 16 1017 – Green Card Received

I crossed the border illegally on June 2, 2007 at the age of seven. I have no proof of being in the US until I started elementary school on August of 2007. When we came here, we came and stayed with my uncle until we could afford our own place. However, my dad was already living in the US before my mom and I crossed. My question is, can I get an affidavit letter of them saying that I was here before June 15th?

Hi everyone I'm new to this and this is my first time posting. I've been convicted with a class b misdeamnor for petty theft when I was 17. I've been approved every time since DACA first started in 2012. 22 now and I'm currently on probation for a DWI case(significant offense) which ends on 11/17. My DACA expires on 7/17 and I would like to get some feedback on how I should go about my situation. Has anyone like me ever been on probation for DWI and been approved for DACA? Should I apply while on probation? Also I'm graduating from UH in the Fall with my BA in Computer Information Systems and my plan B was to move back to MX and persue my professional career with IBM or Accenture from there IF I cannot renew my DACA. Thanks for listening any feedback is greatly appreciated.