In Washington, D.C., at least 13 immigrant justice advocates were arrested while protesting this week’s 5th Circuit Court of Appeals ruling deeming the Obama-era Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, or DACA, illegal. 

Washington, October 8 (RHC)-- In Washington, D.C., at least 13 immigrant justice advocates were arrested while protesting this week’s 5th Circuit Court of Appeals ruling deeming the Obama-era Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, or DACA, illegal. 

Those already enrolled in the program are still allowed to renew their DACA, but new applicants are blocked.  Advocates are also demanding Congress enact permanent immigration relief for undocumented people. 

DACA recipients Diana Pliego and Cindy Colade joined Thursday’s protests.  Diana Pliego said: “This is — I can’t count what number of times this is that I’m anxiously awaiting on a court decision and unsure of what’s going to happen, and maybe it will ruin our futures.  Like, I don’t know, and it’s really hard to live life that way.”

Cindy Colade told reporters: “We want to make sure that all of the children that has been part of this country, no matter what of their paper situation or anything, that with DACA, it will help them stay and be part of this community and pay the taxes and pay everything that this country needs.”

In August, the Biden administration turned DACA into a federal regulation to protect it from further legal challenges.  That rule is scheduled to take effect October 31st.  DACA was enacted in 2012 and has shielded from deportation hundreds of thousands of immigrants who were brought to the U.S. as children, and granted them work permits.