WASHINGTON, DC – Tomorrow, Wednesday, Nov. 16, DACA recipients from across the country are joining a fly-in hosted by FWD.us in Washington D.C. to meet with Members of Congress and urge them to pass permanent legislative protections for Dreamers before the end of the year in the lame duck session. Fly-in participants will unite to advocate on behalf of hundreds of thousands DACA recipients and Dreamers, and for their families and communities; they will join hundreds of advocates from across the country coming to DC to make their case directly to Members of Congress about the urgent need to pass legislation this year.

DACA recipients participating in the fly-in will be coming from nearly 30 states, including New York, Texas, Georgia, Florida, North Carolina, and more. They represent a broad range of career fields, including working as teachers, healthcare workers, and small business owners – each integral to the communities they serve. Without urgent action from Congress, DACA recipients like these fly-in participants will be at risk of losing their protections, potentially being pushed out of the workplace, and cruelly separated from their families. This would have devastating effects on millions of families, and would hurt the U.S economy as it continues to recover.

Recent comments from key elected leaders show growing momentum for passing protections for Dreamers in this lame duck session:

According to sources in a House Democratic Caucus meeting, Majority Leader Steny Hoyer said that they are going to push for a DACA fix in the lame duck session.

“Republican colleagues, particularly those who are leaving have told me privately they’ve always wanted to vote for the DREAM Act and this time they will give us a chance to work together to come up with a good sensible approach to our border, a good sensible approach to the DREAM Act and help bring in workers that we desperately need for agriculture… We could do this. There’s no reason we can’t do it. We have the basic legislation. Let’s really do something we can be proud of in the closing days of this year.” – Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL)

“We have not given up hope on making progress in immigration reform [during this lame duck session]. If nothing else, giving Dreamers the stability that they need, that the federal courts are threatening. So, no shortage of work to do over the next couple of months.” – Senator Alex Padilla (D-CA)

If you are interested in covering the fly-in, directly impacted individuals and immigration experts are available to comment in English and Spanish. Please reach out to press@fwd.us for all inquiries.

For more background on DACA and what’s at stake, please read:

FWD.us Report: What Happens if DACA Ends?
The Current State of DACA: Challenges Await in Litigation and Rulemaking – National Immigration Forum