Search
Close this search box.

You shall not oppress a resident alien; you know the heart of an alien,
for you were aliens in the land of Egypt.   
-Exodus 23:9 NRSV

The National Council of Churches expresses strong opposition to President Trump’s plan to phase out the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program.  Hundreds of thousands of people, brought to the United States years ago by their parents when they were young now live in a state of fear and uncertainty.  This unnecessarily creates a state of crisis for these vulnerable people.

They live with the very real possibility they will lose their jobs, educational opportunities, and will see their families torn apart. This is completely unnecessary.

President Trump has abdicated his moral responsibility and handed the problem to the Congress, so we call upon that body to swiftly pass legislation that will offer a pathway to citizenship for “Dreamers,” young people who are now part of our churches, our communities, and our lives.  Congress must solve this problem that leaves as many as 800,000 people in legal limbo.

We ask our churches to get involved.  Every congregation is connected to a Dreamer who now must live under the threat of deportation, and this requires responses by our churches that are both pastoral and prophetic.  We urge our member communions to continue their good work of advocating on behalf of the immigrant.