CCANO Press
By January 25, 2017December 23rd, 2022No Comments

Action Alert: Support the BRIDGE Act and Protect DACA Youth

Published on January 25, 2017

Action Alert from U.S. Catholic bishops’ Justice for Immigrants Campaign (JFI):
Please Support the BRIDGE Act and Protect DACA Youth

United States Conference of Catholic Bishops Justice for Immigrants Campaign: We are one family under God.

The BRIDGE (Bar Removal of Individuals who Dream and Grow our Economy) Act, S.128/H.R. 496, was recently introduced in Congress as a bipartisan effort to sustain the temporary relief from deportation and employment eligibility offered to youth through the Department of Homeland Security’s Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. Under the BRIDGE Act, young people who came to the United States as children would maintain their eligibility to work and live in the U.S. without the fear of deportation and family separation so long as they meet certain requirements, such as showing a commitment to education or honorable service in our military and having no history of serious crime.

There are more than 750,000 young people who have received and benefitted from DACA. These youth entered the U.S. as children and know America as their only home. They are contributors to our economy, veterans of our military, academic standouts in our universities, and leaders in our parishes and communities. As Catholics, we have long supported DACA youth and their families as we believe in protecting the dignity of every human being, especially that of our children. Read USCCB and Catholic Charities USA’s letter to Senators.

Ask your Senators and Representative to support and co-sponsor the BRIDGE ACT by sending the following message or send your message from the JFI Take Action page.

Dear Senator/Representative,

As a Catholic I write to express my strong support for the “Bar Removal of Individuals who Dream and Grow our Economy (BRIDGE) Act,” S.128/H.R. 496. The BRIDGE Act protects the dignity of DACA-eligible youth by ensuring that these individuals, who were brought to the United States as children and are contributing so much to our nation, can continue to live their lives free of the anxiety that they could be deported at any time to a country they do not know and separated from their families.

I urge you to:
•  Support and co-sponsor the BRIDGE Act (S.128/H.R. 496); and
•  Continue to work towards larger legislative reform of our immigration laws.
The Catholic community stands with you in support of the BRIDGE Act and vows to work with you to reform our immigration system in a humane and common-sense manner.

Sincerely,