On Nov. 11, Amplify Utah and The Salt Lake Tribune published Juan Rios’ “How this Utah Dreamer responds to the ongoing legal challenges to the immigration program.”
He told the story of Carlos Mejia, a college graduate and first-generation immigrant who is currently in the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program. Mejia said that DACA has only helped a small fraction of the millions of undocumented immigrants. Every time there is a change in administration there are different opinions on immigration policy. Many of which have threatened to dismantle DACA.
These immigrants are on a roller coaster. They fear that their livelihoods and the program will be thrown out with the strike of a politician’s pen. We need to establish programs that protect these individuals while they are in them.
Extended timelines need to be added to immigration bills to protect them from the constant change in politics. I challenge The Salt Lake Tribune to begin having more conversations in response to articles like the one mentioned above to inform the public on the confusion, constant flux, and the lack of timelines in current immigration policy — so we can understand the process better and vote for policies that provide real and effective solutions.
Audy Wayman, Salt Lake City
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