DACA in the crosshairs

The Supreme Court heard oral arguments last week on the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, which provides protections for immigrant children.

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People rally outside the Supreme Court as oral arguments are heard in the case of President Trump's decision to end the Obama-era, Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program (DACA), Tuesday, Nov. 12, 2019, at the Supreme Court in Washington. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

People rally outside the Supreme Court as oral arguments are heard in the case of President Trump's decision to end the Obama-era, Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program (DACA), Tuesday, Nov. 12, 2019, at the Supreme Court in Washington. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

Guests: Jason Hernandez, Sarah Paoletti, Karla Rojas

The Supreme Court heard oral arguments last week on the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. DACA, which was put into place by President Barack Obama through executive action, provides protection from deportation for young people who were illegally brought to America by their parents when they were under the age of 16 and had no way to pursue citizenship. In 2017, the Trump administration ordered an end to DACA. Several lower courts then ruled that the Trump administration acted improperly in doing so. We’ll talk about the legal issues of the case and what’s at stake for roughly 700,000 young people who are protected under the program. Our guests include JASON HERNANDEZ who leads the Rutgers Immigrant Community Assistance Project which provides DACA recipients with legal aid and guidance, Penn Law professor SARAH PAOLETTI who directs the School’s Transnational Legal Clinic, and DACA recipient and paralegal KARLA ROJAS who came to this country with her parents from Mexico when she was seven years old.

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