June 15 marked the 10-year anniversary of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program. This administrative policy, established by former President Barack Obama, protects more than 800,000 young people from deportation and extends certain civic privileges to them such as driver’s licenses, Social Security numbers and work permits.
However, the program has a turbulent history. In 2017, the Trump administration announced the termination of the policy and told Congress that they had six months to find a permanent legislative remedy. A federal judge blocked this decision temporarily, which was later upheld by the Supreme Court. Shortly after his inauguration, President Biden ordered the attorney general and secretary of homeland security to begin “preserving and fortifying” DACA. Later that year, another federal judge ruled the program unlawful and blocked new applications. This ruling was appealed, which will be heard by the United States Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit next month.
Despite the past and ongoing legal challenges, DACA has been a life-saver for many undocumented immigrants, especially in terms of education.
Since DACA’s creation, many more undocumented immigrants have felt comfortable attending school. According to researchers at Dartmouth College, the gap in attendance and graduation rates has dropped by 40 percent between citizen and non-citizen immigrants. With more young people attending school, the United States will have a more educated workforce and achieve greater economic growth because of it.
DACA eases the financial burden of higher education as well. Undocumented students, including DACA recipients, are not eligible for federal financial aid. However, by submitting a Free Application for Federal Student Aid using their SSNs, DACA recipients can receive their Expected Family Contribution number and may receive institutional assistance depending on the state and university policy.
Unfortunately, in Georgia, undocumented immigrants, regardless of DACA status, are not allowed to attend universities that rejected students on non-academic grounds in the past two years. This includes the University of Georgia as well as Georgia Tech, Georgia State University, Medical College of Georgia and Georgia College & State University.
Furthermore, all undocumented immigrants, including DACA recipients, are barred from receiving in-state tuition in the state. This ban may drive undocumented immigrants out of state, depleting the already shrunken workforce.
In addition to magnifying the worker shortage crisis, Georgia will lose out on nearly $7.1 billion that undocumented immigrants contribute to the economy each year, including nearly $900 million in state and local taxes.
But the economic consequences due to Georgia’s nativist treatment of undocumented immigrants should not have to be the driving force behind pro-immgrant legislation, immigrants, documented or not, deserve better innately. Access to education is a human right, outlined by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Without it, poverty, unemployment and greater inequality will continue to plague communities arbitrarily deemed lesser by the state.
