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Join the #Faith4DACA and #Faith4TPS movement as we respond to a recent USCIS memo on Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), respond to a court Decision on Temporary protected Status (TPS) and take steps to secure all immigrants’ rights. 

Toolkit Contents

Background

Actions to Take

Resources

Credit

Background

TPS Holders Receives Negative Court Decision (September 2020)
TPS is an immigration program that provides temporary legal status to migrants from countries that have suffered natural disasters, prolonged unrest, or conflict. On Monday, September 14th, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals issued a decision to lift the preliminary injunction in the case of Ramos v. Nielsen. They said that the Trump Administration’s decision to terminate TPS was not reviewable, and while the White House has made racist comments about TPS holders, there is not enough evidence that the decision to end TPS was motivated by racist intentions.

TPS holders from El Salvador, Nicaragua, Haiti, and Sudan are now subject to deportation starting as early as next year, and the ruling opens the door to the same fate for TPS holders from Honduras and Nepal.

Right now, TPS protects approximately 330,000 people in the U.S. In 2018, TPS holders and their U.S.-citizen children filed a lawsuit against the federal government’s termination of TPS. Despite reports, lawsuits, and investigations demonstrating that country conditions in all these countries rendered them unsafe to return; the administration has consistently turned our nation’s back on these populations by terminating protections. They argued that the Trump administration broke the law when it terminated TPS, and in October 2018, the court issued a preliminary injunction staying the removal of TPS holders. 

It is important to note that this decision does not impact TPS holders this year, the earliest terminations could go into effect is March 2021.

The Trump administration has agreed to maintain the protections until at least March 5, 2021, for people from five of the affected countries and until November 2021 for people from El Salvador- as per an agreement between the U.S. and the Salvadoran governments.

Up until then, current TPS holders cannot face deportation, can still obtain drivers’ licenses, and their work authorizations are still valid.

Ultimately, only Congress can provide a permanent path to citizenship for TPS holders.

SCOTUS Rules DACA is Here to Stay—For Now (June-July 2020)
On June 18, the Supreme Court ruled (5-4) that President Trump’s attempt to end the successful Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program was “arbitrary and capricious.” The ruling reverses the Trump administration’s termination of the DACA in 2017 and the program stands, as established through the memo by DHS Secretary Napolitano in 2012, for the time being. The decision was widely celebrated by DACA recipients, faith leaders, and advocates as a step towards justice for immigrant communities.

On July 28th, the Trump Administration released a memo that undermines the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, sidesteps the SCOTUS decision, and continues the attacks on DACA recipients and undocumented young people. The memo announced the Department of Homeland Security (DHS)’s plan to reject new DACA applications; reject new advanced parole requests except in exceptional circumstances; and immediately limit all pending DACA renewals to one-year grants instead of two—increasing the financial and emotional burden on current DACA recipients.

DACA has provided temporary protection from deportation and the ability to work and pursue education to almost 800,000 people who came to the U.S. as children. Over 200,000 DACA recipients are currently serving on the frontlines of the pandemic, working to protect the health and safety of Americans across the U.S. as we confront COVID-19. Despite their many contributions to our communities, DACA recipients, undocumented youth, and their loved ones are once again facing the threat of the program ending.

Instead of supporting frontline workers and fostering unity in our communities during this time of crisis, the Trump Administration is choosing to threaten 300,000 DACA-eligible undocumented youth with deportation while also heightening enforcement in our cities. These actions are inhumane, nonsensical, and an affront to our faith values.

Ultimately, it is up to Congress to permanently protect DACA recipients.

DACA Recipients and TPS Holders Face Uncertainty During COVID19 (2020)
At a time of national uncertainty, individuals anticipating the potential loss of work authorization are living under the looming threat of a loss of status and livelihood solely because of attacks from this administration.

More than half of U.S. states have growing cases of COVID-19, and more than 200,000 DACA recipients and an estimated 131,300 TPS holders from El Salvador, Honduras, and Haiti are serving as essential workers working on the frontlines of the COVID-19 response. During a pandemic, Trump is choosing to put DACA and TPS recipients and their families in threat of deportation once again.A negative Ramos decision is bound to be devastating to the TPS community and the United States at large, especially during a COVID-19 pandemic.

An estimated 11,600 TPS holders are healthcare workers, and an estimated 76,100 TPS holders work in food-related industries, including grocery stores, restaurants, and food processing plants. An estimated 200,000 DACA recipients serve our nation as essential workers, including 29,000 DACA recipients in the healthcare industry.

Despite their many contributions to our communities, DACA recipients, TPS holders, undocumented youth, and their loved ones are once again facing the threat of losing their protections.

Continued Attacks on DACA and Black, Indigenous, People of Color (2020)
Considering the COVID-19 pandemic and pervasive systemic racism, it must be said that immigration is a Black issue, too. Justice cannot be served until Black community members in our midst, many of whom are also immigrants, can live full and prosperous lives. DACA protects over 10,000 Black immigrant youth from detention and deportation—and there are thousands more who would have been protected if the Trump administration did not illegally rescind DACA in 2017. There are also over 50,000 Black TPS holders who need permanent protections as well.

The fight for justice for all immigrants is part of a larger racial justice movement that demands full equality and investments in Black people and communities of color. As people of faith, we look to achieve justice and peace, not just for Dreamers and TPS holders but also for all Black, indigenous, and people of color who are subject to oppression and systemic racism.

People of Faith Are Called to Solidarity and Action
As people of faith, our concern for injustice stems from our values and sacred texts that remind us to love our neighbor and welcome the sojourner among us. By welcoming those in need, the TPS and DACA programs translate our core values into action. Failing to protect TPS holders and DACA recipients, and other undocumented youth, would needlessly tear families and communities apart. We have a moral obligation not to cause destabilizing consequences in our communities.

The Interfaith Immigration Coalition (IIC), along with direct service organizations and immigrant’s rights advocates, will continue to work towards passing legislation that fully embraces the undocumented youth and TPS holders in our communities. Faith communities have written letters, made statements, issued comments and alerts, joined Amicus briefs, engaged in national actions, and supported grassroots actions in solidarity with DACA recipients, TPS holders and the DACA, and TPS program.

Ultimately, only legislation–not litigation–can provide a permanent solution for DACA and TPS recipients and their families. Faith partners have likewise in recent months called for swift passage of the bipartisan Dream and Promise Act, a unified and stand-alone bill that would provide a path to citizenship for all DACA recipients, undocumented immigrant youth as well as Temporary Protected Status (TPS). This bill has passed the U.S. House of Representatives but has not moved in the U.S. Senate. And finally, as we respond to the Supreme Court decision on DACA and the court’s decision on TPS, we join Black advocates as they endeavor to remove the added enforcement and criminalization of Black and brown communities.

As faith communities, we must continue to answer the call to take action in solidarity with DACA recipients and undocumented youth in response to the Supreme Court’s decision to block President Trump’s efforts to end DACA. Likewise, we must uphold the dignity of TPS holders by working to respond swiftly to the Ramos court case in a way that reflects the value we place in their participation and contributions to our society.

Our Demands
Immigration rights advocates must seize this moment to demand that:

• Trump halt deportations of undocumented immigrants, including anyone who has or has ever had DACA or TPS status.
• Trump stop attacks on DACA and TPS. The administration must return the DACA program to it’s  2012 state and rescind the terminations of TPS for the six countries affected. 
• Congress passes a permanent solution that helps people without hurting people and which divests from CBP and ICE. The lives of immigrant youth are not leverage for negotiations. The Senate must act now to pass permanent protections by bringing long-overdue legislation, like the bipartisan Dream and Promise Act, to the floor for a vote. 
• The Senate includes the legislative language present in the House-passed HEROES Act, which would extend work authorization and protection from deportation for DACA recipients for two years, TPS holders for 18 months, and other immigrants for a reasonable period in light of the ongoing COVID-19 crisis.
• State and local leaders eject ICE and CBP from our communities; sign on to our letter; and work to provide free COVID-19 testing, treatment, and services for all, regardless of immigration status.
• In solidarity with Black advocates, our nation must defund the police, end the war on Black communities, and invest in Black communities.
• Members of Congress make a public statement in support of DACA and TPS recipients by sharing stories of DACA and TPS recipients and their families in statements, floor speeches, op-eds, and on social media.
  

Actions to Take
Here are actions you can take to support the #Faith4DACA and #Faith4TPS campaign:

Organize a Virtual Vigil or Rally to Support DACA Recipients and TPS holders

• Organize a public witness event to educate your community about the importance of protecting DACA and TPS.
  • How to organize a virtual vigil resources are below.
  • Media resources are below.
    
• Join DACA and TPS Prayers, led by immigrant leaders and allies, from 1:00-1:30 PM ET on every 3rd Monday of the month. Register here.

Connect With Your Elected Officials

Were you one of 4,500 people who signed our #Faith4DACA petition or our Protect TPS petition? Or did you sign on to our interfaith letter to include immigrants in the COVID19 stimulus response? If you’re ready to take your advocacy to the next level, join us in calling for the following demands from the Administration, Congress, and local elected officials which would help DACA recipients, TPS holders, and other immigrants, too!

• Sign and Promote this Petition (TPS)
  Urge Congress to provide TPS holders with permanent protections amidst the COVID-19 crisis.
  • Sample tweet:

Our neighbors with #TPS deserve protection and support amidst the #COVID19 crisis.

Urge Congress to take action now: http://bit.ly/tpspetition
#ImmigrantsAreEssential #Faith4TPS

• Email Congress
  Urge your two Senators to pass legislation like the Dream and Promise Act of 2019 and the Secure Act of 2019 to protect DACA and TPS recipients and create a roadmap to citizenship for all immigrants.
• Call Your Senators
  Call the Capitol switchboard (202) 224-3121 and tell them to support DACA recipients, TPS holders, and other immigrants impacted by regressive immigration policy: 
  • Call two separate times to connect to your two Senators.
  • Sample script:

The Supreme Court saved DACA for now, but the Trump administration still wants to end it. There is also the matter of TPS, which concerns over 300,000 long-time members of our communities who received a negative court decision that could turn their lives upside down in less than 6 months. We urge you to pass permanent protections like the bipartisan Dream and Promise Act. Additionally, we know families all across the nation are hurting from COVID-19. Please support an automatic extension of immigrant status and work permits that would benefit DACA and TPS holders in the next COVID-19 relief package. The cornerstone of responsible immigration reform is compassion and a firm foundation of principles and values. Thank you.

Amplify your actions on Social Media

• Use the following hashtags:
  • #Faith4DACA
  • #Faith4TPS
  • #HomeIsHere
  • #HereToStay
  • #SaveTPS
  • #BeyondTemporary

• Share these social media posts along with these graphics:
  • Amidst vicious attacks from the Trump administration, the faith community must continue to stand in solidarity with #TPS holders, #DACA recipients, and their loved ones.

Take action today ➡️ http://bit.ly/afscdacatps #Faith4DACA #Faith4TPS

• • ACT NOW 🚨
    
    Starting early next year, 300,000 #TPS holders from El Salvador, Sudan, Nicaragua, and Haiti will be vulnerable to deportation.

Sign this petition urging Congress to provide TPS holders with permanent protection: http://bit.ly/tpspetition #Faith4TPS #BeyondTemporary

• • In July, @USCIS released a memo that undermines the #DACA program, sidesteps the SCOTUS decision on DACA, and continues the attack on undocumented young people.

Stand in solidarity with Dreamers by advocating for DACA today: http://bit.ly/afscdacatps #Faith4DACA #HomeisHere #HeretoStay

• • DACA recipients & TPS holders deserve permanent protection!

In light of Trump’s continued attacks on #DACA & #TPS, I join other people of faith in calling on Congress to provide permanent protection for DACA recipients & TPS holders. http://bit.ly/afscdacatps
#Faith4DACA #Faith4TPS

• • With #DACA and #TPS in limbo, Congress must take action.

Urge your reps to pass permanent solutions, like #HR6, The Dream and Promise Act, which will protect DACA recipients, TPS holders, and other immigrants: http://bit.ly/afscdacatps
#Faith4DACA #Faith4TPS #HomeisHere

• • Black DACA recipients and Black TPS holders live in the double jeopardy of racism and xenophobia.
    
    They deserve permanent protection and safety, which is why I demand that the Senate support #HR6 now! http://bit.ly/afscdacatps #HomeisHere #DreamAndPromiseAct #BlackLivesMatter 
  • There are more than 10,000 Black DACA recipients and over 50,000 Black TPS holders who deserve the permanent protection offered in #HR6: The Dream and Promise Act.
    
    Join us in urging the Senate to pass the Act and deliver justice: http://bit.ly/afscdacatps #Faith4DACA #Faith4TPS #BlackLivesMatter 

• • Over 200,000 DACA recipients and 131,100 TPS holders are essential workers serving on the frontlines of the pandemic.
    
    They deserve permanent protection, COVID-19 relief, and to be recognized as the invaluable members of our communities that they are. http://bit.ly/afscdacatps
    #Faith4DACA #Faith4TPS

• • The Dream and Promise Act would protect 2 million of our immigrant neighbors from deportation and provide them with the pathway to citizenship that they deserve.

☎️ Call Congress and demand they pass #HR6 now: 202-883-8577

#DreamAndPromiseNow #Faith4DACA #Faith4TPS

• • Our sacred texts remind us to welcome the sojourner and love our neighbors—including DACA recipients and TPS holders. The Dream and Promise Act translates these core values into action.
    
    Urge Congress to pass #HR6 now: http://bit.ly/afscdacatps #Faith4DACA  #Faith4TPS  
  • Inspired by my/our faith values and teachings, I/we urge all Senators to push for a vote on the Dream and Promise Act. This legislation must be passed before the Trump administration makes another attack on #DACA or #TPS.
    
    Join me/us in advocating for #HR6: http://bit.ly/afscdacatps

Tweet at your Elected Officials.

• Find your Senators and Representatives’ Twitter handles here.

• Social Media Follow Up to the #FaithDACA Petition to the Senate
  Thanks to you, we were able to collect and send over 4,500 signatures from all fifty states and the District of Columbia to Congress!
  
  Help us share this petition which calls for the Senate to invest in permanent and healing solutions for DACA-mented youth and their families by passing a clean Dream and Promise Act immediately, as expressed in the bi-partisan H.R. 6 and S. 874. The House-passed H.R. 6 would offer a pathway to citizenship to DACA recipients, undocumented youth, and TPS holders.
  
  Read the petition to the Senate today: “People of Faith Call on Senate to Act, Protect DACA and TPS Recipients.”

Dedicate a Prayer, Testimony, or Message in Your Faith Community 

• Share the stories of TPS holders, DACA recipients, or undocumented youth to move your faith community to action in support of DACA and TPS.
• Stand in solidarity with DACA recipients and TPS holders by praying with and for their families and other members of our communities who are facing the possibility of losing protection from deportation.
• Share and use these resources to uplift DACA: Prayer Resources, Stories of DACA Recipients, Quotes of DACA Recipients, and an Interfaith DACA Prayer Litany.
• Share and use these resources to uplift TPS: TPS stories, TPS Tool-Kit, Interfaith and TPS Talking Points.

Write An Op-Ed or Letter to the Editor for your Local Newspaper

• Writing for your local newspaper or your church newsletter is a great way to both educate your community members and demonstrate support for DACA recipients.
• See Draft Op-Ed for DACA. For tips, go to www.theopedproject.org  
• See Draft Letter to the Editor for DACA. Here are Tips on how to create an LTE.
• See Draft Op-ed and Letter to the Editor for TPS 
• Contact media@interfaithimmigration.org for assistance
  

Resources

How to Host a Virtual Interfaith Vigil
Hosting interfaith vigils—including virtual ones in this time of social distancing concerns—provides the opportunity for faith leaders to express how welcoming immigrants is part of all faith traditions, reflecting on the deep scriptural and spiritual roots of our work to support immigrants. Even small events, multiplied across the country, will send a powerful message to the Trump administration, Congress, and the Supreme Court that welcoming immigrants, like TPS holders and DACAmented youth are moral issues that are important to people of faith and conscience. 

Steps to a Successful Virtual Prayer Vigil: 

• Coordinate a virtual prayer vigil with faith leaders, immigrants’ rights groups, refugee resettlement agencies, immigrant leaders, community members, and if possible local elected leaders.  Use Zoom or other available platforms to gather.
• Collect the social media identities of your key partners; including Twitter handles, Facebook sites, Instagram–or wherever are the primary ways that your partners virtually communicate and can influence primary targets/audiences.
• Identify the core leaders and speakers, make sure there are impacted people, including undocumented individuals and faith and interfaith organizations who are invited to help plan and speak at your gathering.
• Consider inviting elected officials including Representatives, Senators, City Council Members, or the Mayor to join your virtual discussion.
• Be clear about your goals, what you want to accomplish, and how many people you hope will join the event.
• If you can meet with a small group in person, identify the best location for the vigil, which is generally somewhere central in a symbolic memorial, state capitol, park or city hall.  If you are meeting only virtually, share images of key locations where decision makers work, or of locations symbolically important for dreamers.
• If you are meeting virtually, practice with your technology ahead of time, meet ahead with presenters online, and be sure all participants have the needed links for connecting. If you are having an allowable event with social distancing, apply for any permits needed for the location; reserve or order any equipment you’ll need such as microphones, cameras, banners, candles, projectors; and make sure you can access electrical outlets.
• Choose a time of day best for attendance and media — most news reports take place at 5-6 PM and 9-10 PM, so a few hours before those time blocks is best for press events.
• Promote the event through social media, public service announcements, flyers, websites, and congregation bulletins.  Use creative imaging to catch attention!
• Agree on messaging and talking points.
• Encourage those who are dialing in to make signs that are consistent with your messaging and agreed upon ahead of time–and invite them to even “hold and show them” during your event to generate interest.  Develop signage to share on your screen as you talk.
• Assign specific talking points to each speaker and ensure they have time limits.
• Invite the media by issuing a media advisory and following up with a press release after the event.
• Invite participants at the virtual vigil to be part of further action and advocacy by taking actions such as writing and calling the White House and their Representatives and Senators, posting their commitment for DACA/TPS recipients, inviting DACA/TPS recipients to testify in their virtual services, and more.

The set-up for the vigil should ensure that all faiths are respected and welcomed with awareness and consciousness. If you are holding an interfaith virtual event, drawing on multiple faith traditions and rituals can make vigils much more powerful, raising the creative and dramatic tension. 

Ask clergy attending (even virtually) to wear collars, stoles, robes and any other appropriate religious attire.

As social distancing allows, you may consider:

• Procession with candles to symbolic location.  If your action is virtual, use images or a video to ask persons to “virtually process”.
• A Prayer Wall with handwritten prayers for immigrants. If you are virtual, ask for prayers to be shared via chat.
• Lift up stories in sacred texts.
• Highlight passages in scripture and send electronically to Members of Congress.
• Collect and deliver prayers electronically to your Senators and Representatives.
• Make visuals – photos, drawings, art, etc.that show the consequences of the loss of DACA/TPS protections. 

Sample Vigil Program:

• Welcome: A few words about the focus and purpose of your vigil. Why now? What’s the concern? Who’s affected? How can this vigil convince your members of Congress to support DACA/TPS? What values shape your faith traditions’ response to these concerns? This may take the form of brief comments from one of your speakers, or a welcome and an opening prayer. 
• Music: Invite local musicians who share similar values to join your vigil, you can have them do one or two songs throughout the program. Choose songs that are connected to the cause, or songs that everyone knows and can sing along.
• Opening Prayer: Ask clergy or key lay leader to open with a prayer song—A singer, choir or instrumentalist can perform, or a few singers can lead participants in singing.
• Speaker: A personal story from a local community member of how the outdated and unjust immigration system has impacted families. More than one story can be integrated throughout the program as well. Creative Ritual: Integrate creative symbols or rituals from faith traditions that draw more attention to the importance of immigration reform (see above suggestions).
• Prayer: One person may lead the prayers, or you might invite several faith leaders to pray according to their traditions. Involve vigil participants in praying a refrain throughout your prayer time, or pray in a circle so everyone has the opportunity to pray. Consider offering prayers in multiple languages. 
• Song & Closing: reiterate the focus and purpose of your vigil, and send participants off with a call to welcome newcomers and raise their voices in the public sphere to stop the deportations. Consider a procession or march to another symbolic and strategic location.

Media Resources
If you have planned a #Faith4DACA of #Faith4TPS event or vigil, we encourage you to reach out and invite members of the media. Look online at the local publications or outlets you would like in attendance and search for past articles on immigration or refugees, then consider pitching your event to reporters who frequently cover those issues or other community issues if there is not a designated immigration or refugee reporter.

Consider inviting the editorial director at your local newspaper. By inviting members of the press, you will be able to further share our message of welcoming to a larger audience and also inspire local media to cover immigration issues more frequently in a positive way that highlights broad community support for DACAmented youth and TPS recipients.

To invite multiple members of the press, send a media advisory at least two full business days ahead of the event. Ideally, send the media advisory one week before the event and then again the day before your event.

Please see the draft pitch email for media invitation, as well as the media advisory below.

Draft Pitch Email for Media Invitation and Follow Up from Advisory

Hello,

I hope you are well! I wanted to let you know of a potential story opportunity in regards to the continued debate over the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) and Temporary Protected Status (TPS) programs, in CITY/STATE and the ongoing response from communities to protect the programs and recipients. On DATE, ORGANIZATION will host an interfaith vigil. Community leaders including LIST will join DACAmented youth, TPS holders and other faith leaders to stand in solidarity with our immigrant neighbors in support of permanent protection.

We will highlight the real people whose lives depend on this program. 

I have attached the invitation flyer to this email with a full list of participants, but please let me know if you can attend and if you have any questions!

Sincerely,

NAME

DATE

For Immediate Release

Contact:

NAME, PHONE NUMBER

***MEDIA ADVISORY***

Date of Event, Time, Location

Local (Faith Group) Hosts (Vigil/Rally) in Support of DACA and TPS Recipients

Your City Name, State Abbreviation – As the (City/Town Name) community seeks to demonstrate interfaith support for the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) and Temporary Protected Status (TPS) programs and their recipients. Leaders from (Organization/Congregation) will host (event type) to show support for the DACA, TPS, and immigrants. They will be joined by XX (list other special guests, especially clergy or elected officials). Participants will discuss how DACA and TPS holders positively impact the community. All participants will be available for interviews before and after the event.

WHAT: Event type with faith and community leaders to welcome immigrants

WHERE: Address of event

WHEN: Date and time of the event

SPEAKERS: List of all speakers and their titles

DETAILS: Add event details such as security (if applicable), special visuals (religious symbols, art pieces, etc.), or any other important event information.

Credit

Interfaith Immigration Coalition
This toolkit was created by the Interfaith Immigration Coalition (IIC), a partnership of faith-based organizations committed to enacting fair and humane immigration reform that reflects our mandate to welcome the stranger and treat all human beings with dignity and respect. Coalition members work together to advocate for just and equitable immigration policies, educate faith communities, and serve immigrant populations around the country.