Senator Cortez Masto and NV Dreamers Call on Congress to Pass the Dream Act Without Delay

NEVADA –Senator Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV), Nevada Dreamers, and local leaders today held a press conference call to demand that Congress immediately pass the DREAM Act. President Trump’s decision to end the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program was a grave injustice against nearly 800,000 young immigrants who were brought to this country as children and have grown up in the United States. After the president’s cruel action, it’s now up to Congress to fix this manufactured crisis without any amendments that could harm the young individuals who make our country stronger every day.

Cortez Masto was joined by Astrid Silva from Dream Big Vegas; Stella Kalaoram, a guest room attendant and member of the Cosmopolitan and Culinary Union; Brenda Romero, a DACA recipient; and Karl Catarata, a Civic Engagement Fellow for the Asian Community Development Council (ACDC) of Nevada.

Today’s call also comes on the heels of a letter that 186 civil and human rights groups sent to Congress earlier this month.

A recording of today’s call is available here.

Senator Catherine Cortez Masto, D. Nev: “For Dreamers in my state, Home Means Nevada. Congress must act now to pass the DREAM Act and guarantee that our young people continue contributing to Nevada’s economy and communities. Dreamers are our friends, neighbors, coworkers, teachers, and soldiers. I want Dreamers to know something. I will fight for you. You belong here. You are American. Congress must pass the DREAM Act now.”

Astrid Silva, co-founder, DREAM Big Vegas: “Senators and members of Congress need to take a close look at the consequences of not passing a clean DREAM ACT. We help this state to be stronger. We contribute to our economy, we create jobs, we pay taxes. We are making our country stronger. Now is the time to open our doors to each other, ensure everyone has the correct information, to organize our communities and to call out our political leaders to take a stand.”

Stella Kalaoram, guest room attendant at the Cosmopolitan and Culinary Union member: “Culinary Union members stand with Dreamers and workers who have TPS – we will not leave them behind. We fight for them every day. While our communities may be constantly under attack by this current administration, we will not live in fear and we will fight back. We may have a temporary president, but the 57,000 workers we represent, the immigrants in our community, and those resisting every day in the streets, are here to stay.”

Brenda Romero, DACA recipient: “Today I ask the representatives of the beautiful state that I get to call my home to please support The DREAM Act. I believe that our Undocumented population deserves an opportunity to achieve our dreams not because of our academic accomplishments or economic contributions, but because we are human beings deserving of better future. I know that like myself, the 800,000 Dreamers in this country want the opportunity to fully belong to the one place we call home. I ask Senator Heller and Congressman Amodei to stand with Dreamers in supporting this bill.”

Karl Catarata, Civic Engagement Fellow, Asian Community Development Council (ACDC) of Nevada: “Across this country, hundreds upon hundreds of Asian American Pacific Islanders identify as DACA recipients/Dreamers. Their future and their careers depend on what we do to help protect and support them. The Asian Community Development Council of Nevada, focuses on the empowerment of AAPI’s across all of Nevada – this includes AAPI’s that identify as DACA/Dreamers. We are dedicated to building our community, and our fellow AAPI’s during this time of action.”

The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights is a coalition charged by its diverse membership of approximately 200 national organizations to promote and protect the rights of all persons in the United States. The Leadership Conference works to build an America as good as its ideals. For more information on The Leadership Conference and its 200-plus member organizations, visit www.civilrights.org.

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