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Earlier this week, President Trump rescinded a popular Obama-era executive order that protects young undocumented immigrants from deportation. Known as the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), the program enjoyed broad support since its establishment five years ago. It allowed certain young immigrants who came to the U.S. illegally as children, through no fault of their own, to remain in the country and work legally without fear of immediate removal. Trump’s controversial decision to end the scheme now thrusts more than 800,000 DACA recipients, referred to as Dreamers, into uncertainty as they face possible deportation.
Significant coverage has understandably focused on the impact of Trump’s decision on those communities with the highest number of Dreamers, primarily those from Mexico and Latin America.
But terminating DACA also has far-reaching and serious ramifications for Indian and other Asian communities living in the United States. According to the South Asian civil rights and advocacy group SAALT, over 7,000 Indians have already received relief under DACA. An additional estimated 17,000 individuals from India are eligible for DACA, placing India in the top ten countries for DACA eligibility. Now, with the program’s demise on the horizon, these Indian Dreamers could be deported.
Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-IL), one of only four Indian American members of Congress, and one of the leading voices on behalf of South Asian Americans across the country, condemned Trump's DACA decision. "It is unconscionable that nearly 800,000 young people, including thousands of Indians and other South Asians, are now facing the prospect of deportation from the only country they’ve ever known and lived in." He went on to note, "These Dreamers have thrived here in the United States, and have become productive, hard-working members of their communities. DACA has proven to be a success over the past five years. Ending it now defies not only basic decency, but logic and economic prudence as well."
Beyond just Indian immigrants, Trump’s decision to rescind DACA has far-reaching implications for other Asian communities residing in the U.S. as well. Statistics compiled by the federal government reveals that four of the top 24 countries of origin for DACA recipients are located in Asia. In addition to India, they are Pakistan, South Korea and the Philippines.
In fact, according to one study by the Center for Migration Studies (CMS) and the Migration Policy Institute (MPI), there are roughly between 1.46 million and 1.65 million undocumented Asian immigrants living in the U.S. They account for approximately 14% of the total undocumented population in the country. Put differently, roughly 1 out of every 7 Asian immigrants is undocumented.
They are concentrated in California (417,273), New York (159,746), Texas (131,444), New Jersey (97,842), Illinois (61,653) Virginia (59,365), Florida (52,478) and Washington (47,502). Of these more than 1.4 million undocumented Asian immigrants, more than 130,000 are DACA-eligible.
The largest number of undocumented Asian immigrants hails from India, with estimates ranging between 390,000 and 500,000 Indians residing in the country without proper status.
According to a recent Pew Research Center report, Indians are now the fastest growing undocumented immigrant population in the U.S. Last year, the Department of Homeland Security attributed this to the growing number of Indian immigrants overstaying their visas and impermissibly staying in the country. In 2015 alone, more than 14,000 Indians overstayed their tourists or business visas.
That such a high percentage of Indian Americans living in the U.S. is undocumented comes as a surprise to many. Indian Americans are, by far, the most affluent and educated immigrant community in the United States. They have achieved unprecedented success in a host of different arenas, including medicine, engineering, science, IT, law and recently, even public service. The scope of their contributions and their role in strengthening the fabric of American society is increasingly well-known and well-recognized.
But the magnitude of this community achievement has obscured the reality that there are hundreds of thousands of Indians living in the U.S. who have not experienced the same level of success. This has resulted in a degree of ignorance both inside and outside the Indian American community about not just the formidable challenges these undocumented Indians confront because of their lack of legal status, but about their very existence at all. A common sentiment among certain segments of Indian Americans is that the need for immigration reform is an issue that should not and does not concern them given how well the community has historically done in the U.S. The “model minority” myth has only further compounded this problem.
Perhaps one of the unintended consequences of Trump’s decision to end DACA will be finally highlighting the plight of Indian and Asian Dreamers, as well as other undocumented immigrants residing in the U.S. Their fate now rests with Congress, which has six months to enact a legislative fix and protect more than 800,000 young immigrants from removal.
Representative Krishnamoorthi asserted, "Congress must act quickly and decisively to enact a compassionate, commonsense and just bipartisan solution. These Dreamers deserve to stay. It's the right thing to do."
Congressman Mark Takano (D-CA), one of the most prominent Asian American members of the U.S. House of Representatives, further noted, "Turning our back on these Dreamers would send a chilling message to all Asian immigrants, and it would reinforce the growing fear that the governing party lacks basic respect for America’s many minorities communities.”
