Report Shows that More than 12,000 Elizabeth, NJ Families would be Impacted by Congressional Action on Dream and Promise Act

Elizabeth, NJ (April 23, 2019): Last week, the Center for American Progress (CAP), a national think tank, released a report  that found Elizabeth, NJ is one of the top 25 cities in the country with the greatest number of individuals eligible for relief under the Dream and Promise Act of 2019. The Dream and Promise Act (introduced March 12, 2019) would protect and provide a path to legal status to approximately 2.3 million immigrant youth who arrived as children, and more than 400,000 people living with Temporary Protected Status (TPS) and Deferred Enforced Departures (DED). Theses undocumented immigrant youth who came to this country as children and those with TPS and DED living and working in the United States are integral parts of our communities.

In the City of Elizabeth, approximately 5,400 individuals would benefit if the Dream and Promise Act of 2019 is enacted and more than 12,000 families would be impacted.Los Angeles, CA had the largest population. The CAP also report found that the average age of arrival of Dreamers living the City of Elizabeth is 9 years old and the average year of arrival of TPS and DED recipients in the city was 1997.

These individuals — as well as their families and communities — have had their lives thrown into limbo due to the cruel and reckless actions of the Trump administration, which ended key protections, including DACA and TPS. Both programs have been kept open after federal court litigation, but no new applicants may apply, leaving tens of thousands of young people in New Jersey vulnerable to deportation. The Dream and Promise Act recognizes the urgent need to provide permanent protections without using immigrants as bargaining chips to win a host of anti immigrant provisions.

“I have uncles and aunt that all live within blocks of me and are TPS holders. I can’t imagine a world where they are not safe, where they are not living with me, where they are not two blocks away from my mother and my younger siblings and I. That’s why I’m fighting for the Dream and Promise Act, so that my whole family can stay together,” said Erika Martinez, Dreamer and youth leader at Make the Road New Jersey.

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