Editor’s Note: On Thursday afternoon, Latino Rebels received the following media release from the Seed Project.
WASHINGTON, DC – Six activists, including five undocumented youth, were arrested Thursday afternoon in a peaceful protest outside the U.S. Capitol and the Supreme Court demanding a Clean Dream Act. The protestors were all participants in the 250-mile Walk to Stay Home from New York City to Washington, D.C. to demand permanent protection for undocumented youth. The 15-day march, which crossed six states and inspired solidarity rallies in across the East Coast, concluded with today’s demonstration.
The Walk to Stay Home marks six months since the Trump administration’s decision to end Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) in September, putting hundreds of thousands of undocumented youth at risk of losing their work permits and protection from deportation. Despite repeated public commitments to protect Dreamers, Congress has failed to pass any legislation granting protection to undocumented youth.
“I walked 250 miles to the Capitol and passed through many communities that opened their homes to us. And yet now that we are here, Congress has closed their door,” said Aldo Solano, a DACA recipient from Oregon and one of the arrested protesters. “The undocumented community cannot wait for Congress to catch up to our lives!”
“Trump’s March 5< deadline for a DACA solution is days away and all Congress has given us is broken promises. I’m tired of being seen as a political bargaining chip,” said Maria Duarte, a DACA recipient who completed the 250-mile march and was arrested in Thursday’sdemonstration. “By participating in this walk, I’m showing Congress and the entire country that I’m taking my fate into my own hands. I know my community deserves the right to stay home. I will keep on fighting for permanent protection—not just for DACA recipients like me but for my parents, those who walked along side me, and all undocumented immigrants.”