By: Sandy Strauss

The alien who resides with you shall be to you as the citizen among you; you shall love the alien as yourself, for you were aliens in the land of Egypt.—Leviticus 19:34

In a 5-4 ruling on Thursday, June 18, the U.S. Supreme Court handed down a decision that the Trump Administration violated the Administrative Procedures Act when it terminated the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. The majority opinion, penned by Chief Justice Roberts, means that the program remains in effect, affecting nearly 700,000 DACA recipients. It also protects thousands of families threatened by being torn apart by detention and deportation of DACA recipients who are parents and spouses.

Because we envision a society where we welcome the stranger with love and compassion rather than suspicion, and where all are able to live openly as contributing members of society, the Pennsylvania Council of Churches applauds this decision. We urge Congress to move quickly to pass the Dream and Promise Act of 2019, which would provide a permanent solution to protect DREAMers, as well as other long overdue immigration reforms.