Washington: A group of influential US lawmakers on Friday urged the Biden administration to take all necessary steps to prevent the deportation of 'documented dreamers'. They are estimated to number around 200,000, a significant majority of whom are kids of H-1B visa holding Indian professionals who are on the Green Card waiting list, which as of now is expected to last for several decades.
Congresswoman Deborah Ross and Indian American Congressman Dr Ami Bera led the group of 36 of their Congressional colleagues in the House of Representatives in sending a letter to Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas in this regard.
The letter urges the DHS to strengthen protection for children and young adults who have grown up in the United States as dependents of long-term work visa holders -- a group known as the documented dreamers. Specifically, the letter recommends updating DACA criteria to include documented dreamers and adjusting the way that United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) determines an individual's age when he or she files for adjustment of status in order to protect more documented dreamers from ageing out of the system.
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The letter comes a week after a group of Indian youngsters from across the US, facing imminent prospects of deportation, lobbied with lawmakers at Capitol Hill and met senior Biden administration officials at the White House appealing to them to "let us stay in the US". Our nation benefits immensely from immigrants who come to work in fast-growing fields in technology, medicine, engineering, and so many others, said Congresswoman Ross. The children of these workers, known as documented dreamers, grow up in the United States and are American in every way except on paper, she said.
We must ensure that these talented young people and their families are treated with dignity and respect, she asserted. As communities across the US, Sacramento County is home to H-1B and other long-term visa holders who are neighbours, friends, educators, scientists, engineers, and doctors, and who contribute immensely to the country, said Congressman Bera.