Why and How PR Can Help the Dreamers’ Cause

They call them the Dreamers and their dreams may be about to end. They are undocumented immigrants brought to the United States as children and granted temporary reprieve from the threat of deportation.

Mass deportation of Dreamers would be a travesty. It would be morally repugnant. A well-organized PR and lobbying campaign can prevent it from happening. The term Dreamers comes from the proposed Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors Act that offered young immigrants legal status if they attended college or served in the military. The bill never passed, but the name stuck.

Unable to get the DREAM Act passed, the Obama Administration implemented the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals that deferred deportation of children who meet certain criteria, including background checks. Those who qualify, the Dreamers, can defer deportation for two years, and then can reapply. They receive a quasi-legal status, not a path to citizenship or legal permanent residency. They can attend college and work legally as well as pay income taxes.

Ending dreams

The Trump Administration plans to end the program. While it will respect work permits already issued, meaning current DACA participants are safe from deportation at least for now, it will soon stop accepting new applications.

Congress has six months to act before protected individuals lose their ability to work, study and live without fear of deportation. Without renewal or replacement of DACA, roughly 800,000 will be at risk of deportation when their two-year permits expire.

Congress may be in a bind. It was unwilling, or unable, to grant a path to citizenship in the past. That task may not be any easier. However, the young people participating in the program are viewed more sympathetically than other immigrants. Not surprisingly, ending their legal status is highly controversial.

Deporting the Dreamer’s is inhumane. They were brought to this country as children, sometimes as infants. They may know no other country other than the U.S. They may speak no other language other than English, as Former President Barack Obama pointed out in a Facebook post.

Having lived in this country since childhood, the Dreamers are Americans in every way except on paper. They’ve gone to school. They’ve pledged allegiance to the flag. They’ve enrolled in school. Some have joined the military.

“To target these young people is wrong — because they have done nothing wrong,” Obama wrote. “By definition, if they are part of this program, they are solid, wonderful young people of good character.”

“What if our kid’s science teacher or our friendly neighbor turns out to be a Dreamer? Where are we supposed to send her? To a country she doesn’t know or remember, with a language she may not even speak?”

Ending DACA is also bad for the economy. Dreamers include engineers, teachers, health care providers and other professionals. They pay income taxes, start businesses, work in the military, and otherwise help their communities and the country.

The arguments for deportation of dreamers for the most part rest on a mean-spirted interpretation of the law: They came here illegally; they are illegal; they take jobs of American citizens; they don’t belong; deport them. That line of argument certainly doesn’t reflect traditional American values and lacks compassion for which our country is noted. In addition, the argument that they “take jobs of American citizens” is just plain wrong.

In announcing the administration’s policy, Attorney General Jeff Sessions made some inaccurate accusations about the Dreamers. He said DACA caused a surge of minors across the border. Wrong: Child immigration rates today are consistent with those in 2011 before DACA. Sessions contended Dreamers drain Social Security. Absolutely untrue: They do not receive Social Security benefits; those who are adult workers contribute to Social Security. He said most Dreamers are adult illegal aliens. The truth is that they are given Dreamer status when they are kids. The Dreamers have done nothing wrong. They don’t deserve to be deported.

How PR pros can respond

Political animals that they are, members of Congress will respond to an outpouring of opinion in favor of not deporting Dreamers. It’s time for a massive PR effort to support the Dreamers and press Congress to action. With their writing, storytelling and content marketing skills, PR pros are best qualified to sway public opinion and pressure Congress.

Corporate and not-for-profit PR departments can publish and distribute stories about Dreamers who work at their organizations. PR pros can leverage the power of social media to publicize the stories on social media.

They can create lists of Dreamers. If people find they personally know a DACA recipient, supporting their deportation will be much more difficult. Relaying their life stories may be the best way to gain sympathy.

PR can work with influential organizations and individuals to develop and promote content that urges Congress to act.

Corporate and nonprofit CEOs can write opinion pieces that support Dreamers and cite Dreamers on their staffs. PR pros can assist Dreamers in writing to members of Congress and can circulate their open letters widely. Churches and other organizations can organize events to support the Dreamers. Religious leaders can advocate for the Dreamers and make the moral arguments against deportation.

In addition, organizations can help influencers publish pieces with suggestions on legislation that helps Republicans out of their bind. Members of Congress who support the Dreamers can work with opponents to find a mutually agreeable solution and sway their votes.

Celebrities can publicize the stories of Dreamers. Sports teams can celebrate Dreamers during breaks in the event. Musicians can create songs about Dreamers. Economists can write analyses of the economic value of Dreamers. Most everyone can provide financial support to organizations that support the Dreamers.

All men and women of good faith who believe Dreamers should stay should take some action to protect the Dreamers — and should continue to contribute to the Dreamers cause until the battle is won and the country grants Dreamers the freedom from fear of being deported and the right to live and work in the U.S. Public relations professionals have the communications skills to lead the effort.

Public relations professionals are in a unique position to point out the cruelty of terminating DACA and deporting young people who entered the United States as children and have lived most of their lives here. The storytelling skills of PR pros can humanize the struggles of Dreamers and highlight the moral imperative of renewing or improving the act.

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William J. Comcowich founded and served as CEO of CyberAlert LLC, the predecessor of Glean.info. He is currently serving as Interim CEO and member of the Board of Directors. Glean.info provides customized media monitoring, measurement and analytics solutions across all types of traditional and social media. The original article was published on the Glean.info blog.