Norton Discusses Issues Facing D.C. Immigrants with Her Congressional Latino Council

WASHINGTON, D.C.—Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) yesterday met with her Congressional Latino Council on the economic, legal and humanitarian issues facing District of Columbia DREAMers and the large number of Temporary Protected Status (TPS) holders in the District. Norton's Congressional Latino Council comprises prominent D.C. Latino organizations that work directly with communities affected by the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program and TPS. The following organizations attended yesterday's meeting: CARECEN, La Clinica del Pueblo, Mary's Center, Latin American Youth Center, Carlos Rosario Public Charter School, and Latino Economic Development Center.

Norton reported on the official number of D.C. residents who are DACA and TPS recipients—D.C. has nearly 800 DREAMers and 3,470 TPS holders, primarily from El Salvador (3,128) and Honduras (231). The Council reported that if DACA ends, D.C.'s economy would lose nearly $50 million annually, and the U.S. economy would lose over $460 billion in GDP over the next decade. In the D.C. area, 20 percent of the construction and hospitality workforce is comprised of TPS recipients.

Norton and the Council discussed the need to pass the DREAM Act (H.R. 3440), which Norton has cosponsored, without any poison pills, such as funding for any border wall or an increase in Immigration and Custom Enforcement (ICE) or U.S. Border Patrol agents. Norton is a cosponsor of over a dozen other key immigration bills in Congress. The Council also recommended increased funding for legal defense for undocumented immigrants, who may not know their rights upon arrival, as well as increased local pro bono services. Such legal services could advise undocumented residents on filing asylum claims, as the conditions on the ground in El Salvador and Honduras have not improved since Congress extended TPS for both nations in 2016.

The Council reported that the constant stream of threats regarding DACA and TPS has put enormous trauma on our immigrant residents, particularly children, many of whom live in mixed-status families where some members are American citizens and others are undocumented. In addition, the Council reported a shortage of teachers and staff at D.C. schools who can communicate in both English and Spanish to help immigrant children when they first arrive. However, D.C. is providing wrap-around services to help the children integrate into D.C. schools.

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