Response to July 28 DACA Actions

A message from President Suzanne Rivera

Dear Macalester Community,

I am writing to inform you about federal government actions taken today to dismantle the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. We are outraged by these actions and we worry about the impact they will have on Macalester’s undocumented students.

In a Department of Homeland Security (DHS) memorandum, a corresponding letter from Attorney General William Barr, and a DHS press release, the administration has made clear its intent to drastically limit DACA. Specifically, DHS will reject all new DACA applications, grant extensions for only one year (rather than two), and reject all new and continuing advance parole applications absent “exceptional circumstances.”

These actions are in conflict with the June ruling by the Supreme Court, which found that previous efforts to end the DACA program were unconstitutional. Further, we believe these actions are cruel and unnecessary.

Macalester will partner with the Presidents’ Alliance on Higher Education and Immigration to advocate for the rights of DACA students, and we will join with other colleges and universities across the country to fight against any such policies that needlessly place our students at risk.

To our DACA students: we stand in solidarity with you. We will not waiver in our commitment to support you, and protect your ability to live and study at Macalester. If you have specific questions or need assistance right away, please contact Marjorie Trueblood or Aisha Gonzalez. Otherwise, you can expect to hear directly from one of them shortly.

I will provide updates as we learn more about these disturbing developments.

July 28, 2020