PRESS RELEASE

AAPCHO Condemns Hanen Ruling Declaring DACA is Illegal

September 14, 2023
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
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WASHINGTON—The Association of Asian Pacific Community Health Organizations (AAPCHO)  today released the following statement in response to a decision by Judge Andrew Hanen of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas that deemed the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program unlawful. Under the program, young immigrants or “Dreamers” have been protected from deportation and granted work authorization. The decision again puts the program and hundreds of thousands of Dreamers at risk. 

Jeffrey B. Caballero, AAPCHO’s executive director, said: 

“While this ruling was expected, AAPCHO is deeply concerned by Judge Hanen’s decision on DACA, which will cause confusion for many families, including our Asian American and Pacific Islanders communities. While the decision continues to allow current DACA recipients to renew their DACA status and maintain their protections, new applicants are barred from applying. It is now even more imperative for Congress to act and provide a pathway to citizenship for DACA recipients and all aspiring new Americans so they can have the legal certainty they deserve. AAPCHO with our Members and partners are committed to working toward this goal.”

About AAPCHO 

AAPCHO is a national association of community health organizations dedicated to promoting advocacy, collaboration and leadership that improves the health status and access of Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders in the United States. For more information on AAPCHO, please visit www.aapcho.org.

Contact 

Kristine Cecile Alarcon, MPH, (510) 671-5054, kalarcon@aapcho.org 

Media Relations

Beverly Quintana
(510) 272-9536
bquintana@aapcho.org

Anna Orcutt-Jahns
(608) 395-1800
aorcutt-jahns@aapcho.org

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