The following statement is attributable to Hector Figueroa, President of 32BJ SEIU

“President Trump’s decision to deport nearly one million Dreamers is a disgusting act of cowardice and cruelty. Repealing DACA is a low in a Presidency marked by discrimination and the removal of rights for people of color.

Deporting nearly one million young people will not create a single job or make America better for anyone. It will harm our economy and further erode the values holding our nation together.

It will compound the problems of an already broken immigration system and will needlessly put at risk of deportation people who love this country and are committed to its future.

“President Trump’s decision today, after promising that Dreamers could ‘rest easy,’ is yet one more reminder that he is not a man of his word.

“Dreamers who have worked hard, gone to school, served in the military and have shown bravery in speaking out for their rights, in stark contrast to the cowardly way President Trump announced this decision.

The President should be embarrassed that he does not have the courage to look these young people in the eye and tell them that he is tearing them away from the only country they’ve ever known.

The President betrayed the Dreamers just as he’s betrayed his supporters by falsely convincing them that their own problems would be solved by destroying the lives of immigrants.

‘We demand that Congress passes a permanent and clean legislative fix that isn’t used as bait to win anti-immigrant measures.

We will also continue to call on our elected officials at all levels of government to build sanctuary spaces and deportation defense networks to keep millions out of Trump’s deportation machine.

“Finally, this act of outright cruelty from the Federal Government offers further proof that Westchester needs the Immigrant Protection Act. We call on the Board of Legislators to override County Excutive Astorino’s veto with all due haste.”