By Donald Gilpin

The Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program remains alive after last week’s ruling by a federal judge that deportation protections for nearly 700,000 undocumented immigrants, DREAMers brought to this country as children, must stay in place and the government must resume accepting new applications and issuing renewals.

The April 24 ruling by U.S. District Judge for the District of Columbia John D. Bates declared that the federal government’s decision to rescind the DACA program was “unlawful” and based on “virtually unexplained” grounds, but gave the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), which administers the program, 90 days to provide a valid rationale for ending the program or win an appeal of the court’s ruling.

The ruling in response to a lawsuit brought by Princeton University, one of its undergraduate students, and Microsoft Corporation combined the case with a similar lawsuit filed against the government by the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and other organizations.

“We are delighted that the court agreed with us that the government’s termination of the DACA program ‘was unlawful and must be set aside,’” said Princeton University President Christopher L. Eisgruber. “As the court noted, ‘neither the meager legal reasoning nor the assessment of litigation risk provided by [the Department of Homeland Security]’ is enough to support the government’s decision to end the program.”

Princeton University senior Maria De La Cruz Perales Sanchez, and Microsoft filed suit November 3, 2017, alleging that the termination of DACA violated both the United States Constitution and federal law.

“DREAMers grew up in this country, attended our schools, pay taxes, and contribute to our communities,” said Microsoft President Brad Smith. “We hope this decision will help provide new incentive for the legislative solution the country and these individuals so clearly deserve. As the business community has come to appreciate, a lasting solution for the country’s DREAMers is both an economic imperative and a humanitarian necessity.”

Noting that the issue of the DACA program and the fate of undocumented immigrants remains in limbo, Eisgruber added, “While the decision does not fully resolve the uncertainty facing DACA beneficiaries, it unequivocally rejects the rationale the government has offered for ending the program and makes clear that the DHS acted arbitrarily and capriciously.”

Perales Sanchez, a beneficiary of the DACA program, expressed a combination of relief, frustration, and determination to continue the push for a permanent solution. “Today’s decision left me with a variety of emotions,” she said. “The better opinion would have been to immediately restore all the original DACA, as the current decision prolongs the uncertainty that has terrorized undocumented youth once again. At the same time, I’m faithful that DACA’s constitutionality will be upheld.”

Adriana Abizadeh, executive director of the Trenton-based Latin American Legal Defense and Education Fund (LALDEF), expressed her optimism that the ruling will help to provide valuable support locally. “Judge Bates has reopened the door to employment authorization for many youth that are yearning to be productive members of our society,” she said. “Youth that know no other country than the United States of America, that pledge allegiance to our flag, and that are excited for the opportunity to further their education.”

She continued, “New Jersey will become the ninth state to provide statewide tuition assistance to undocumented students. The bill is expected to be signed by Governor Murphy before the end of May and goes into effect this fall, directly impacting the high school graduating class of 2018.”

Reflecting on the ongoing clash since the Trump administration’s announcement last September that DACA would be terminated, Abizadeh echoed the words of Perales Sanchez and others who are hoping for a speedy resolution to the national clash over immigration laws. “The federal government attempted to rescind DACA last year, and they were met with protest,” she said. “This nation has risen up and unified thousands of voices in support of DACA. As we already know, DACA was created as a short-term solution to a permanent problem. President Obama acted in the best interest of these youth and passed DACA through executive order in 2012, because even then our congressional representatives couldn’t work together to pass a bill that would provide opportunities for citizenship for these youth.

“Fast forward more than five years and Congress has remained consistent in their inaction. Despite pressure and clear support for the bill, they still weren’t able to successfully bring a bill to the floor for a vote that would provide a permanent solution for DACA recipients and those who would be eligible in the future.”