Why Undocumented Immigrants Are Sharing Their Accomplishments After Trump's Win

The #WithDACA hashtag shows the positive contributions they've made to the U.S.

Undocumented immigrants didn’t have a vote or a voice at the ballot box on Election Day, so many have turned to social media to speak out.

Immigrants right leader Gaby Pacheco, who became the first undocumented Latina to testify in front of Congress about immigration reform in 2013, understood the pressing need to take action against President-elect Donald Trump’s promise to get rid of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) policy, which temporarily shields young undocumented immigrants who were brought illegally into the U.S. from deportation.

“As we start the count down to Trump becoming the president, we need to figure out ways to deter him from his campaign promise to overturn the #DACA program,” Pacheco wrote in a Facebook post on Thursday. “We’ve started a grassroots campaign where we are asking all #DACAmented people to share their accomplishments after DACA on social media, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram. Please use the hashtag #WithDACA and then share what you’ve done after you received your DACA.”

Over 728,000 immigrants have become “DACAmented” since the policy was announced in 2012. DACA allows undocumented immigrants to work, but doesn’t offer a path to citizenship. Pleas to continue the DACA program are particularly important in light of Trump’s recent comments on mass deportation.

During his first post-election interview, which aired Sunday night, the President-elect said he plans to deport or imprison anywhere from 2 million to 3 million undocumented immigrants as soon as he takes office. Trump said his focus will be on immigrants with criminal records, though it is unclear whether undocumented immigrants with minor crimes are a part of his tally.

Take a look at what many undocumented immigrants shared using the #WithDACA hashtag below:

Before You Go

April 2015

How Donald Trump Talks About Undocumented Immigrants

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