Statement

This statement was originally published by GCIR, Grantmakers Concerned with Immigrants and Refugees.

The Trump Administration announced the termination of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), thereby rescinding work authorization and protection from deportation for nearly 800,000 undocumented young people. This action will have a devastating impact on almost 223,000 DACAmented Californians.

As philanthropic institutions committed to building a prosperous, vibrant, and inclusive California, we denounce the termination of DACA as antithetical to fundamental American values, and detrimental to the well-being of all communities. DACA beneficiaries have secured better jobs, purchased cars and homes, launched new businesses, supported their families, and invigorated their communities. They have become an integral part of our social, economic, and civic fabric.

By repealing DACA, the Trump administration deprives DACAmented immigrants of the opportunity to strive for the American Dream, contribute to our collective vitality, and live a life without fear of being deported from the only home many of them have ever known. The administration’s decision pushes these young people out of the workforce, disrupts businesses, erodes our tax base, and undercuts our economic growth. Consequently, over the next decade, our nation stands to lose $460.3 billion in gross domestic product and $24.6 billion in Medicare and Social Security contributions.

DACA’s repeal will have a reverberating impact on all facets of life in communities across California, and philanthropy must mount a vigorous response. We urge our grantmaking colleagues to join us in speaking out, taking action, and increasing grantmaking at this critical moment. Ending the DACA program threatens the health and mental well-being of our neighborhoods, our families and our very humanity. We urge you to stand with immigrant communities and reaffirm your belief in fairness, justice, and the American Dream.

Signatories

• California Bar Foundation Sonia Gonzales, Executive Director
• California Community Foundation Antonia Hernández, President & CEO
• The California Endowment Dr. Robert K. Ross, President & CEO
• The California Wellness Foundation Judy Belk, President & CEO
• East Bay Community Foundation James W. Head, President & CEO
• Evelyn and Walter Haas Jr. Fund Jennie Lehua Watson, Interim President
• The James Irvine Foundation Don Howard, President & CEO
• The Grove Foundation Leslie Dorosin, Executive Director
• Heising-Simons Foundation Deanna Gomby, President & CEO
• Leichtag Foundation James S. Farley, Esquire, President & CEO
• Rosenberg Foundation Tim Silard, President
• Silicon Valley Community Foundation Emmett D. Carson, Ph.D., President & CEO
• The San Francisco Foundation Fred Blackwell, CEO
• van Löben Sels/RembeRock Foundation Nancy Wiltsek, Executive Director
• The Wallace Alexander Gerbode Foundation Stacie Ma’a, President
• The Walter & Elise Haas Fund Pamela H David, Executive Director
• Weingart Foundation Fred Ali, President & CEO
• Westly Foundation Catherine Crystal Foster, Executive Director
• The Zellerbach Family Foundation Allison Magee, Executive Director
• Y & H Soda Foundation Bob Uyeki, CEO

Join

For more information or to sign the statement, contact Caleb Beaudoin. If joining, please provide the name of your foundation and the name and title of your signer (i.e., the CEO, the board chair, or both). A special thanks to GCIR members and funders for their support in making this statement possible.