Advocacy Statements

“Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves, for the rights of all who are destitute. Speak up and judge fairly; defend the rights of the poor and needy.” — Proverbs 31:8-9

Statement on Dreamers

Nearly 2 Million “Dreamers'' currently reside in the United States without permanent legal status.   Dreamers are young people who came to the U.S. as children without legal documentation.  Many, having grown up in the United States, remember no home other than the U.S., and now have little or no remaining connection to their homeland.  Unfortunately, under our current immigration law, Dreamers have no pathway to become legal permanent residents or citizens of the United States.  The Obama era program, Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), offers temporary relief from deportation and a temporary work permit to approximately 600,000 Dreamers who were eligible before July 16, 2021.  However, DACA is a partial, tenuous, and temporary solution.  Since it was enacted by Executive Order, it has been challenged in the courts, is subject to change, and may be rescinded by a future administration.  In 2021, a court ruled that DACA was unconstitutional and therefore has not allowed any new applicants to receive DACA status since that date.  Too many Dreamers are left out of DACA currently and the future of DACA and those who have benefited from it is uncertain. 

Therefore, Mission Adelante supports legislation that would provide a pathway to citizenship for Dreamers.

In 2018, Mission Adelante adopted the ERLC’s position on Dreamers.

Statement on Comprehensive Immigration Reform

Mission Adelante endorses the Evangelical Statement of Principles for Immigration Reform set forth by the Evangelical Immigration Table.

Our national immigration laws have created a moral, economic and political crisis in America. Initiatives to remedy this crisis have led to polarization and name calling in which opponents have misrepresented each other’s positions as open borders and amnesty versus deportations of millions. This false choice has led to an unacceptable political stalemate at the federal level at a tragic human cost.

As evangelical Christian leaders, we call for a bipartisan solution on immigration that:

  • Respects the God-given dignity of every person

  • Protects the unity of the immediate family

  • Respects the rule of law

  • Guarantees secure national borders

  • Ensures fairness to taxpayers

  • Establishes a path toward legal status and/or citizenship for those who qualify and who wish to become permanent residents

We urge our nation’s leaders to work together with the American people to pass immigration reform that embodies these key principles and that will make our nation proud.