NO. 18-587, 18-588, 18-589

In the
Supreme Court of the United States
DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY, ET. AL.,
Petitioners,
–v–
REGENTS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, ET AL.,
Respondents.
DONALD J. TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES, ET AL.,
Petitioners,
–v–
NATIONAL ASSOCIATION FOR THE ADVANCEMENT
OF COLORED PEOPLE, ET AL., Respondents.
KEVIN K. MCALEENAN, ACTING SECRETARY OF HOMELAND
SECURITY, ET AL., Petitioners,
–v–
MARTIN JONATHAN BATALLA VIDAL, ET AL.,
Respondents.

On Writs of Certiorari to the United States Court of Appeals
for District of Columbia, Ninth and Second Circuits
BRIEF OF AMICUS CURIAE
GOVERNMENT OF THE UNITED MEXICAN STATES
IN SUPPORT OF RESPONDENTS
ADELA ELVIA RUTH MCCHESNEY

COUNSEL OF RECORD

FAYE MAGDALENA KOLLY
DE MOTT, MCCHESNEY, CURTRIGHT & ARMENDARIZ, LLP
8023 VANTAGE DRIVE, SUITE 800
SAN ANTONIO, TX 78230
(210) 590-1844
RUTH@DMCAUSA.COM
OCTOBER 3, 2019

COUNSEL FOR AMICUS CURIAE

 i
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Page
TABLE OF AUTHORITIES ....................................... ii 
INTEREST OF AMICUS CURIAE ............................ 1 
ARGUMENT ............................................................... 4 
I.  PROTECTION OF DACA RECIPIENTS’ WELLBEING IS AN INTEGRAL PART OF MEXICO’S
FOREIGN POLICY ................................................ 4 
II.  BENEFICIARIES OF THE DEFERRED ACTION
FOR CHILDHOOD ARRIVALS PROGRAM
CONTRIBUTE SIGNIFICANTLY TO THE U.S.
ECONOMY .......................................................... 7 
III.  MILLIONS OF UNITED STATES CITIZENS AND
LAWFUL PERMANENT RESIDENTS ARE
POSITIVELY IMPACTED BY DACA...................... 14 
A.  The DACA Program Strengthens
Cultural Ties between Mexico and the
United States ............................................ 18 
B.  The DACA Program Strengthens
Educational Ties between Mexico and
the United States ...................................... 21 
IV.  DACA HAS STRENGTHENED CROSS BORDER
EXCHANGES IN MULTIPLE AREAS .................... 24 
V.  THE U.S. HAS UNDERTAKEN TO PROTECT
DACA RECIPIENTS AS PART OF ITS
INTERNATIONAL OBLIGATIONS UNDER THE
ICCPR ............................................................. 26 
CONCLUSION.......................................................... 32 

 ii
TABLE OF AUTHORITIES
TABLE OF AUTHORITIES

Page

CASES 

Arizona v. United States,

567 U.S. 387 (2012) ............................................. 2

Casa de Maryland v. U.S. Dep’t of Homeland
Sec., No. 18-1521 (4th Cir. 2019)
cert granted, No. 18-589

(docketed Nov. 5, 2019) ....................................... 1

Dep’t of Homeland Security v. Regents of the
U. of Cal., Sup. Ct. Nos. 18-587, 18-588,

and 18-589 ........................................................... 7

Hines v. Davidowitz,

312 U.S. 52 (1941) ............................................... 2

McAleenan v. Batalla Vidal,

No. 18-589 (consolidated with 18-587,
18-588) (docketed Nov. 5, 2019) .......................... 4

Medellin v. Texas,

552 U.S. 491 (2008), ............................................ 2

Morrison v. Nat’l Austl. Bank,

561 U.S. 247 (2010) .............................................. 2

Regents of the University of California
v. U.S. Dep’t of Homeland Sec.,
No. 18-15068 (9th Cir. 2018), cert granted,

No. 18-589 (docketed Nov. 5, 2019) .................... 1

 iii
TABLE OF AUTHORITIES—Continued
Page
STATUTES 
INA § 212(a)(9)(B) ..................................................... 24
NAFTA Implementation Act,
Pub. L No: 103-182 (1993)................................. 26
REGULATIONS 
8 C.F.R. § 214(b) ................................................. 24, 25
8 C.F.R. § 274a.12(c)(14)........................................... 29
MEXICAN GOVERNMENT DOCUMENTS 
Press Release, Embassy of Mexico in the
United States, Impact of the DACA

Rescission Among the Mexican
Community in the United States of
America (Sept. 27, 2019) available at

https://embamex.sre.gob.mx/eua/index.
php/en/press-releases/61-press-releases2019 .................................................................. 5, 6

Secretaría de Relaciones Exteriores,

Canciller Ruiz Massieu Se Reúne con
Jóvenes Dreamers, GOBIERNO DE MEXICO

(JULY 4, 2016) AVAILABLE AT
https://www.gob.mx/sre/prensa/cancillerruiz-massieu-se-reune-con-jovenesdreamers. ........................................................... 25

 iv
TABLE OF AUTHORITIES—Continued
Page
Secretaría de Relaciones Exteriores, El

Gobierno de México Lamenta
Profundamente la Cancelación del
Programa de Acción Diferida para los
Llegados en la Infancia (DACA), GOBIERNO
DE MÉXICO

(Sept. 5, 2017) available at
https://www.gob.mx/sre/prensa/el-gobiernode-mexico-lamenta-profundamente-lacancelacion-del-programa-de-acciondiferida-para-los-llegados-en-la-infanciadaca ...................................................................... 6

Secretaría de Relaciones Exteriores,

El gobierno de México lamenta
profundamente la cancelación del
Programa de Acción Diferida para los
Llegados en la Infancia (DACA), GOBIERNO
DE MÉXICO

(Sept. 5, 2017) available at
https://www.gob.mx/sre/prensa/el-gobiernode-mexico-lamenta-profundamente-lacancelacion-del-programa-de-acciondiferida-para-los-llegados-en-la-infanciadaca. ..................................................................... 6

 v
TABLE OF AUTHORITIES—Continued
Page
INTERNATIONAL LAW AND U.N. DOCUMENTS 
North American Free Trade Agreement, Can.–
Mex.–U.S., Dec. 17, 1992, 32 I.L.M. 289. ........... 3
Rep. of the United States of Amer. Submitted
to the U.N. in Accordance with paragraph
5 of the Annex to the Human Rights
Council Resolution 16/21, 22nd Sess., Feb.
13, 2015, UN Doc. A/HRC/WG.6/22/USA/1
(4–15 May 2015) ................................................ 30
UN General Assembly, International
Covenant on Civil and Political Rights,
Dec. 16, 1966, 999 U.N.T.S. 171 ................. 26, 28
Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Dec.
10, 1948, G.A. Res. 217A, 3 U.N. GAOR,
U.N. Doc. A/810. ................................................ 26
VCCR, art. 5, Apr. 24, 1963,
21 U.S.T. 77, 596 U.N.T.S. 261 ........................... 1

 vi
TABLE OF AUTHORITIES—Continued
Page
U.S. GOVERNMENT DOCUMENTS 
138 Cong. Rec. S4784
(daily ed. Apr. 2, 1992) ...................................... 27
Ben Harrington, An Overview of Discretionary
Reprieves from Removal: Deferred Action,
DACA, TPS, and Others, CONG. RESEARCH
SERV. REP. No. 7-5700 (Apr. 10, 2018) .............. 28
Janet Napolitano, David Aguilar and John
Morton, Memorandum from Sec’y of

Homeland Sec., Janet Napolitano to
Acting Commissioner, U.S. Customs and
Boarder Protection, David V. Aguilar,
Director of U.S. Citizenship and
Immigration Services, and Director of
U.S. Immigration and Customs
Enforcement, John Morton

(June 15, 2012) .............................................. 7, 28

President Barack Obama,
Press Release, Remarks from the
President on Immigration (June 15, 2012)....... 24

 vii
TABLE OF AUTHORITIES—Continued
Page
U.S. Dep’t of State,

U.S. Relations with Mexico (Apr. 1, 2019)
available at https://www.state.gov/u-srelations-with-mexico / ........................................ 3

U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich,

Ending DACA Means Widespread
Economic Harm, JOINT ECON. COMM.

DEMOCRATS (Sept. 6, 2017) available at
https://www.jec.senate.gov/public/index.
cfm/democrats/2017/9/ending-daca-meanswidespread-economic-harm. ............................. 13

United States Citizenship and Immigration
Services, Data Set: Form I-821D Deferred
Action for Childhood Arrivals (June 30,
2019) https://www.uscis.gov/sites/default/
files/USCIS/Resources/Reports%20and%
20Studies/Immigration%20Forms%20Data/
Static_files/DACA_Population_Receipts_
since_Injunction_Jun_30_2019.pdf (last
visited Sept. 25, 2019) .......................................... 2

 viii
TABLE OF AUTHORITIES—Continued
Page
OTHER AUTHORITIES 
Aliyya Swaby,

Texas School Districts Struggle to Recruit
Bilingual Certified Teachers,

THE TEXAS TRIBUNE, (Feb. 21, 2017),
https://www.texastribune.org/2017/02/21/
texas-school-districts-struggle-bilingualcertified-teachers/ .............................................. 23

Amy Hsin & Francesc Ortega, IZA Institute of
Labor Econ., The Effects of Deferred

Acton for Childhood Arrivals on the
Educational Outcomes of Undocumented
Students (Oct. 2017) .......................................... 16

Ann M. Simmons,

The End of DACA Would Be ‘a Big Win
for Mexico,’ Foreign Secretary Says, L.A.

TIMES (Sept. 14, 2017, 11:15 AM)
available at https://www.latimes.com/
world/mexico-americas/la-fg-globalmexico-foreign-secy-qa-20170909-story.
html. ..................................................................... 6

Caitlin Patler & Whitney Laster Pirtle,

From Undocumented to Lawfully Present:
Do Changes to Legal Status Impact
Psychological Well being Among Latino
Immigrant Young Adults?,

199 SOC. SCI. & MED. (Feb. 2018)...................... 18

Fernanda Uriegas,

Undocumented Entrepreneurs Rise
Above Policy Making,

 ix
TABLE OF AUTHORITIES—Continued
Page
Forbes (May 12, 2018, 2:31 PM) available
at https://www.forbes.com/sites/
fernandafabian/2018/05/12
/undocumented-entrepreneurs-rise-abovepolicy-making/#49389b4b4ee4 .......................... 11

Financial Implications for the Social Security
Trust Funds of the President’s Executive
Actions on Immigration, Announced
November 20, 2014: Hearing before

S. Comm on Homeland Sec.
and Gov. Affairs, (Feb. 4, 2015) ........................ 10

Gardenia Mendoza,

22 “Dreamers,” Invitados de Honor en
México, THE CALIFORNIA-MEXICO STUDIES

CENTER, INC. (July 16, 2015, 5:10 PM)
available at https://www.californiamexicocenter.org/22-dreamers-invitadosde-honor-en-mexico/ ........................................... 25
Grace Tatter,

Why DACA Works, Harvard Ed.

(Winter 2019), available at
https://www.gse.harvard.edu/news/ed/19/
01/why-daca-works. ........................................... 19
Greg Toppo,

20,000 DACA Teachers at Risk—and Your
Kids Could Feel the Fallout, Too,

USA TODAY, (Oct. 11, 2017), https://www.
usatoday.com/story/news/2017/10/11/
thousands-daca-teachers-risk/752082001/ ....... 23

 x
TABLE OF AUTHORITIES—Continued
Page
Jens Hainmueller et al.,

Protecting Unauthorized Immigrant
Mothers Improves Their Children’s
Mental Health, 357 SCIENCE 955, 1043

(Sept. 8, 2017). ................................................... 15

Jie Zong, Ariel G. Ruiz Soto, Jeanne Batalova,
Julia Gelatt, Randy Capps, A Profile of

Current DACA Recipients by Education,
Industry, and Occupation, MIGRATION

POLICY INSTITUTE, (Nov. 2017),
https://www.migrationpolicy.org/research/
profile-current-daca-recipients-educationindustry-and-occupation ......................... 8, 16, 23

Johns Hopkins,

WIC Participation Better Among
Vulnerable, U.S. Citizen Children Whose
Mothers are Eligible for DACA,

(May 29, 2018) ................................................... 17

Jose Magaña-Salgado & Tom K. Wong,
Draining the Trust Funds: Ending DACA

and the Consequences to Social Security
and Medicare, IMMIGRANT LEGAL

RESOURCE CTR., at 9 (Oct. 2017),
https://www.ilrc.org/sites/default/files/
resources/2017-09-29_draining_the_trust_
funds_final.pdf. .................................................. 10

Joseph Hincks,

CEOs From More Than 400 Leading U.S.
Companies Urge Trump to Keep DACA,

 xi
TABLE OF AUTHORITIES—Continued
Page
(Sep. 5, 2017), https://fortune.com/2017/09/
05/daca-trump-dreamers-business-leaders / ...... 13
Julia Cusick,

New Data Highlight DACA Recipients’
Contributions to Families and
Communities, CTR. FOR AMER. PROGRESS

(Sept. 5, 2019) available at https://www.
americanprogress.org/press/release/2019/
09/05/474185/release-new-data-highlightdaca-recipients-contributions-familiescommunities/ ..................................................... 14

Julia Horowitz,

These Dreamers Started Businesses. Will
They Have to Leave Them Behind?, CNN

(Oct. 5, 2017, 12:07 PM) available at
https://money.cnn.com/2017/10/04/news/
daca-dreamers-entrepreneurs/index.html........ 11

Mary Ellen Flannery,

Fear and Longing: Life for Students with
Undocumented Parents, NAT’L EDUC.

ASS’N (July 10, 2017) available at http://
neatoday.org/2017/07/10/students-withundocumented-parents / ................................... 15

Michel Martin,

DACA, A Student’s Story: ‘They Are The
Types Of Immigrants You Want In Your

Country’ (Sep. 16, 2017 7:44 PM)
available at https://www.npr.org/2017/09/
16/551544757/daca-a-students-story-they-

 xii
TABLE OF AUTHORITIES—Continued
Page
are-the-types-of-immigrants-you-want-inyour-country. ..................................................... 20
Nat’l Immigration Forum,

Deferred Action Basics (Apr. 15, 2016)
available at https://immigrationforum.org/
article/deferred-action-basics / .......................... 29

Nat’l Immigration Law Center,

Frequently Asked Questions (Dec. 2014)

available at https://www.nilc.org/issues/
health-care/aca_mixedstatusfams/ ................... 14
New Economy America,

California Student Uses DACA Status to
Start a Business (Sept. 17, 2017) ....................... 9

Nicole Prchal Svajlenka,

What We Know About DACA Recipients
in the United States, CTR. FOR AMER.

PROGRESS (Sept. 5, 2019, 9:00 AM)
available at https://www.
americanprogress.org/issues/immigration/
news/2019/09/05/474177/know-dacarecipients-united-states / ........................... passim

Omolara T. Uwemedimo,
Ana C. Monterrey, Julie M. Linton,
A Dream Deferred: Ending DACA

Threatens Children, Families, and
Communities, 140 AM. ACAD. OF

PEDIATRICS, No. 6 (Dec. 2017), available at
https://pediatrics.aappublications.org/cont
ent/140/6/e20173089.......................................... 15

 xiii
TABLE OF AUTHORITIES—Continued
Page
Patrick Oakford,

Administrative Action on Immigration
Reform, The Fiscal Benefits of Temporary
Work Permits, CTR. FOR AMER. PROGRESS

at 6 (2014) https://ampr.gs/1vw27HZ ................. 8

Rebecka Rosenquist,

The ‘Warming Effect’ of DACA on
American Children, PENN LEONARD DAVIS

INSTITUTE OF HEALTH ECONOMICS
(June 4, 2018) .................................................... 17

Rep. of the United States of Amer. Submitted to
the U.N. in Accordance with paragraph 5 of
the Annex to the Human Rights Council
Resolution 16/21, 22nd Sess., Feb. 13, 2015,
UN Doc. A/HRC/WG.6/22/USA/1 (4–15 May
2015) ................................................................... 31
Report submitted by the United States of
America under art. 40 of the ICCPR,
U.N. Doc. CCPR/C/81/Add 4(1994), .................. 27
Roberto G. Gonzales,

Investing in the American Dream,

IMMIGRATION POL’Y CTR. (Dec. 2010)
https://exchange.
americanimmigrationcouncil.org/sites/
default/files/research/Gonzales_-_
Investing_in_the_American_DREAM_
120210.pdf ................................................... 20, 21
Rodrigo Dominguez-Villegas,

Protection and Reintegration: Mexico
Reforms Migration Agenda in an

 xiv
TABLE OF AUTHORITIES—Continued
Page

Increasingly Complex Era, MIGRATION

POLICY INSTITUTE (Mar. 7, 2019) available
at https://www.migrationpolicy.org/article/
protection-and-reintegration-mexicoreforms-migration-agenda. ............................. 4, 5
Tom K. Wong, Greisa Martinez Rosas, Adam
Luna, Henry Manning, Adrian Reyna,
Patrick O’Shea, Tom Jawetz, and Philip
E. Wolgin, DACA Recipients’ Economic

and Educational Gains Continue to Grow,

CTR. FOR AMER. PROGRESS,
(Aug. 28, 2017, 9:01 AM) available at
https://www.americanprogress.org/
issues/immigration/news/2017/08/28/
437956/daca-recipients-economiceducational-gains-continue-grow / .......... 9, 11, 12

Tom K. Wong, Sanaa Abrar, Claudia Flores,
Tom Jawetz, Ignacia Rodriguez Kmec,
Greisa Martinez Rosas, Holly StrautEppsteiner, and Philip E. Wolgin,

DACA Recipients’ Livelihoods, Families,
and Sense of Security Are at Stake This
November, CTR. FOR AMER. PROGRESS

(Sept. 19, 2019, 5:00 AM) available at
https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/
immigration/news/2019/09/19/474636/
daca-recipients-livelihoods-families-sensesecurity-stake-november/ .................................. 22

U.S. Dep’t of Educ.,
RESOURCE GUIDE: SUPPORTING

 xv
TABLE OF AUTHORITIES—Continued
Page
UNDOCUMENTED YOUTH
(Oct. 20, 2015)...................................................... 7

U.S.-Mexico Higher Education Engagement:
Current Activities, Future Directions,

CIGE INSIGHTS: AMERICAN COUNCIL ON
EDUCATION, 5 (2017) available at https://
www.acenet.edu/Documents/US-MexicoHigher-Education-Engagement.pdf) ................ 21

 1

INTEREST OF AMICUS CURIAE1
The Government of the United Mexican States
(“Mexico”) has a vital interest in the treatment of its
nationals by other countries and is entitled to protect
their rights in foreign states within the limits of
international law and under the Vienna Convention
on Consular Relations (“VCCR”), to which both Mexico
and the United States are signatories. VCCR, art. 5,
Apr. 24, 1963, 21 U.S.T. 77, 596 U.N.T.S. 261.
Mexico acknowledges the sovereign right of the
United States to decide on the public policies that
should apply in its territory. However, Mexico is
gravely concerned that, as the lower courts have ruled
in these cases, the decision to rescind the DACA
program was “arbitrary and capricious,”2 as it did
not take into account the well-being and contributions
of DACA recipients and their families to the U.S.
Mexico is equally concerned that if DACA is ultimately
rescinded, the resources of Mexico’s consular network
in the U.S. will be strained due to the projected
increased demand for consular services. At 80 percent,
1 It is hereby certified that counsel for the parties have consented
to the filing of this brief; that no counsel for a party authored
this brief in whole or in part; and that no person other than this
amicus curiae, their members, or their counsel made a monetary
contribution to its preparation.
2 See Regents of the University of California v. U.S. Dep’t of
Homeland Sec., No. 18-15068 (9th Cir. 2018), cert granted, No.
18-589 (docketed Nov. 5, 2019); Casa de Maryland v. U.S. Dep’t
of Homeland Sec., No. 18-1521 (4th Cir. 2019) cert granted, No.
18-589 (docketed Nov. 5, 2019).

 2
Mexico has the largest population of active DACA
recipients.3 In that regard, Mexico respectfully asserts
its legitimate, substantial and compelling interest to
protect the rights of its citizens. Mexican nationals
have relied upon the commitments made by the U.S.
government in relationship to DACA for work and
travel authorization, and relief from deportation. DACA
recipients would be forced to return to the shadows
and subjected to increased vulnerability as a result of
the termination of a program that allows them to
live, work, contribute and thrive in a country they have
known since their young age.
This Court has routinely considered the interests
of foreign governments as amici curiae to protect the
rights of their citizens. E.g., Morrison v. Nat’l Austl.
Bank, 561 U.S. 247, 267–271 (2010); Medellin v. Texas,
552 U.S. 491 (2008), and has reaffirmed that “[o]ne of
the most important and delicate of all international
relationships . . . has to do with the protection of the
just rights of a country’s own nationals when those
nationals are in another country.” Arizona v. United
States, 567 U.S. 387, 395 (2012) citing Hines v.
Davidowitz, 312 U.S. 52, 64 (1941).
The economic, cultural and political ties between
Mexico and the United States are deeply rooted in
3 See United States Citizenship and Immigration Services,
Data Set: Form I-821D Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals
(June 30, 2019) https://www.uscis.gov/sites/default/files/USCIS/
Resources/Reports%20and%20Studies/Immigration%20Forms%
20Data/Static_files/DACA_Population_Receipts_since_Injunction_
Jun_30_2019.pdf (last visited Sept. 25, 2019) (Approximate Active
DACA Recipients chart reflects that as of June 30, 2019, those with
an approved DACA application, 529,760 of the total 660,880
DACA recipients are nationals of Mexico)

 3
the proximity of the two nations and the sharing of a
common border. Immigration is a priority for both
countries, but it is by no means the only critical foreign
policy concern. The roots of cooperation between Mexico
and the United States run deep, and manifest in
multiple areas including economic trade, tourism,
law enforcement and security, use of natural resources, emergency management, and global and regional issues.4 This productive relationship between
Mexico and the U.S. has flourished throughout many
decades and has covered matters of national and international interests, including treatment of nationals
residing in each other’s respective countries.5
In that regard, the fate of the DACA program is
no exception. DACA has had a wide range of positive
direct impacts, not only for its recipients and their
families, but it has also benefited the U.S. economy
and society, which in turn strengthens the economic,
educational, security, and cultural ties between our
two countries. Allowing DACA to continue will serve
our mutual national interests.6
4 U.S. Dep’t of State, U.S. Relations with Mexico (Apr. 1, 2019)
https://www.state.gov/u-s-relations-with-mexico/.
5 See e.g., UN General Assembly, International Covenant on Civil
and Political Rights, Dec. 16, 1966, 999 U.N.T.S. 171 (ratified
by the United States on 8 June 1992 with entry into force 8 September 1992); see also North American Free Trade Agreement,
Can.–Mex.–U.S., Dec. 17, 1992, 32 I.L.M. 289.
6 Nicole Prchal Svajlenka, What We Know About DACA
Recipients in the United States, CTR. FOR AMER. PROGRESS (Sept. 5,
2019, 9:00 AM) available at https://www.americanprogress.org/
issues/immigration/news/2019/09/05/474177/know-daca-recipientsunited-states/ (discussing the positive impact the social and economic contributions of DACA recipients on their own lives as well

 4
The Government of Mexico has submitted a prior
amicus curiae in the consolidated case of McAleenan v.
Batalla Vidal, No. 18-589.7

ARGUMENT
I.

PROTECTION OF DACA RECIPIENTS’ WELL-BEING
IS AN INTEGRAL PART OF MEXICO’S FOREIGN POLICY

The protection of the rights of Mexican nationals
abroad has been one of the core principles of Mexico’s
foreign policy and an essential part of the work its
consulates perform. That is reflected in the largest
consular network any country has in the U.S., with
50 consulates located across the continental U.S. and
its territories.8 As a result, Mexico is committed to a
focused policy, which includes the interests of
Mexican nationals living in the United States and,
indeed, the well-being of DACA recipients, of which
an approximate 80% were born in Mexico.9 In fact,
as the country).
7 McAleenan v. Batalla Vidal, No. 18-589 (consolidated with 18-587,
18-588) (docketed Nov. 5, 2019).
8 Rodrigo Dominguez-Villegas, Protection and Reintegration:

Mexico Reforms Migration Agenda in an Increasingly Complex
Era, MIGRATION POLICY INSTITUTE (Mar. 7, 2019) available at

https://www.migrationpolicy.org/article/protection-andreintegration-mexico-reforms-migration-agenda.

9 See U.S. CITIZENSHIP AND IMMIGRATION SERVICES, Data Set:
Form I-821D Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (June 30,
2019) https://www.uscis.gov/sites/default/files/USCIS/Resources/
Reports%20and%20Studies/Immigration%20Forms%20Data/

 5
the current President of Mexico has called on Mexican consulates to strengthen their efforts by referring
to the consulates as “migrant legal defense agencies”
(procuradurias de defensa para los migrantes).10 It is
the position of the Mexican government that DACA
recipients embody bicultural, bilingual and binational values our countries share. Mexico continued
protection of DACA beneficiaries will elevate the
mutual understanding between our countries and
benefit our shared economic prosperity.
To this end, Mexico’s government has supported
DACA beneficiaries and Mexican nationals living in
the United States by holding clinics, providing funding
and access to competent legal counsel in connection
to the application process under DACA.11 Since the
program’s inception Mexico has held 17,978 informative
workshops and benefited 1,035,890 people.12 Among the
attendees of workshops, the consular network has
identified 28,526 cases meriting consular protection,
for which the consulates have assisted in obtaining
the necessary documents and, in some cases, providing
Static_files/DACA_Population_Receipts_since_Injunction_Jun_
30_2019.pdf) (last visited Sept. 25, 2019) (providing statistics
indicating approximately 80% of DACA recipients are nationals
of Mexico).
10 Dominguez-Villegas, supra note 8.
11 See Press Release, Embassy of Mexico in the United States,

Impact of the DACA Rescission Among the Mexican Community
in the United States of America (Sept. 27, 2019) available at

https://embamex.sre.gob.mx/eua/index.php/en/press-releases/61press-releases-2019 (describing Mexico’s allocation of “significant
financial and human resources in helping Dreamers”).
12 Id.

 6
economic assistance to apply for DACA.13 From June
2012 to August 2019, the Government of Mexico has
invested $2.175 million dollars for Mexican DACA
recipients.14
When the cancellation of the program was announced in 2017, the Government of Mexico increased its
consular services and reinforced its commitment to
provide information and assistance to DACA recipients. Additionally, the Government of Mexico displayed
important diplomatic efforts to convey to members of
Congress the value and contributions of Mexican
DACA beneficiaries to the U.S., stressing the importance of a permanent solution that provides legal
certainty.15 The interest of the Government of Mexico
in providing this assistance is to better protect the
rights of a young population whose nationality is
Mexican, but who were raised and live in the U.S.16
Mexico has invested in supporting the continued
13 Id.
14 Id.
15 See Secretaría de Relaciones Exteriores, El Gobierno de México
Lamenta Profundamente la Cancelación del Programa de Acción
Diferida para los Llegados en la Infancia (DACA), GOBIERNO DE

MÉXICO (Sept. 5, 2017) available at https://www.gob.mx/sre/prensa/
el-gobierno-de-mexico-lamenta-profundamente-la-cancelacion-delprograma-de-accion-diferida-para-los-llegados-en-la-infancia-daca.
(stating Mexico’s continued support for the DACA program and
recognizing the positive social, economic, and cultural impact of
Dreamers).
16 Ann M. Simmons, the End of DACA Would Be ‘A Big Win for
Mexico,’ Foreign Secretary Says, L.A. TIMES (Sept. 14, 2017, 11:15

AM) available at https://www.latimes.com/world/mexico-americas/
la-fg-global-mexico-foreign-secy-qa-20170909-story.html.

 7
positive and impactful contributions that this same
group makes to the U.S. economy, education and
culture.
II.

BENEFICIARIES OF THE DEFERRED ACTION FOR
CHILDHOOD ARRIVALS PROGRAM CONTRIBUTE
SIGNIFICANTLY TO THE U.S. ECONOMY

Individuals eligible under the DACA program are
temporarily allowed to stay in the United States and
receive employment authorization for a period commensurate with their DACA grant, which is typically
two years. It should be noted that DACA does not
permanently protect a beneficiary from the possibility
of removal. Rather, as a matter of prosecutorial discretion, it merely temporarily defers deportation for
any DACA recipient who has been vetted by the government and met its strict requirements.17 As a
direct consequence of the DACA program and the government’s pointed efforts,18 recipients are thoroughly
vetted and documented. The process effectively
17 See 2 J.A., Dep’t of Homeland Security v. Regents of the U.
of Cal., Nos. 18-587, 18-588, and 18-589 at 594–596 (detailing

the inspection process for the government before an individual
may become a DACA recipient); See also Memorandum from
Sec’y of Homeland Sec., Janet Napolitano to Acting Commissioner, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, David V. Aguilar,
Director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, and
Director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, John
Morton (June 15, 2012) (establishing the eligibility criteria and
discretionary guidelines for DACA).
18 See, e.g., U.S. Dep’t of Educ., RESOURCE GUIDE: SUPPORTING
UNDOCUMENTED YOUTH (Oct. 20, 2015) (“[DACA] allows youth
who were brought to the United States as children and who meet
certain criteria to requires consideration for deferred action, which
constitutes a case-by-case determination by DHS.”).

 8
brought DACA recipients out of the shadows of the
U.S. society, allowing them to fully participate and
contribute to the country’s communities, educational
system and the economy.19
Under the DACA program, nearly 800,000 eligible
individuals have applied for and been granted work
authorization since the program was announced in
2012.20 From those, currently 660,880 youth have an
active DACA status.21 An estimated 55% of DACA
recipients are currently employed.22 As a result of the
ability of DACA recipients to work with authorization
in the United States, the beneficiaries have been able
19 See Patrick Oakford, Administrative Action on Immigration
Reform, The Fiscal Benefits of Temporary Work Permits, CTR.
FOR AMER. PROGRESS at 6 (2014) available at https://ampr.gs/
1vw27HZ (exploring the fiscal benefits of allowing “low-priority
individuals” to contribute to the economy through educational
and professional opportunity).
20 Nicole Prchal Svajlenka, What We Know About DACA
Recipients in the United States, CTR. FOR AMER. PROGRESS
(Sept. 5, 2019, 9:00 AM), https://www.americanprogress.org/
issues/immigration/news/2019/09/05/474177/know-daca-recipientsunited-states/.
21 United States Citizenship and Immigration Services, Data
Set: Form I-821D Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (June
30, 2019) available at https://www.uscis.gov/sites/default/files/
USCIS/Resources/Reports%20and%20Studies/Immigration%20
Forms%20Data/Static_files/DACA_Population_Receipts_since_
Injunction_Jun_30_2019.pdf. (last visited Sept. 25, 2019)
22 Jie Zong, Ariel G. Ruiz Soto, Jeanne Batalova, Julia Gelatt,
Randy Capps, A Profile of Current DACA Recipients by Education, Industry, and Occupation, MIGRATION POLICY INSTITUTE, Nov.
2017, https://www.migrationpolicy.org/research/profile-current-dacarecipients-education-industry-and-occupation.

 9
to make positive and significant contributions to the
U.S. economy through the ability to earn wages and
pay taxes.23 DACA recipients pay state and local
taxes, are able to purchase homes, cars, and be
employed in some of the most successful businesses
in the United States. DACA recipient, Ovier Alvarez
explained that after he was able to receive DACA,
acquire a social security number, obtain a driver’s
license, and open a bank account he started a sole
proprietorship as a professional photographer.24 “Now
I’m able to do business and pay business taxes to the
state.” DACA recipients are entrepreneurs and create
businesses that employ U.S. citizens.25 Combined,
97% of DACA recipients are currently employed or
attending high school or higher levels of education.26
It is estimated that DACA recipients make major
financial contributions to the U.S. economy via payment
of $5.7 billion in federal taxes and $3.1 billion in
state and local taxes annually. Additionally, DACA
recipients pay into Social Security and Medicare
through payroll taxes. These young immigrants and
23 Svajlenka, supra note 20.
24 New Economy America, California Student Uses DACA Status
to Start a Business (Sept. 17, 2017).
25 Id.
26 Tom K. Wong, Greisa Martinez Rosas, Adam Luna, Henry
Manning, Adrian Reyna, Patrick O’Shea, Tom Jawetz, and
Philip E. Wolgin, DACA Recipients’ Economic and Educational
Gains Continue to Grow, CTR. FOR AMER. PROGRESS (Aug. 28,
2017, 9:01 AM) available at https://www.americanprogress.
org/issues/immigration/news/2017/08/28/437956/daca-recipientseconomic-educational-gains-continue-grow/.

 10
their households have a combined $24.1 billion of
income remaining after taxes.27
The Chief Actuary of the Social Security Administration (SSA), Stephen C. Goss, has testified as to
the positive impact the DACA program will have on
the SSA Trust Funds. He reported to the Senate
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental
Affairs that as the U.S. population ages combined
with lower birth rates, immigration in general has a
net positive impact on funds set for the retirement of
millions of individuals.28 It is estimated that eliminating DACA will reduce funding for Social Security
and Medicare by $39.3 billion over a ten-year period.29

27 Svajlenka, supra note 20.
28 See Financial Implications for the Social Security Trust

Funds of the President’s Executive Actions on Immigration,
Announced November 20, 2014: Hearing Before S. Comm on
Homeland Sec. and Gov. Affairs, Feb. 4, 2015 (testimony of

Stephen C. Goss, Chief Actuary, SSA) (“Immigration has played
a fundamental role in the growth and evolution of the U.S. population and will continue to do so in the future . . . . Without . . . net
immigration, the effects of the drop in birth rates after 1965
would be much more severe for the finances of Social Security,
Medicare, and for retirement plans in general. Because immigrants
into the U.S. are generally young, they increase the ration of
working age population to retirement age population in much
the same way as do births.”).

29 See Jose Magaña-Salgado & Tom K. Wong, Draining the
Trust Funds: Ending DACA and the Consequences to Social
Security and Medicare, IMMIGRANT LEGAL RESOURCE CTR., at 9

(Oct. 2017) available at https://www.ilrc.org/sites/default/files/
resources/2017-09-29_draining_the_trust_funds_final.pdf. (last
visited Sept. 27, 2019)

 11
DACA recipients outpace the population of nativeborn Americans in terms of starting their own businesses. DACA has allowed the entrepreneurial drive
of the recipients to add to the local economies through
job creation and revenue building.30 Recipients are able
to pursue the education and professional experiences
necessary to fulfill not only their own entrepreneurial potential but provide opportunities for others
to join the entrepreneurial community as well. For
example, Dr. Iliana G. Perez—a Mexican DACA
recipient, author, and academic who was able to
conduct research as she completed her Ph.D.—ultimately published a comprehensive guide to entrepreneurship for immigrants, supporting further economic achievement within the immigrant community.31 Dr. Perez’s story is one of many. Another
Mexican Dreamer, Juan Martinez, he is building an
artificial intelligence company.32 “In the tech space,
30 Wong et. al., supra note 26.
31 Fernanda Uriegas, Undocumented Entrepreneurs Rise Above
Policy Making, Forbes (May 12, 2018, 2:31 PM) available at https:

//www.forbes.com/sites/fernandafabian/2018/05/12/undocumentedentrepreneurs-rise-above-policy-making/#49389b4b4ee4.
This
article also details the story of Cris Mercado, who migrated
from the Philippines and became a social entrepreneur. After
high school, Cris was unable to accept NYU’s offer to join its
engineering program when he was unable to receive sufficient
financial aid due to his undocumented status. After having an
offer to complete a Ph.D. fellowship revoked due to his undocumented status, Cris started his own business that “focuses on
college and scholarship access and careers.” Id.
32 Julia Horowitz, These Dreamers Started Businesses. Will
They Have to Leave Them Behind?, CNN (Oct. 5, 2017, 12:07

PM) available at https://money.cnn.com/2017/10/04/news/dacadreamers-entrepreneurs/index.html.

 12
[the resources DACA provides, like the ability to get
a social security number] is a must.” Without his
status as a DACA recipient, he will not be able to
fund his developing company.
In addition to the economic entrepreneurial
contributions that DACA recipients make to the U.S.
economy, entry to the authorized workforce into the
United States has allowed recipients to obtain jobs
with better pay with long term career possibilities
across various labor sectors. After receiving DACA,
many recipients moved to a job with better working
conditions and aligned with their education and career
goals.33 The professional growth allowed through DACA
is not only beneficial for the recipient, but also for the
community. Plaintiff Saul Jimenez Suarez is a DACA
recipient who was raised in the United States and
eventually earned his college degree at Oklahoma
Panhandle State University where he played football.34
After college he took low-paying jobs to support his
parents and himself. Once DACA became available, Mr.
Jimenez was able to apply and receive DACA benefits.
Like many DACA recipients, he was able to use his
degree to obtain a professional position. He has
embraced his newfound career as a special education
teacher, coach and mentor, and has positively affected
the lives of young people and the community in which
he lives.
U.S. business owners and other employees have
benefited greatly from hiring young immigrants who
33 Wong, et. al., supra note 26.
34 2 J.A., Dep’t of Homeland Security v. Regents of the U. of
Cal., Nos. 18-587, 18-588, and 18-589 at 447–449.

 13
have benefited under DACA. Apple CEO Tim Cook
joined over 400 leading U.S. companies to write a
letter to Congress explaining that DACA recipients
are “vital” to their businesses and “are part of why
we will continue to have a global competitive
advantage.”35 The repeal of the DACA program would
result in a hardship to employers and the local and
national economy. An end to the DACA program would
result in an estimated loss of $60.3 billion from the
national GDP of the United States over the next decade.
Additionally, an estimated 685,000 workers would be
removed from the formal economy of the United States.
It is expected to cost employers upwards of $3.4 billion
in turnover costs.36
DACA recipients stimulate the U.S. economy
through the direct provision of labor, payment of
taxes, creation of jobs for U.S. workers, and
participation as consumers of goods and services. If
DACA were rescinded or struck down, the economic
contributions of its recipients to the United States
would cease or be greatly diminished.

35 Joseph Hincks, CEOs From More Than 400 Leading U.S.
Companies Urge Trump to Keep DACA, Sep. 5, 2017, https://
fortune.com/2017/09/05/daca-trump-dreamers-business-leaders/.
36 U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich, Ending DACA Means Widespread
Economic Harm, JOINT ECON. COMM. DEMOCRATS (Sept. 6, 2017)
available at https://www.jec.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/democrats/
2017/9/ending-daca-means-widespread-economic-harm.

 14
III. MILLIONS OF UNITED STATES CITIZENS AND
LAWFUL PERMANENT RESIDENTS ARE POSITIVELY
IMPACTED BY DACA
It is estimated that over a quarter of a million
U.S. citizen children have at least one parent that is
part of the DACA program.37 Across the country, 1.5
million individuals live with a person who is a DACA
recipient.38 These individuals include parents, siblings,
spouses, and children living in mixed status
households.39 It is important to consider the broader
impact of DACA recipients in their communities.
Dr. Omolara T. Uwemedimo and her colleagues
found that, “[i]mmigration status, including DACA,
is a social determinant of health that intersects with
other determinants, including access to care, mental
health, educational attainment, and poverty.”40 The
37 Julia Cusick, New Data Highlight DACA Recipients’
Contributions to Families and Communities, CTR. FOR AMER.
PROGRESS (Sept. 5, 2019) available at https://www.american
progress.org/press/release/2019/09/05/474185/release-new-datahighlight-daca-recipients-contributions-families-communities/.
38 Nicole Prchal Svajlenka, What We Know About DACA
Recipients in the United States, CTR. FOR AMER. PROGRESS
(Sept. 5, 2019, 9:00 AM) available at https://www.american
progress.org/issues/immigration/news/2019/09/05/474177/knowdaca-recipients-united-states/.
39 See Nat’l Immigration Law Center, Frequently Asked Questions (Dec. 2014) available at https://www.nilc.org/issues/healthcare/aca_mixedstatusfams/ (“A ‘mixed-status family’ is a family
whose members include people with different citizenship or
immigration statuses.”).
40 Omolara T. Uwemedimo, Ana C. Monterrey, Julie M. Linton,
A Dream Deferred: Ending DACA Threatens Children, Families,
and Communities, 140 AM. ACAD. OF PEDIATRICS, No. 6 (Dec.

 15
lack of legal status of parents in the United States
impacts the physical and mental health of young
children.41 Educators provide insight into the trauma
of even their youngest students. Amie Baca-Oehlert,
Colorado Education Association Vice President,
recounted the devastating example of one kindergartener who, when asked why he was bringing a
suitcase to school, responded, “I want to make sure I
have my special things when they come to get me.”42
The DACA program has provided the ability for its
recipients to become economically stable and contribute
to their families’ well-being. The economic stability
and deferment from deportation decreases familial
stress, which in turn lessens the chances of impairment
due to early childhood adversity that is present for
many children of undocumented parents.
In a study published by Science Magazine,
researchers found adverse consequences to U.S. citizen
children whose parent(s) may be stripped of DACA
benefits as: one that goes beyond the impacts for
recipients alone and takes into account the intergenerational consequences of deferred action for the
health of unauthorized immigrants’ children, most of
whom are U.S. citizens. Early childhood exposure to
2017), available at https://pediatrics.aappublications.org/content/
140/6/e20173089.
41 Jens Hainmueller et al., Protecting Unauthorized Immigrant
Mothers Improves Their Children’s Mental Health, 357 SCIENCE

955, 1043 (Sept. 8, 2017).

42 Mary Ellen Flannery, Fear and Longing: Life for Students
with Undocumented Parents, NAT’L EDUC. ASS’N (July 10, 2017)
available
at
http://neatoday.org/2017/07/10/students-withundocumented-parents/.

 16
stress and adversity does not only cause poor health
and impaired development in the short term; the issues
can also persist into adulthood. Anxiety and
psychosocial stress are identified as risk factors for
depression, substance abuse, cardiovascular diseases,
and obesity.43
It is estimated that the nearly 382,000 beneficiaries
of DACA who are currently employed and contributing
to the U.S. workforce and providing for the livelihood
of their families would be stripped of their ability to
work lawfully in the U.S. should the program be
terminated.44 The ability of DACA recipients to work
and complete their secondary education and higher
education has been demonstrated to have a positive
impact on first generation U.S. citizen children.45
Parents who are DACA recipients are more willing to
access critical social services to which their U.S.
citizen children are entitled by law. They are also
more likely to live in more stable circumstances diminishing the external stresses caused by the uncertainty
related to lack of immigration status and an unstable
income and private health insurance.46 For example,
43 Hainmueller, supra note 41.
44 Jie Zong, Ariel G. Ruiz Soto, Jeanne Batalova, Julia Gelatt,
Randy Capps, A Profile of Current DACA Recipients by Education, Industry, and Occupation, MIGRATION POLICY INSTITUTE,
Nov. 2017, https://www.migrationpolicy.org/research/profile-currentdaca-recipients-education-industry-and-occupation.
45 Amy Hsin & Francesc Ortega, IZA Institute of Labor Econ.,

The Effects of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals on the
Educational Outcomes of Undocumented Students (Oct. 2017).

46 Rebecka Rosenquist, The ‘Warming Effect’ of DACA on
American Children, PENN LEONARD DAVIS INSTITUTE OF HEALTH

 17
it is important to note that DACA recipients are over
12% more likely to ensure that their U.S. citizen
children access resources to which U.S. citizens are
entitled, such as the Special Supplemental Nutrition
Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC),
than parents without DACA protections.47 WIC is
considered one of the most successful anti-poverty
programs for children in the United States.48 Treatment of the mental disorders caused by the external
stressors of having an undocumented parent result in
high health care expenditures and long-term outcomes
including diminished school performance and welfare
reliance.49 In the long run these issues can continue
into adulthood.50 Ultimately, the DACA program has
been associated with the mental health and wellbeing of its recipients and has ultimately acted as a

ECONOMICS (June 4, 2018) (quoting study author Atheendar
Venkataramani who stated, “Our findings demonstrate that
favorable immigration policies can have a ‘warming effect’ on
vulnerable children’s access of critical social services. The
results suggest that rolling back DACA or instituting policies
which raise the threat of deportation could result in a ‘chilling
effect’ that could adversely affect child health.”).
47 Johns Hopkins, WIC Participation Better Among Vulnerable,

U.S. Citizen Children Whose Mothers are Eligible for DACA

(May 29, 2018).

48 Rosenquist, supra, note 46.
49 Jens Hainmueller et al., Protecting Unauthorized Immigrant
Mothers Improves Their Children’s Mental Health, 357 SCIENCE

955, 1043 (Sept. 8, 2017).
50 Id.

 18
“multiplier” improving the educational and health
future of their U.S. citizen children and families.51
In a study conducted on the impact of people with
protection under DACA and those immigrants without
the same benefits, the researchers concluded, “We
know that a lack of legal status impacts multiple
aspects of immigrants’ lives, including health and
well-being, and we also know that communities do not
benefit when individuals are unhealthy. We have shown
that changes to immigrant legal status can directly
improve psychological well-being.”52 The individual
well-being of DACA recipients is linked to increased
community health and the lack of any immigration
status is linked to poorer outcomes for individual
immigrants reflecting on a decrease of health within
communities. The preservation of DACA for its
recipients will lead to more positive outcomes for
families and communities within the U.S., including
increased prosperity of U.S. citizen children and a
decrease in the costs associated with the adverse
physical repercussions of living a life as an immigrant without protected status.
A. The DACA Program Strengthens Cultural Ties
between Mexico and the United States
Beneficiaries of DACA, while citizens of other
countries, including Mexico, are in effect vital members
51 Id.
52 Caitlin Patler & Whitney Laster Pirtle, From Undocumented to
Lawfully Present: Do Changes to Legal Status Impact Psychological Well being Among Latino Immigrant Young Adults?, 199
SOC. SCI. & MED. at 39-48 (Feb. 2018).

 19
of U.S. society. The average age that most DACA
recipients arrived in the U.S. is seven years old.53
These young people have attended elementary and
secondary schools in the United States. They work
and contribute to the U.S. economy and their
communities. DACA has allowed its beneficiaries to
be lawfully employed, obtain driver’s licenses, open
bank accounts, purchase homes and vehicles, and
ultimately integrate their lives into the U.S. society.54
DACA recipients comprise an important part of the
population, with eighty-six metropolitan areas home
to at least 1,000 DACA recipients.55
The citizenship of Mexican DACA recipients often
belies their cultural identity as Mexican and American as they have been educated and raised in the
United States. The uncertainties that possible
rescission has created for DACA recipients puts the
cultural, educational, and entrepreneurial gains of
these young immigrants at a crossroads. The ending of
the program will lead to a lack of incentive and
disenfranchisement from the gained economic and
53 Nicole Prchal Svajlenka, What We Know About DACA
Recipients in the United States, CTR. FOR AMER. PROGRESS

(Sept. 5, 2019, 9:00 AM) available at https://www.americanprogress.
org/issues/immigration/news/2019/09/05/474177/know-dacarecipients-united-states/.

54 Grace Tatter, Why DACA Works, Harvard Ed. (Winter 2019),
available at https://www.gse.harvard.edu/news/ed/19/01/why-dacaworks.
55 Nicole Prchal Svajlenka, What We Know About DACA Recipients, by Metropolitan Area, CTR. FOR AMER. PROGRESS (Sept.

23, 2019, 9:00 AM), https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/
immigration/news/2019/09/23/474653/know-daca-recipientsmetropolitan-area/.

 20
cultural ties, with which DACA recipients identify.
This will adversely affect the continued productivity,
education
and
entrepreneurship
of
DACA
56
recipients. As one DACA student at American University explained, “[I]t’s like feeling that perpetual
falling feeling. I just want to be able to know if I’m
going to be able to keep what I built here.”57 Continuance of the DACA program will more permanently
align the values of DACA recipients to the culture and
society with which they most closely identify.
DACA recipients have had a unique opportunity
to contribute their bi-cultural and multilingual abilities
in order to bridge the shared cultures and strengthen
cultural ties between Mexico and the United States
and the many countries from which DACA recipients
hail.58 The failure to extend the program will deprive
56 See generally Roberto G. Gonzales, Investing in the American Dream, IMMIGRATION POL’Y CTR. (Dec. 2010) available at
https://exchange.americanimmigrationcouncil.org/sites/default/
files/research/Gonzales_-_Investing_in_the_American_DREAM_
120210.pdf (discussing the professional potential of DACA
recipients who have been educated in the U.S. and now seek to
continue into higher education and the American labor market)
(last visited Sept. 25, 2019).
57 Michel Martin, DACA, A Student’s Story: ‘They Are the
Types of Immigrants You Want in Your Country’ (Sep. 16, 2017
7:44 PM) available at https://www.npr.org/2017/09/16/551544757/
daca-a-students-story-they-are-the-types-of-immigrants-youwant-in-your-country.
58 See United States Citizenship and Immigration Services,
Data Set: Form I-821D Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals
(June 30, 2019) available at https://www.uscis.gov/sites/default/
files/USCIS/Resources/Reports%20and%20Studies/Immigration
%20Forms%20Data/Static_files/DACA_Population_Receipts_since
_Injunction_Jun_30_2019.pdf (providing the birth countries of

 21
a population of immigrant youth the ability to
contribute and fully participate in a society that has
given them an opportunity to demonstrate their
intrinsic value as members of U.S. society.59
B. The DACA Program Strengthens Educational
Ties between Mexico and the United States
Academic ties and exchanges have been an
important part of U.S.-Mexico diplomatic relations.60
There have been several policies and initiatives in
order to focus resources and collaborations to enhance
cross-border educational engagement.61 A concerted
and bi-national effort has been made via the 100,000
Strong in the Americas supported by the U.S. government and Proyecta 100,000 with the aim of having
100,000 students from each country studying in each
respective country. These projects have established
relationships between government entities, institutions
of higher learning, industry and non-profit organizations.62 As part of the concerted bi-national effort,
U.S. and Mexican Universities have administered the
Dreamers Without Borders program, which brings
DACA recipients and approximate number of recipients from
each) (last visited Sept. 25, 2019).
59 Gonzales, supra note 56.
60 U.S.-Mexico Higher Education Engagement: Current Activities, Future Directions, CIGE INSIGHTS: AMERICAN COUNCIL ON
EDUCATION, 5 (2017) available at https://www.acenet.edu/Documents/US-Mexico-Higher-Education-Engagement.pdf (last visited
Sept. 25, 2019).
61 Id. at 7.
62 Id.

 22
groups of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals
(DACA) recipients living in the U.S. to Mexico for
short-term study and networking visits.63 Continuation of the DACA program is an important facet to
preserve the bilateral educational collaboration established between our two countries, both through established programs and the continued effort to educate
youth in Mexico and the United States.
The DACA program has also served to buttress
the U.S. education system. Over 40 percent of current
DACA recipients are enrolled in school with 83%
pursuing a bachelor’s degree or higher.64 “The majors
and specializations that respondents report include
accounting, biochemistry, business administration,
chemical engineering, civil engineering, computer
science, early childhood education, economics, environmental science, history, law, mathematics, mechanical

63 Id. at 34 (“USMF is partnering with UCLA, Tec de Monterrey,
Instituto de los Mexicanos en el Exterior (IME), and the governments of a number of Mexican states to administer the
Dreamers Without Borders program, which brings groups of
Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) recipients living
in the U.S. to Mexico for short-term study and networking
visits.”)
64 Tom K. Wong, Sanaa Abrar, Claudia Flores, Tom Jawetz,
Ignacia Rodriguez Kmec, Greisa Martinez Rosas, Holly StrautEppsteiner, and Philip E. Wolgin, DACA Recipients’ Livelihoods,
Families, and Sense of Security Are at Stake This November,
CTR. FOR AMER. PROGRESS (Sept. 19, 2019, 5:00 AM) available at
https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/immigration/news/2019/
09/19/474636/daca-recipients-livelihoods-families-sense-securitystake-november/.

 23
engineering, neuroscience, physics, psychology, and
social work, to name a few.”65
A sizeable number of DACA recipients have
dedicated themselves to the profession of teaching.
Nationwide there are an estimated 20,000 teachers
who are work-authorized under the DACA program.66
Many of these teachers possess the ability to speak a
foreign language and the bi-cultural skills that are in
high demand within their profession.67 The removal
of teachers from the classroom who are DACA
recipients would undercut the bi-cultural diversity
that DACA teachers bring to their schools and lead to
a further shortage of teachers.68
65 Tom K. Wong, Greisa Martinez Rosas, Adam Luna, Henry
Manning, Adrian Reyna, Patrick O’Shea, Tom Jawetz, and
Philip E. Wolgin, DACA Recipients’ Economic and Educational
Gains Continue to Grow, CTR. FOR AMER. PROGRESS (Aug. 28,
2017, 9:01 AM) available at https://www.americanprogress.
org/issues/immigration/news/2017/08/28/437956/daca-recipientseconomic-educational-gains-continue-grow/.
66 Greg Toppo, 20,000 DACA Teachers at Risk—and Your Kids
Could Feel the Fallout, Too, USA TODAY, Oct. 11, 2017, https://
www.usatoday.com/story/news/2017/10/11/thousands-daca-teachersrisk/752082001/.
67 See Aliyya Swaby, Texas School Districts Struggle to Recruit
Bilingual Certified Teachers, THE TEXAS TRIBUNE, Feb. 21,
2017, https://www.texastribune.org/2017/02/21/texas-school-districts-struggle-bilingual-certified-teachers/ (reporting on Texas
school districts that are struggling to recruit bilingual educators).
68 See Jie Zong, Ariel G. Ruiz Soto, Jeanne Batalova, Julia
Gelatt, Randy Capps, A Profile of Current DACA Recipients by
Education, Industry, and Occupation, MIGRATION POLICY INSTITUTE, Nov. 2017, https://www.migrationpolicy.org/research/profilecurrent-daca-recipients-education-industry-and-occupation

 24
IV. DACA HAS STRENGTHENED CROSS
EXCHANGES IN MULTIPLE AREAS

BORDER

The U.S. and Mexico have historically engaged in
reciprocal and beneficial treaties that strengthen cross
border exchanges. These agreements have promoted
increased investment, trade and the ability of welltrained and educated foreign nationals to contribute
talent, skills and education to the economies of both
countries.69 DACA recipients possess many of the
same talents, skills, education and experience that
these treaties promote and envision.
Through no fault of their own, DACA recipients
are generally barred under U.S. immigration law
from either changing status to a nonimmigrant visa
or adjusting status to that of a lawful permanent
resident of the United States.70 Many have accumulated over 1 year of unlawful presence, and are subject to a “10 year bar of inadmissibility”.71 They cannot
obtain a visa or return to the U.S. for a 10 year
period or otherwise meet the non-immigrant intent
requirements.72 These visa requirements render
DACA recipients ineligible to obtain a student visa or
(“There are about 9,000 DACA recipients employed as teachers
or similar education professionals [in the United States] . . . .”).
69 See e.g., North American Free Trade Agreement, Can.-Mex.U.S., Dec. 17, 1992, 32 I.L.M. 289.
70 Press Release, President Barack Obama, Remarks from the
President on Immigration (June 15, 2012) (“This is not a path to
citizenship. It’s not a permanent fix. This is a temporary
stopgap measure . . . .”).
71 INA Sec. 212(a)(9)(B).
72 8 C.F.R. § 214(b)

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other temporary work visa in order to attend school,
work, and lawfully reside in the United States.73 For
this otherwise vulnerable group, DACA has provided
an avenue of relief, albeit temporarily, from this situation. Like their foreign national counterparts who
obtain visas, DACA recipients are able to fulfill the
promise of international agreements and are able to
invest, study, and contribute their expertise to the
U.S. economy.
In furtherance of our bi-lateral effort, many
Mexican DACA holders were permitted to attend
academic and cultural exchange programs in Mexico.74
In partnership with prestigious Mexican academic
and cultural institutions, the Government of Mexico
has supported these exchanges as part of its foreign
policy priorities to engage Mexicans abroad.75 These
cross border exchanges have forged bicultural leaders
for both Mexico and the U.S.
While DACA recipients are not eligible for temporary work visas as a matter of law, their ability to
73 Id. Based on the discussed requirements, DACA recipients
are ineligible because they do not maintain a residence in their
“home country” and do not commit to return there.
74 See e.g., Gardenia Mendoza, 22 “Dreamers,” Invitados de Honor
en México, THE CALIFORNIA-MEXICO STUDIES CENTER, INC. (July
16, 2015, 5:10 PM), https://www.california-mexicocenter.org/22dreamers-invitados-de-honor-en-mexico/ (describing exchange
program hosted in Mexico emphasizing and cultivating the
strength and achievements of Dreamers).
75 Secretaría de Relaciones Exteriores, Canciller Ruiz Massieu
Se Reúne con Jóvenes Dreamers, GOBIERNO DE MEXICO (JULY 4,
2016), https://www.gob.mx/sre/prensa/canciller-ruiz-massieu-sereune-con-jovenes-dreamers.

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work in the United States strengthens the binational
and multinational commitment to foster stronger
economic ties, ensure border security and protect employment and labor standards in conformity with our
bi-lateral and international agreements.76
V.

THE U.S. HAS UNDERTAKEN TO PROTECT DACA
RECIPIENTS AS PART OF ITS INTERNATIONAL OBLIGATIONS UNDER THE ICCPR

Central to the modern human rights framework
is the International Covenant on Civil and Political
rights (“ICCPR”).77 This treaty embodies the fundamental civil and political rights contained in the
Universal Declaration of Human Rights (“Universal
Declaration”),78 agreed upon at the United Nations
General Assembly on December 10, 1948. With over
150 State Parties, the ICCPR is the most widely
accepted human rights treaty in existence. Among
other protections, the ICCPR guarantees that family
is “entitled to protection by society and the State (art.
23).”79 The United States ratified the ICCPR on September 8, 1992 and is therefore bound by its terms.
76 NAFTA Implementation Act, Pub. L No: 103-182 (1993).
77 UN General Assembly, International Covenant on Civil and
Political Rights, Dec. 16, 1966, 999 U.N.T.S. 171 (“The family is
the natural and fundamental group unit of society and is
entitled to protection by society and the State.”)
78 Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Dec. 10, 1948, G.A.
Res. 217A, 3 U.N. GAOR, U.N. Doc. A/810.
79 UN General Assembly, International Covenant on Civil and
Political Rights, Dec. 16, 1966, 999 U.N.T.S. 171 (“The family is
the natural and fundamental group unit of society and is
entitled to protection by society and the State.”)

 27
When ratifying the ICCPR, the United States
appended a “declaration” to the effect that the
operative provisions of the Covenant are “not selfexecuting”.80 The basis for this declaration (the effect
of which is that the ICCPR does not, of itself, create
private rights directly enforceable in U.S. courts) was
that “the fundamental rights and freedoms protected
by the Covenant are already guaranteed as a matter
of U.S. law, either by virtue of constitutional protections or enacted statutes, and can be effectively
asserted and enforced by individuals in the judicial
system on those bases.”81
This declaration does not relieve the United
States of its obligations on the international legal
plane. Rather, it operates as a representation to the
international community that the United States’ international legal obligation to confer the fundamental
rights and protections enshrined in the ICCPR will be
discharged through the medium of U.S. domestic law,
including the U.S. Constitution, because individuals
whose human rights may be infringed are entitled to
effective equivalent remedies under that law. The
declaration amounts to an undertaking to the other
States Parties to the ICCPR that the United States
will secure the protections set forth in the ICCPR
through domestic law as applicable to “all individuals
within its territory and subject to its jurisdiction”.82
80 138 Cong. Rec. S4784 (daily ed. Apr. 2, 1992).
81 Report submitted by the United States of America under art. 40
of the ICCPR, U.N. Doc. CCPR/C/81/Add 4(1994), at 8 (emphasis added).
82 See UN General Assembly, International Covenant on Civil

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The enactment of DACA by the U.S. government
is a discretionary and unique protection made available to immigrant youth who are undocumented in
the United States. The protection from deportation
and the ability of DACA recipients to work and care
for their families comports with the U.S. government’s obligations under the ICCPR. The Department
of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary has announced
that DACA participants will not be a deportation
priority unless they commit crimes.83 This directive
along with the protections afforded by DACA would
ensure that the international obligations that the
United States has committed to with regard to the
preservation of the family unit are not undermined.
The United States has a long history of granting
deferred action or relief from deportation to vulnerable
populations of immigrants which include recipients
of Temporary Protected Status (TPS),84 Deferred
and Political Rights, Dec. 16, 1966, 999 U.N.T.S. 171 art. 2(1).
83 See 2 J.A., Dep’t of Homeland Security v. Regents of the U.
of Cal. Nos. 18-587, 18-588, and 18-589 at 594–596 (discussing
inspection and vetting process for the government before an
individual may become a DACA recipient); See also Memorandum from Sec’y of Homeland Sec., Janet Napolitano to Acting
Commissioner, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, David V.
Aguilar, Director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services,
and Director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement,
John Morton (June 15, 2012) (establishing the limitations and
standards for the exercise of discretion).
84 See Ben Harrington, An Overview of Discretionary Reprieves
from Removal: Deferred Action, DACA, TPS, and Others, CONG.
RESEARCH SERV. REP. No. 7-5700 (Apr. 10, 2018) (reviewing discretionary temporary reprieves from removal granted by the
U.S. in the last half century).

 29
Enforced Departure (DED),85 Parole,86 Administrative Closure in removal proceedings,87 Voluntary
Departure,88 Stays of Removal,89 self-petitioners
under the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA),90
student visa holders who due to natural disasters
were unable to return home,91 Widows and widowers
of U.S. Citizens,92 Victims of Trafficking,93 and victims
of serious crimes.94 Current regulations permit an
individual beneficiary of deferred action to obtain employment authorization due to economic necessity.95
These deferred action programs, like DACA, recognize
the unique circumstances of vulnerable immigrants
and give priority to ensure basic protections for
vetted individuals.
85 DED includes cases for humanitarian basis including serious
mental or physical illness, primary caretaker of minor or elderly
person, primary caretaker of ill person, present in the U.S. since
childhood. Nat’l Immigration forum, Deferred Action Basics
(Apr. 15, 2016) available at https://immigrationforum.org/
article/deferred-action-basics/.
86 Id.
87 Harrington, supra note 84 at 18.
88 Id. at 19.
89 Id.
90 Nat’l Immigration Forum, supra note 85.
91 Id.
92 Id.
93 Id.
94 Id.
95 8 C.F.R. § 274a.12(c)(14).

 30
In their 2015 report to the Human Rights
Council for the United Nations, the United States
reiterated their commitment to human rights,
Human rights are embedded in our Constitution, laws, and policies at every level, and
governmental action is subject to review by
an independent judiciary and debated by a
free press and engaged civil society. Not
only do individuals within the United States
have effective legal means to seek policy,
administrative, and judicial remedies for
human violations and abuses, the government itself pursues extensive and comprehensive enforcement actions to create systematic reform. Our federal system enables our
nation to test new methods and strategies
for promoting human rights at the state and
local levels. While recognizing that there is
more work to be done, we are constantly
striving to create a fairer and more just
society, as reflected in the programs and
policies discussed in this report.96
Further showing their commitment to the ICCPR,
the United States specifically addressed immigration
policies in this report and specifically mentioned
DACA as an indicator of compliance.97 The report
reiterates their enforcement policy that indicates
96 Rep. of the United States of Amer. Submitted to the U.N. in
Accordance with paragraph 5 of the Annex to the Human
Rights Council Resolution 16/21, 22nd Sess., Feb. 13, 2015, UN
Doc. A/HRC/WG.6/22/USA/1 (4–15 May 2015).
97 Id. Sec. E. at 12–14.

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DACA recipients are not an enforcement priority.98
DACA recipients have grown up in this country—
their families, friends, communities are in the United
States, so it is highly improbable they would depart
the country on their own if DACA was terminated.
DACA recipients would return to living under the
radar in a vulnerable state. In effect, they would be
at risk and unable or unwilling to seek the legal protections from predatory or criminal practices,
rendering the United States’ human rights protections ineffective for the very populations they seek to
protect.99

98 Id. at 12 (“Consistent with these actions, we are implementing
a new enforcement and removal policy that continues to place
top priority on threats to national security, public safety, and
border security.”).
99 Id.

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CONCLUSION
It is undisputed that the decision to rescind
DACA by the Federal Government has placed an
extraordinary level of uncertainty and anxiety on
young DACA beneficiaries who greatly contribute to
the prosperity and well-being of a country they
embrace, respect, and honor.
If DACA protections are rescinded, this young
bicultural generation will be forced to live without
certain rights and protections, substantially increasing their vulnerability and hampering the opportunities to continue contributing as vital members of
U.S. society. The rescission of DACA will augment
uncertainty in the workplace, at school, and the daily
lives for recipients, their families and the community
as a whole, potentially leading to the separation of
family members.
For the foregoing reasons, the Government of
Mexico submits the present amicus curiae, acting
under international law, to protect the interests and
rights of its nationals in potentially vulnerable situations, and respectfully requests that this Court
affirm the injunctions ordered by the courts below.

 33
Respectfully submitted,
ADELA ELVIA RUTH MCCHESNEY

COUNSEL OF RECORD

FAYE MAGDALENA KOLLY
DE MOTT, MCCHESNEY,
CURTRIGHT & ARMENDARIZ, LLP
8023 VANTAGE DRIVE, SUITE 800
SAN ANTONIO, TX 78230
(210) 590-1844
RUTH@DMCAUSA.COM

COUNSEL FOR AMICUS CURIAE
OCTOBER 3, 2019