The Supreme Court and steps forward in our democracy

The Supreme Court and steps forward in our democracy

June 18, 2020

Dear University of Maryland community,

The U.S. Supreme Court made history this week with two decisions that impact LBGTQ+ members and Dreamers in our community, but they are also a step forward for democracy, equality, and justice for all in America.

The week began with the unexpected ruling that Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits employment discrimination on the basis of gender, also prohibits such discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and transgender status. It is one of the most important victories of the LGBTQ+ movement. When being considered for a job, every person deserves to be treated equally, with dignity and respect.

Today, the Court issued another ruling that surprised many, but offered more limited protection. Still, the decision came as good news to the more than 600,000 young people in the eight-year-old Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. It blocked on procedural grounds the U.S. Government's effort to end DACA, thereby providing immediate, albeit temporary, relief to young people known as Dreamers. Their futures remain uncertain, including the approximately 120 Terp Dreamers on campus.

Americans in all but name, they were brought here as children by parents who lacked papers. Dreamers who signed up for DACA have thrived. Many went to college, got jobs, worked hard, paid taxes, and served in the military. America is their home; many remember no other. The possibility of deportation at a later date is achingly unfair, since they have done everything asked of them. Slamming the door on them shuts us off from our fundamental values and national ideals.

What can secure their future is action by Congress. I support the "American Dream and Promise Act" that provides Dreamers with a three-step pathway to citizenship via college, work, or the armed services. Their dream is our own.

Social change in a democracy is hard and slow. But the social movements that led to these two Supreme Court decisions reinforce my belief in an America, where progress in forming a more perfect union is possible.

Sincerely,