On January 23-25, UFCW Local 540 hosted an immigration workshop and informational session with more than 50 attendees as part of the UFCW’s Union Citizenship Action Network (UCAN). During the workshop, participants discussed President Obama’s recent executive action on immigration known as Deferred Action for Parents (DAP), along with learning about the naturalization process and Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA). The session was run by UFCW Executive Vice President and Director of the Civil Rights and Community Action Department Esther López.
In November, the President put the DAP program in place to remove the threat of deportation for parents of U.S. citizens and legal permanent residents. Many UFCW local unions are hosting similar forums to help members determine whether they qualify, gather necessary documentation, prescreen their applications, and answer important legal questions.
The naturalization and citizenship part of the training provided participants with the platform to learn about the critical skills and tools needed to assist eligible UFCW members and their families to go through the naturalization process to become U.S. citizens. In addition to learning about the naturalization process, participants were also trained to provide assistance to workers or their family members who qualify for immigration benefits under the Obama Administration’s June 2012 memorandum on DACA.
For more information about DAP, visit www.ufcw.org/immigrationaction. If you are interested in sample documents that can help in this process, please contact Amy Gray at agray@ufcw.org. In addition, DAP flyers in English and Spanish are available on the UFCW Political Toolkit at www.ufcwtoolkit.com.
If your local union is interested in hosting a training or taking advantage of upcoming immigration training opportunities, please contact Eduardo Peña at epena@ufcw.org.
