The outrage sparked by the defeat of President Obama’s effort to shield millions of immigrants from deportation morphed Friday into a promise of political action.
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But because of Thursday’s tie before the Supreme Court, the lower court ruling stands, to the dismay of local advocates for undocumented immigrants.
As its name suggests, the program would have given the undocumented parents of citizens or permanent residents a shot to avoid deportation and receive work permits.
The U.S. Supreme Court’s decision strongly indicates that executive action on immigration on a widespread basis may be hard in the future and any chance of immigration reform may not be possible without Congressional involvement.
Eduardo Sainz, of Mi Familia Vota, said the news that the high court was deadlocked brought tears to his eyes but that he will continue to fight for immigrant rights.
In November 2014 when President Barack Obama unveiled his executive action on immigration amid congressional gridlock, Bryan Martinez says he was relieved that the federal government planned to protect him from deportation.
Jessica González-Rojas, the executive director of the National Latina Institute for Reproductive Health, told Radio Sputnik’s Brian Becker that she is outraged with what she considers to be a failure by the Supreme Court.
Edelweiss Geary, chairwoman of the Sonoma County Republican Party, applauded the Supreme Court’s deadlock, calling it “a little sign of hope”.
“This is a demonstration to show our community members that they’re not alone and to also show our elected officials that we will hold them accountable”.
Amber Arriaga-Salinas from Proyecto Azteca says, “The way that they’re going to show that they’re fighting is to show up at the polls and vote for the people that support comprehensive immigration reform”.
The issue of illegal immigration has featured prominently in the presidential campaign.
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“Although the road is now more hard, and has taken a new turn, we are used to this”, she said.
