CHICAGO – Our Administration applauds President Joe Biden’s action today, offering a pathway to legal residency for spouses of U.S. citizens and a work visa program for current DACA enrollees. We also thank community partners and advocacy groups for their continued pro-immigration work. Strong families make strong communities, and by taking this action, the President is making it clear that he believes — as do I — in the importance of keeping families together

Yesterday, I issued an Executive Order on the Black Reparations Agenda, and tomorrow we celebrate Juneteenth. I believe in the same principles of unity that Mayor Harold Washington put forth 40 years ago. Mayor Washington established Chicago as a Welcoming City. The United States is a nation of immigrants. Whether coming through the Great Migration or the Darien Gap, Chicago’s immigrant and migrant communities form the basis of our city's working class.

We continue to call on Congress to pass comprehensive immigration reform to create a pathway to citizenship for the millions of hard-working people who, for far too long, have been disenfranchised. As much as Donald Trump and Republicans try to dehumanize immigrants, Americans know that those who come to our country help grow our economy and work tirelessly to secure a better life for themselves and their families. Immigrants deserve to be treated with dignity, with opportunities for their own future generations to achieve their dreams.

No human being is illegal. We are unwavering in our united stance against forces that try to divide us and our fight for justice and opportunity for all Americans.