Reach out to young migrants

Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) is a federal program launched last year by the Obama administration. The initiative, meant as a stop-gap measure, has offered respite to any undocumented resident who was under 31 as of June 15, 2012, and was brought to this country before age 16.

It was a means of extending a reprieve to people brought to this country illegally as children, a two-year, renewable status that was offered when the more permanent legalization for these children, a measure known as the DREAM Act, failed to pass Congress.

Unfortunately, there may be many of the eligible youths in Hawaii still living in fear of deportation. Only 247 have applied for the protected status. If the estimates cited by the nonpartisan think tank Migration Policy Institute are correct — roughly 6,000 youths living in Hawaii without legal documents — that’s a paltry level of enrollment, especially in comparison to other states’ experiences. Across the country, about 49 percent of those eligible have applied under DACA.

Comprehensive immigration reform remains the best way to bring more long-term U.S. residents out of the shadows and into a legal status and fuller participation in the economy and tax base. But until that happens — and with the current politically poisoned atmosphere on Capitol Hill, it won’t be soon — there ought to be broader efforts to reach more who should benefit from temporary relief.

One of the success stories was shared this week by 25-year-old Mahe Vakauta, who told Star-Advertiser writer Susan Essoyan about his life for the past four years in legal limbo. He came to Hawaii from Tonga at age 4 and, although his parents are now lawful permanent residents, the family had missed a deadline to secure the same for Vakauta before he turned 21.

After working and living under the radar, he’s now a supervisor at his company, has bought a car and is more able to help his family. That’s what a measure of security has yielded, for this young man and for his community.

Unlike others who may be eligible, Vakauta did not have to worry about exposing other family members to deportation, which is why he could feel free to apply and to talk about it. Those experienced in immigration law surmise that this worry may be what’s holding back others who could reap the same benefits.

In addition, the profile of Hawaii’s undocumented immigrants is entirely different from those living on the mainland, where many who illegally crossed the border over land could do so with their children. The outreach to Mexican and other Hispanic migrants about DACA has been intense.

By comparison, the Hawaii migrants are largely of Asian and Pacific origin and, some experts have said, many may not realize the Hispanic-centered messaging applies to them, too. Asians, including the large Filipino population, are more likely to have come through legal channels. For those who do fall out of status, there may be fewer children in the mix, because border crossings are more complex.

Finally, said Maui County Immigrant Services Director Kevin Block, there is the matter of trust. It might help persuade more youths to apply for temporary protection, Block said, if the messenger was someone like themselves, someone who has gone through similar circumstances, instead of immigration officials or attorneys. Coordinating such a peer-driven outreach effort could be done by the nonprofit sector, with the help of state and local government agencies. For families and friends who want to help, a visit to the We Own the Dream website (weownthedream.org) can provide a starting point.

DACA may not be seen as a direct benefit to many people, but the loss of young, hard-working immigrants from society does register as lost potential to the community as a whole. Hawaii would gain from their civic engagement.

And, if some progress on broad immigration reform can be achieved, America could finally reconcile with its class of hidden residents who would gladly work to become fully American.