Apple CEO Tim Cook Pledges Support to Employees Affected by DACA in New Letter

timcookApple CEO Tim Cook this morning sent out an email to employees following the announcement that United States President Donald Trump will phase out the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program over the course of the next six months. Trump has called on Congress to replace DACA with new legislation by March 5, 2018.

In the email, Cook says Apple will work with members of Congress to advocate for a legislative solution that will continue to protect the children of immigrants, and he says Apple is working with impacted Apple employees to provide support, including access to immigration experts.

Team,

America promises all its people the opportunity to achieve their dreams through hard work and perseverance. At Apple, we've dedicated ourselves to creating products that empower those dreams. And at our best, we aspire to be part of the promise that defines America.

Earlier today, the Justice Department announced that President Trump will cancel the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program in six months if Congress does not act to make the program permanent.

I am deeply dismayed that 800,000 Americans -- including more than 250 of our Apple coworkers -- may soon find themselves cast out of the only country they've ever called home.

DACA recognizes that people who arrived in the United States as children should not be punished for being here illegally. It lets these Americans, who have successfully completed rigorous background investigations, go to school, earn a living, support their families, pay taxes and work toward achieving their dreams like the rest of us. They are called Dreamers, and regardless of where they were born, they deserve our respect as equals.

I've received several notes over the weekend from Dreamers within Apple. Some told me they came to the U.S. as young as two years old, while others recounted they don't even remember a time they were not in this country.

Dreamers who work at Apple may have been born in Canada or Mexico, Kenya or Mongolia, but America is the only home they've ever known. They grew up in our cities and towns, and hold degrees from colleges across the country. They now work for Apple in 28 states.

They help customers in our retail stores. They engineer the products people love and they're building Apple's future as part of our R&D teams. They contribute to our company, our economy and our communities just as much as you and I do. Their dreams are our dreams.

I want to assure you that Apple will work with members of Congress from both parties to advocate for a legislative solution that provides permanent protections for all the Dreamers in our country.

We are also working closely with each of our co-workers to provide them and their families the support they need, including the advice of immigration experts.

On behalf of the hundreds of employees at Apple whose futures are at stake; on behalf of their colleagues and on behalf of the millions more across America who believe, as we do, in the power of dreams, we issue an urgent plea for our leaders in Washington to protect the Dreamers so their futures can never be put at risk in this way again.

Despite this setback for our nation, I'm confident that American values will prevail and we will continue our tradition of welcoming immigrants from all nations. I'll do whatever I can to assure this outcome.

Tim

Over the weekend, Cook tweeted that Apple employs 250 "dreamers," aka people who came to the United States at a young age when their undocumented parents immigrated to the country. "I stand with them," said Cook in the tweet. "They deserve our respect as equals and a solution rooted in American values."

Cook and 300 other business leaders also signed an open letter last week urging President Trump to preserve the program or to pass the bipartisan DREAM act or other legislation for a more permanent solution, but it went unheeded.

With DACA suspended, the government will not accept new applications from undocumented immigrants to defer deportation and offer work permits.

While the current 800,000 DACA enrollees are not expected to be immediately impacted and can renew their two-year permits until October 5, if a new solution isn't offered by Congress, people who grew up in the United States and have lived in the country since childhood could face deportation to countries that are essentially foreign to them.

Note: Due to the political nature of the discussion regarding this topic, the discussion thread is located in our Politics, Religion, Social Issues forum. All forum members and site visitors are welcome to read and follow the thread, but posting is limited to forum members with at least 100 posts.

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Top Rated Comments

Kaibelf Avatar
102 months ago
"America promises all its people"

"Dreamers" are not American.
Unless you are descended from a Native American tribe, you really aren't either. And I'd prefer any of these dreamers to any of the native-born dregs we have here who seem to be more into opioids, white supremacy, and militias than contributing to this nation.
Score: 123 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Glockworkorange Avatar
102 months ago
"America promises all its people"

"Dreamers" are not American.
Score: 109 Votes (Like | Disagree)
theheadguy Avatar
102 months ago
I am no real fan of Cook, when it comes to the direction of Apple's products or the speed of innovation, but this is an excellent letter. Credit is owed where credit is due. Excellent job, Mr. Cook. Now please ensure that your actions live up to your words.
Score: 80 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Eorlas Avatar
102 months ago
good for him. if these people are working, paying their taxes, and obeying the law, what is the problem?

"but they're illegal!" their parents may have been, but they (the kids) were brought here or born here without any choice. now we've let them live here and develop skills, and contribute to our society and people want to send them away?

why would you punish someone for a crime they did not commit? absolutely no one on earth appreciates being at fault for something they did not do.

EDIT: also, my imagination tells me that we have already spent tax money on them, for example by putting them through public school. now we're going to piss away those skills and give that away to somewhere else?
Score: 79 Votes (Like | Disagree)
budselectjr Avatar
102 months ago
"protect the children of immigrants"

Those were not immigrants! They were illegal aliens! What don't people get about this?
Score: 61 Votes (Like | Disagree)
ThisBougieLife Avatar
102 months ago
Keep fighting the good fight, Tim :)
Score: 53 Votes (Like | Disagree)