“Black Panther” Actor Joins Rally to Fight for DREAMers
“We are the teachers of your children, we are the caretakers, we are the servants, we do everything in this nation,” Bambadjan Bamba said in his speech.
“Black Panther” actor Bambadjan Bamba made a passionate speech at the Home Is Here rally in Washington D.C. in support of DACA immigrants.
Bamba comes from the Ivory Coast in West Africa and revealed his immigration status after President Trump attempted to end the Obama-era program in September 2017.
“We are the teachers of your children, we are the caretakers, we are the servants, we do everything in this nation,” Bamba said in his speech. “And we’re also actors in blockbuster films and hit television shows that come inside your home and that you love.”
DACA, or the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals Act, was enacted in 2012 to grant temporary residency to an entire generation of immigrants brought to the U.S. as children, protecting them from deportation. DACA first came into effect after President Obama tried and failed to get Congress to pass immigration reform. The Trump administration attempted to rescind the policy and has faced numerous court challenges, which has led to Tuesday’s hearing.
Bamba’s words were met with cheers at the rally, which took place outside of the Supreme Court. Inside, arguments were being heard in the case that could decide the fate of nearly 1 million young people who have been protected from deportation thus far.
“And because this country has a broken, outdated immigration system, we cannot legalize ourselves. There is no pathway to citizenship for people like us,” Bamba said.
According to questions asked by the justices during arguments, the five conservatives on the court seem to be leaning in favor of the Trump administration, which gives them the slight majority. But that didn’t stop the hundreds of protesters making their voices heard on the steps of the Supreme Court, chanting, “Home is here.”
“There’s 800,000 of us and millions of others who are in a situation where if there were right laws, if there was a pathway, people would stand in line,” Bamba said. “We want nothing else but to stand in line and be able to have our papers.”
The final decision on DACA is not expected to be determined until spring or summer of 2020.