Northwestern University President
Morton Schapiro "Passing the DREAM Act is the right thing to do. It makes no sense to expel talented young people who have been raised as Americans. We need their knowledge and skills to build our economy and defend our nation."
DePaul University President Dr. A. Gabriel Esteban "DePaul University was founded in 1898 to serve Chicago's large and growing immigrant population. This group had very limited access to higher education. Those men and women built Chicago into the great city it is today. DePaul continues to provide a world-class education to all of our students, including new immigrants. Dream students are as much a part of Chicago as any students, and they deserve a chance to fully contribute to our culture and economy. I urge you to find a permanent solution that helps these students realize the American Dream."
Additional signatories include General Motors CEO
Mary Barra, Crate and Barrel Co-Founders
Carole and Gordon Segal, Apple CEO
Tim Cook, Exelon Chairman Emertius
John Rowe, Amazon CEO
Jeff Bezos, Berkshire Hathaway Chairman
Warren Buffett, Facebook CEO
Mark Zukerberg, Google CEO
Sundar Pichai, Microsoft CEO
Satya Nadella, Starbucks CEO
Kevin Johnson, United Airlines former Chairman
Glenn Tilton, Chicago Sister Cities Chairman
Sam Scott, MBF Healthcare Partners Chairman
Mike Fernandez, Old World Industries Chairman
Tom Hurvis, Western Industrial Contractors Founder
Barbara Grogan, among others.
Illinois CEO signatories include Crate and Barrel cofounders
Carole and Gordon Segal, Pulmonary Consultants CEO,
Dr. Mohammed Zaher Sahloul, Exelon Chairman Emeritus
John Rowe, Willis Towers Watson Group Managing Partner
John Atkinson, United Airlines Former Chairman
Glenn F. Tilton, NAIMA President
Sergio Suarez, and Outcome Health President and CEO
Shradha Agarwal and Rishi Shah, Chicago Sister Cities Chairman
Samuel C Scott III, The Pritzker Group Co-Founder
JB Pritzker, CC Industries Executive Vice President
Bill Kunkler, Susan Crown Exchange Chairman
Susan Crown, The Pritzker Traubert Family Foundation Chairman
Dr. Bryan Traubert, Robert R. McCormick Foundation President and CEO
David Hiller, GSV Acceleration Fund President
Deborah Quazzo, Ancora Associates CEO
Clare Munana, The Resurrection Project CEO
Raul Raymundo, Evans Food Group CEO and Quaker Oats Former CEO
Jose Luis Prado, Old World Industries Founder and Chairman
Tom Hurvis, National Partnership for New Americans CEO
Josh Hoyt, Illinois Science and Technology Coalition President and CEO
Mark Harris, Tech Nexus CEO
Terry Howerton, Northwestern University President
Morton Schapiro, Illinois Institute of Technology President
Alan W. Cramb, Dominican University President
Donna M. Carroll, and DePaul University President
Dr. Gabriel Esteban. The letter and current signatory list can be found here. The letter will remain open and those who wish to
sign in the future can do so here.
Full text:
August 31, 2017
To: President Donald J. Trump
To: Speaker Paul Ryan; Leader Nancy Pelosi; Leader Mitch McConnell; and Leader Charles E. Schumer As entrepreneurs and business leaders, we are concerned about new developments in immigration policy that threaten the future of young undocumented immigrants brought to America as children.
The Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, which allows nearly 800,000 Dreamers the basic opportunity to work and study without the threat of deportation, is in jeopardy. All DACA recipients grew up in America, registered with our government, submitted to extensive background checks, and are diligently giving back to our communities and paying income taxes. More than 97 percent are in school or in the workforce, 5 percent started their own business, 65 percent have purchased a vehicle, and 16 percent have purchased their first home. At least 72 percent of the top 25 Fortune 500 companies count DACA recipients among their employees.
Unless we act now to preserve the DACA program, all 780,000 hardworking young people will lose their ability to work legally in this country, and every one of them will be at immediate risk of deportation. Our economy would lose $460.3 billion from the national GDP and $24.6 billion in Social Security and Medicare tax contributions.
Dreamers are vital to the future of our companies and our economy. With them, we grow and create jobs. They are part of why we will continue to have a global competitive advantage.
We call on President Trump to preserve the DACA program. We call on Congress to pass the bipartisan DREAM Act or legislation that provides these young people raised in our country the permanent solution they deserve.
About IBIC: The Illinois Business Immigration Coalition promotes commonsense immigration reform that advances Illinois economic competitiveness, provides Illinois companies with both the high-skilled and low-skilled talent they need, and allows the integration of immigrants into our economy as consumers, workers, entrepreneurs and citizens. For more information please visit www.illinoisbic.biz
About FWD.us: FWD.us' mission is to mobilize the tech community to support policies that keep the American Dream achievable in the 21st century. For more information please visit www.fwd.us
About IMPAC Fund: IMPAC brings together business and civic leaders in Florida who support policies and practices that recognize the important contributions that immigrants make to our economy and our communities. For more information please visit impacfund.org
PRESS
Mark Zuckerberg, Warren Buffett, Mary Barra among more than 300 business titans imploring Trump to preserve Obama-era policy to protect immigrants 