Bricklayers Union Endorses Dream and American Promise Act

[March 12, 2019, Washington, D.C.] -  In response to the introduction of H.R. 6, the Dream and Promise Act, by Reps. Roybal-Allard, Velazquez, and Clarke – with over 125 other co-sponsors – the International Union of Bricklayers and Allied Craftworkers (BAC) released the following statement:

BAC wholeheartedly supports the Dream and Promise Act (H.R. 6), which will create a permanent pathway to citizenship for TPS and DACA holders – and in so doing will empower tens of thousands of our coworkers, friends, and neighbors to live without the fear of deportation, continue building our communities, and finally, officially, call the U.S. home.

TPS and DACA holders are an important part of the U.S. workforce and an essential part of communities across the nation. They work in every industry – construction, hospitality, food service, childcare, and more. In our industry of construction, Latinx craftworkers comprise over 30% of the workforce, and TPS and DACA holders represent a significant percentage of that group.

The labor movement has long held as a central tenet that an injury to one is an injury to all. Yes, ending TPS and DACA would be economically irresponsible and devastating for the construction industry. But beyond that, it would be needlessly cruel. The United States, the world’s beacon of liberty, simply should not be deporting valued members of our communities.

This great nation of immigrants deserves better than that. Together, united behind the Dream and Promise Act, we can prevent chaos and cruelty, and secure a stable and bright future – not only for Dreamers and TPS holders, but for our entire country.

The International Union of Bricklayers and Allied Craftworkers, headquartered in Washington, D.C., is the oldest continuous union in North America and represents over 75,000 skilled masonry and trowel trades craftworkers in the United States and Canada, including bricklayers, tile setters, cement masons, plasterers, stone masons, marble masons, restoration workers, PCC and finishers, and terrazzo and mosaic workers.