How Joe Biden’s immigration plan works, and what it would mean for California Affiliates Kevin Johnson and Caitlin Patler featured in the Sacramento Bee
The Sacramento Bee
January 21, 2021
President Joe Biden on his first day in office sent Congress an
extensive immigration proposal that could have big implications
for California, which is home to the largest undocumented
immigrant population in the nation.
The plan, known as the U.S. Citizenship Act of 2021, would
provide a pathway to citizenship to the 11 million unauthorized
immigrants living in the United States. About 2 million of them
live in California.
Biden’s proposal would have the biggest impact for recipients of
the Obama-era Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA)
program and temporary protected status (TPS) holders, said Kevin
R. Johnson, dean of the UC Davis School of Law.
Kevin Johnson received his J.D. from Harvard Law School in 1983.
His research interests include immigration law and policy,
refugee law, civil rights, and the Critical Race and Latina/o
theories.
Caitlin Patler is Associate Professor of Sociology at UC
Davis. Dr. Patler’s research explores citizenship and
legal status as axes of stratification that shape
opportunities for mobility. She is currently conducting
longitudinal mixed-methods research on the impacts of
long-term immigration detention and on the Deferred Action for
Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. Dr. Patler received her
Ph.D.
