Celebrities and Business Leaders Speak Out Against President Trump's 'Cruel and Misguided' DACA Decision
The president's controversial move to rescind the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program was meant with outrage and widespread derision.
Following President Donald Trump's decision to end the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program -- and Attorney General Jeff Sessions' announcement that the policy would be "rescinded" in six months -- many stars and public figures are speaking out against the move.
As protests mount around the nation, some celebrities are suggesting ways for people to help the more than 800,000 people who will be negatively impacted by the decision -- including Cher, who had a very direct approach to providing assistance.
"Those Who Can Must Take a DREAMER In2 Their Home & Protect Them," the 71-year-old music superstar tweeted on Tuesday. "I’m Ready 2 Do This & [pray] Others in MY BUSINESS WILL DO THE SAME."
When one user criticized the singer, replying, "Sure you will Cher… I'll believe it when I see it!" Cher doubled down on her pledge with an amazing clapback, responding, "Then keep your eyes open b*tch."
Meanwhile, documentarian Michael Moore encouraged people to become involved in the demonstrations against Trump and the dismantling of DACA.
"To the streets! Find out where the DACA protest is where u live and SHOW UP!" the filmmaker tweeted. "If we are ever to be a decent country, this is your moment."
Trump's surprise decision was also derided by many corporate titans and captains of industry, including Apple CEO Tim Cook, who stood on the side of those who benefit from the embattled policy.
"250 of my Apple coworkers are #Dreamers. I stand with them," Cook wrote. "They deserve our respect as equals and a solution rooted in American values."
Walt Disney Company CEO Bob Iger described the move as "cruel and misguided," tweeting, "Dreamers contribute to our economy and our nation. Congress must act fast to protect them!"
Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg also weighed in with a powerful statement shared to his social media platform, in which he said it's "a sad day for our country."
"The decision to end DACA is not just wrong. It is particularly cruel to offer young people the American Dream, encourage them to come out of the shadows and trust our government, and then punish them for it," he wrote in part, encouraging people to contact their congressional representatives to voice their outrage.
The DACA decision was also the target of pointed anger and mockery from numerous late night talk show hosts including Seth Meyers, Jimmy Kimmel and Stephen Colbert.
"This morning, our president woke up and asked his staff, 'Now that this hurricane is over, what's something horrible I can do to distract people from the Russia investigation?'" Kimmel joked in his monologue. "Someone said, 'You know, there are 800,000 innocent kids you could deport for no good reason,' and he said, 'Done and done!'"
Former President Barack Obama -- who enacted the DACA program with an executive order in June 2012 -- also spoke out against the distressing news in a statement posted to Facebook.
"Immigration can be a controversial topic. We all want safe, secure borders and a dynamic economy, and people of goodwill can have legitimate disagreements about how to fix our immigration system so that everybody plays by the rules. But that’s not what the action that the White House took today is about," Obama wrote, in part. "This is about young people who grew up in America – kids who study in our schools, young adults who are starting careers, patriots who pledge allegiance to our flag. These Dreamers are Americans in their hearts, in their minds, in every single way but one: on paper."
"To target these young people is wrong – because they have done nothing wrong. It is self-defeating – because they want to start new businesses, staff our labs, serve in our military, and otherwise contribute to the country we love. And it is cruel," the statement continued. "We shouldn’t threaten the future of this group of young people who are here through no fault of their own, who pose no threat, who are not taking away anything from the rest of us."
Check out what more of the biggest names in Hollywood, journalism and the business world have to say in response to Trump's decision.