NEW YORK, Sept. 5 (Xinhua) -- New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio blasted U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday after his administration announced to phase out a program shielding from deportation immigrants who came to the United States illegally as children.
"We warned you not to threaten our neighbors, @realDonaldTrump," de Blasio tweeted Tuesday minutes after Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced that the administration would rescind the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program with a six-month delay.
The DACA beneficiaries were known as Dreamers in the United States.
"New York City will fight to defend our Dreamers," de Blasio added, using a term commonly used to refer to recipients of DACA.
"To the Dreamers of New York City: We stand with you. We will fight for you. In solidarity, New York City," said a statement posted by @NYCMayorsOffice on Tuesday.
"We are prepared to take legal action to protect DACA," it said.
New York State Governor Andrew Cuomo and Attorney General Eric Schneiderman on Monday also threatened to sue if Trump moved to end the DACA program.
The DACA, which was passed under the Obama administration in 2012, grants temporary residency and work privileges to those who entered the country before their 16th birthday.
Under the program, Dreamers can apply to defer deportation and legally reside in the U.S. for two years.
After that, they can apply for renewal. By March 31, 240,700 people had applied for renewal in the 2017 fiscal year and nearly 800,000 renewals have been approved over the life of the program.
