Monday, Aug. 15 marks a decade since the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program open to undocumented young people. The popular and successful, implemented by President Obama under the relentless activism of undocumented youth, has allowed hundreds of thousands of applicants to apply for work permits and live freer from the threat of deportation.
Countless have been able to pursue higher education, advance careers, buy homes and support families, and live with some peace of mind. The Medina brothers are just one example. When Leo’s approval letter arrived, the family said a prayer of thanks, USA Today reports. His first paycheck from an entry-level job at a Dallas hospital went in part to buy new shoes for his brothers. Isai would enroll the next year, and is currently pursuing a degree.
Carlos, the youngest of the brothers, would like the same opportunities as Leo and Isai. But he’s blocked from enrollment in the program.
RELATED STORY: Federal court denies relief to tens of thousands of first-time DACA hopefuls
“When he turned 15 and was eligible to apply for DACA, the family was struggling financially and couldn’t afford the $495 application fee,” USA Today reported. “When they finally saved enough to apply, Trump temporarily ended the policy, darkening Carlos Medina’s outlook.” When court rulings in June 2020 and then the following December (again led by the activism of young immigrants) forced that administration to reopen the program, Leo applied.
He’d gotten a letter saying his application had been accepted when an anti-immigrant judge in the state halted new applications under a years-long Republican-led lawsuit.
With that, his hopes were dashed yet again. The application, and Carlos, are in limbo. Over 80,000 other first-time applicants are in the same boat. “I basically feel like the black sheep,” he told USA Today. “All I know is America. I was raised here my whole life. I don’t have any memories of Mexico ... It’s frustrating that I don’t have the same opportunities that kids who are born here have.”
“After our Supreme Court win in 2020, the possibilities opened up for me, but that was taken away when a federal judge in my home state of Texas ruled that USCIS couldn’t process any more first-time DACA applications like my own,” said Katia Escobar in a statement received by Daily Kos. She hopes for a career in medicine. Daily Kos has previously noted that tens of thousands of DACA beneficiaries have worked on the medical frontlines during the novel coronavirus pandemic.
Kirlish Orozco’s application is similarly frozen. “Today, I feel incredibly inspired by the decade-long victory of immigrants who fought to win and keep DACA,” she said in a statement received by Daily Kos. “I also feel very uncertain of my future and the millions like me who live every day with the risk of detention, deportation, and family separation.”
“10 years of DACA today,” tweeted Mario Carrillo, Texas-based campaigns director for America’s Voice. “My wife applied in 11/2012 for the first time. We married in 11/2016. She was only four years into the program, a college graduate and working. Can honestly say 6 years later that I did not think we'd still be here very much reliant on the future of DACA.” He continues:
Young immigrants and their advocates were recently in a New York court to try to have the tens of thousands of frozen applications reconsidered but were denied by a judge. Separately, the Texas case that stopped new applications has gone to a conservative appeals court, with a positive decision looking unlikely. Escobar, Orozco, and other young undocumented people continued to remind us that ultimately only Congress can give them the certainty they need.
“I should have DACA protections right now as I continue on my path to medical school and more,” Escobar said. “But I’m not giving up hope. I know that organizing can deliver wins for our community, and I know that it is past time that Congress acts. While DACA remains in limbo and millions of us continue to live without protections, we need a pathway to citizenship.”
“When I received DACA in high school, I gained the ability to work, provide for my family, establish a credit history, and finally feel more recognized as the American that I have always been,” said Daishi Miguel-Tanaka, legislative manager of the Immigration Hub. “None of this would have been possible without the relentless organizing of immigrant youth who demanded permanent solutions for people like me.” Miguel-Tanaka said that “[w]ith the program on the chopping block, the need to deliver lasting legislative action is more urgent than ever.”
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