Story by Leah Soto, Anya Magnuson and Nicole Neri
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Attorneys and the Arizona Dream Act Coalition held a bilingual gathering on Wednesday to discuss the end of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program and to give advice to Dreamers, their families and those who want to help.
The DACA program was enacted in 2012 and grants undocumented immigrants who were brought to the US as children protection from deportation and the opportunity to apply for work permits. DACA students also currently receive in-state tuition in Arizona.
President Donald Trump announced his plan to dismantle the program Tuesday with a six month delay. If Congress does not pass immigration reform in the coming months to restore DACA the program will end.
Karina Ruiz of the Arizona Dream Act Coalition told the group that the best way to handle the situation was to band together.
“We cannot make change alone,” Ruiz said at the First Church UCC in Phoenix.
Ruiz also advised that those whom may be affected by Trump’s decision should find groups that they can relate to and share stories with.
“Being in a community is what heals me,” Ruiz said, later adding that expressing feelings is good and that it is “Okay to cry, but don’t get stuck in that; put all that energy into action.”
Early in the discussion, the crowd was invited to share their feelings about the decision. People shouted out their responses in Spanish and English: helpless, sad, frustrated, mad, embarrassed and disappointed were a few of the emotions expressed.
Attorney Daniel Rodríguez led the legal portions of the discussion and also agreed that people need to use their energy to take advantage of the opportunities.
“There’s always opportunities in moments of crisis,” said Rodríguez. “A lot of people are focusing on the crisis right now, and I want to get them to focus on the opportunity.”
Rodríguez stressed that understanding legislation is vital to making real changes in the community.
“I have always wanted to be an attorney,” said Rodríguez. “My mom is undocumented, my sister is undocumented. I remember thinking, ‘Why are we always running away from the law, why is it we cannot educate ourselves about the law, change the law, and use the law in our favor?’”
Arizona Dream Act Coalition organizer Adonías Arevalo, a DACA recipient from El Salvador, used PowerPoint presentations written in Spanish to lay out the structure of the U.S. government as if in a civics classroom. The slideshow began with “Las Tres Ramas del Gobierno,” or the three branches of government.
“It’s important that we get to know the root of the issue,” Arevalo said.
Arevalo came to the United States when he was 13 and lived with his mother and older sister in Texas for years before applying for DACA in 2012.
Arevalo credits DACA with providing him the opportunity to study political science at the University of Houston and obtain his jobs at United Way and Arizona Dream Act Coalition.
Gordon Street, one of the founding members of the immigration task force at First Church UCC, also spoke to the power the white population holds over DACA.
“I’m a white male,” Street said. “I think it’s time to turn around white privilege and use it. Unfortunately, press will listen to us a lot quicker then they’ll listen to a Latino or a person of color.”
Contact the reporters at Leah.Soto@asu.edu, Anya.Magnuson@asu.edu and Nicole.Neri@asu.edu.
