photo collage by Bryanna Bartlett
Many undocumented students are at potential risk of deportation as the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), the only policy that allows them to continue to gain an education safely in the U.S., may have its days numbered.
Introduced during former President Barack Obama’s term in 2012, the policy has been in place for a little over a decade.
However, with the recent attack on Dreamers, DACA recipients are worried as the Fifth Circuit of Appeals has announced that the Obama administration had no legal authority to create the program, according to an Oct. 12 NBC News article.
On Oct. 5, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit issued a decision on the DACA policy in which it partially affirmed the district court’s July 2021 decision declaring the policy unlawful, according to the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services DACA webpage.
However, the court of appeals preserved the partial stay issued by the district court in July 2021 and remanded the case back to the district court for further proceedings regarding the new DACA regulation published on Aug. 30 and scheduled to go into effect on Oct. 31.
With the threat of deportation hanging over their heads once again, Ana Navarrete, the San Jose State UndocuSpartan Student Resource Center program director, said this is a very difficult moment in America.
“The decision of the fifth circuit court of appeals was disappointing,” Navarrete said.
The 453-page federal regulation will codify the Obama-era program into the federal government’s regulations code, according to an Aug. 24 CBS News article.
DACA has permitted hundreds of thousands of unauthorized immigrants who arrived in the U.S. as children to live and work legally without fear of deportation, since its inception a decade ago, according to the CBS News article.
The DACA program currently protects about 800,000 immigrants, according to the American Immigration Council.
The Aug. 24 ruling is designed to address some of the Republican-led challenges against DACA, specifically the July 2021 decision by a Texas federal judge that closed new DACA applications.
The Texas order, which came from the federal court case Texas v. United States, permits the U.S. government to process first-time DACA requests, but it can’t grant or deny the applications, according to a June 29 National Immigration Law Center article.
In accordance with the court’s Oct. 5 order, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services will continue to accept and process DACA renewal requests. The service will also continue to accept but will not process new DACA requests.
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services will also accept and process accompanying requests for employment authorization and applications for advance parole, which allows DACA recipients to travel freely outside of the country and to return without a visa.
Navarrete said as the fifth circuit appeals try to take away the education from the students and children, she still feels like there is hope.
“I believe in the power of advocacy and in the many communities fighting for a comprehensive immigration relief for all undocumented people, including DACA youth,” Navarrete said.
She said if students under the program stay in the state and continue to attend school, everything should be fine.
“Undocumented students in California will continue to receive the same financial aid and in-state tuition benefits regardless of what happens with DACA,” Navarrete said.
Some of the financial aid opportunities that students can continue to qualify for include the Cal Grant, Chafee Grant, Middle Class Scholarship and University of California Grants, according to the California Student Aid Commission DACA webpage.
“We are fortunate to live in a state where state leaders and lawmakers continue to work alongside immigrant rights leaders and institutions of higher ed, such as the CSU, to ensure that undocumented scholars have the resources and support that they need to achieve their academic and career goals,” Navarrete said.
She wants DACA recipients to know that the clock is ticking to get their status renewed, especially since first-time applicants, whose status has expired within the last year, will not have their application reviewed.
Senior Kimo Anderson, who is outside of the DACA program, said he feels like this is a giant step in the wrong direction.
“I feel like this country prides itself on how we accept so many people here and how this country is a conglomerate of different types of people and experiences,” Anderson said. “But when you do things like this, it begins to put limits on those who come here and it makes DACA receipts feel like they should not be here.”
A junior student who wished to remain anonymous because of security concerns shared their thoughts on what’s going on with DACA right now.
“It is a sad thing to see that those looking to get a good education are facing discrimination again,” the student said.
Even though the program was created under former President Obama’s term, former President Donald Trump repeatedly stated he would try to destroy the program and deport the young scholars back to their countries, according to a June 19, 2020 USA Today article.
“We are not surprised that this is happening,” the anonymous student said. “The program was never a guaranteed thing, but all we can do is hope that we are noticed and given the opportunity to continue going to school.”