Is DACA in Jeopardy After Election? I Published December 27

By Blanca Mora

With Donald Trump elected as president to run the country again, Kean University activists and The Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals ( DACA)  recipients are expressing anxiety over how his policies could affect their lives and the place the called home.

The Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) was established in 2012 as a temporary solution to a fractured immigration system, and allows some individuals who, entered the country as children of at least five years old. Recipients receive a social security number and are eligible to get a driver’s license, job and start on a path to potential citizenship. The beneficiaries of this policy are known as dreamers.

In September 2017, Trump announced a plan to phase out DACA, 800,000 DACA recipients in the United States were threaded, by that time 200 were Kean University students.

Sara Mora, a majoring in International Politics at Kean, said “I lost every single hope I had”. Sara, was born in Costa Rica, she immigrated to the U.S. illegally with her parents when she was 3 years old. She grew up in New Jersey and at the age of 16, she joined the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals DACA program.

 I am preparing myself to enter to Law School. “I’m undocumented and I’m afraid of what the future has set out for Me.”, Sara with her eyes tearing, remembers when the U.S. Supreme Court blocked Trump’s first plan to dismantle DACA and now as an undocumented immigrant living in the U.S., many aspects of her life are out of her control.

 Another DACA recipient at KEAN, said that, she is absolutely threatened under this incoming administration, “I feel lost and depressed” said (Unknown) this is a Student of Politics at Kean and actual DACA recipient, she did not want to reveal her name because she was afraid like many others.

In order to protect and ensure support and protection to this students, Carlos Rodriguez Vice President of Administration at Kean said that, because of the new legislation that requires to maintain confidentiality regarding this information they cannot talk about it, he said that they are required  to maintain confidential regarding this information.

 But he  mentioned “our priority remains adhering to these requirements while supporting our students in other ways”

At the same time Kean University is a exploring ways to uplift their students and community at-large as such, they  are working to sponsor a statewide DACA Resource Fair to be held in January 20.

Many Dreamers hoped the U.S law will change and it would give them a permanent status. That is why Activist’s like Sara Mora, will use her voice to fight for the community. “Because the only thing we can control of is our voice, to change this country and help others in my position”, Sara Mora.

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