'There's a lot of fear, a lot of sadness and a lot of frustration:' Dreamers brace for potential end to DACA
If you've ever tuned into Metro State's Roadrunners All Access TV channel, Cristian Perez Orona's voice may sound familiar.
"I feel like a little kid again, just screaming 'goal' off the top of my lungs," Perez Orona said.
It's a dream that for Perez Orona was almost not possible, until having DACA, also known as the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals. Perez Orona is a senior at Metro State University of Denver.
"It was a big opportunity for me and my brother who was born in Mexico, and didn't have any status until recently," he told CBS News Colorado.
But Perez Orona's dream of being a sportscaster one day could be stripped away.
"There's a lot of fear, a lot of sadness and a lot of frustration," said Perez Orona.
That's because the legality of DACA is currently being questioned in the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals and a ruling is expected soon. The Obama-era measure offers protections for people who were brought to the U.S. illegally as children. There are more than 800,000 recipients nationwide.
While the program was created in 2012, a judge in Texas ruled last year that it was illegal. That ruling was appealed and a decision is expected in the fall. Colorado is home to over 14,000 DACA recipients who have a spending power of nearly $400 million. They contribute over $800 million to the state's annual GDP.
In 2012, MSU Denver also became one of the first universities in the country to offer undocumented students in-state tuition.
While Colorado has helped pass many laws and policies to help protect DACA recipients, advocates said what happens at a federal level will impact Colorado families, like Perez Orona's.
"This is going to be terrible for our communities. I can't believe it's happening that our federal government is allowing it too," said Luis Antezana, the founder of Juntos2College. The non-profit helps undocumented families find jobs and careers. The organization has helped Cristine renew his DACA.
"We're actually right now… we're getting a group together of public and private sector leadership at the city level who want to contribute financial or non-financial resources to an emergency relief short-term solution, in the case that that does ever happen," Antezana said.
As advocates like Antezana prepare for the possibility of the program ending, Perez Orona remains hopeful about his future and his dream of becoming a sportscaster.
"I have faith in a higher power, I have faith in those that have put such goodwill into this program and those recipients, so I truly do believe we'll be here permanently, right now," he said.
