DACA recipients in Houston worry about their future if policy shifts: 'It can't just be taken away'

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- Thirteen years ago this week, former U.S. President Barack Obama put a pause on deportations for children who came to the US illegally through no fault of their own and allowed them to go to school and work. The executive action was called DACA.

The former president posted on the social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, on Sunday, "DACA as an example of how we can be a nation of immigrants and a nation of laws." But DACA recipients remain in limbo with an uncertain future.

Those who received DACA are called Dreamers. There are more than 500,000 DACA recipients in the U.S., more than 100,000 in Texas alone, and for many, the so-called Dreamers, this is the only home they've ever known, but their futures here are in doubt.

For Marco Cruz-Linares, he has goals which include getting an education and becoming a lawyer.

He just earned his political science degree from the University of Houston-Downtown, and is planning to attend law school next fall. He might have come here illegally when he was young, but this is the only home he really knows.

"I've been living here my entire life since I was 9 years old," Cruz-Linares told ABC13. "I am a Texan. The way I see the world is like an American."

Marco is a recipient of DACA, which stands for Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals. So is Kenia Cueva, he came to the United States from El Salvador when she was just four years old.

Kenia applied for a received DACA when she was 11 years old. But she and her siblings have watched the protests over immigration policy, paid attention to court rulings, and she worries about her future and her family.

"This is pretty much my home," Cueva said. "It's worrisome. It's an everyday thing. My parents, they do worry. We're all immigrants. We're not sure what the next thing might provide for us."

For 13 years, DACA recipients like Marco and Kenia have been allowed to stay, go to school, and get a job. Kenia works for immigration law firm Naimeh Salem & Associates.

"I'm honestly grateful that I have DACA," she said. "I am able to provide for my family, being able to have a job. "

Molly Full is an immigration attorney who knows how countless DACA recipients worry about their future if policy shifts.

"We do need to find a way to fully legalize and codify it in a way that it can't just be taken away and used as a pawn," Full said.

There is legislation to offer Dreamers a permanent home in the United States. Houston Congresswoman Sylvia Garcia leads the effort in Congress to codify DACA with the Dream and Promise Act. She says she needs Republicans in the House and Senate to help pass it.

"The children know no other country except this one. In their heart, in their mind, in their soul, they're American. They know nothing else," Garcia told ABC13. "We have passed the Dream and Promise Act twice out of the House of Representatives. I'm the sponsor now. We've got over 200 sponsors, including one Republican."

Marco Cruz-Linares, who interned for the congresswoman, remains hopeful as he pursues his dreams.

"I hope they are successful because us dreamers," he said. "We do contribute to this country."

For updates on this story, follow Tom Abrahams on Facebook, X and Instagram.