TYLER, Texas — Hundreds of thousands of immigrants protected under DACA status are still in limbo and in fear that their temporary solution may soon come to an end.
The Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, or DACA as many know it, keeps getting shut down at a federal level. Just last week, another federal judge deemed the program illegal but didn't exactly end it either. Those currently enrolled in the program are able to renew but new applicants aren't able to apply.
Those advocating for the program are waiting for Congress to take action to come up with a permanent solution for these immigrants who came to the United States as children, often not knowing it was illegal.
Locally, several East Texans are also facing the impacts of decisions made at the federal level like Blanca Villanueva.
"We've been in limbo, we don't know what's next," Villanueva said.
Villanueva owns Cup O' Joy Teahouse, a Boba tea shop in Tyler, and she's also a DACA recipient, also known as a Dreamer, like thousands of others living in East Texas.
"If you lose your DACA, you won't be able to continue with your career," she said.
DACA protects young adults who were brought to America as kids from deportation; the program opens doors they would not have as undocumented immigrants.
"When that program came out, I got really excited, because it was an opportunity for me to be able to have an education and be able to continue my career goals that I had in mind," Villanueva said.
The program was established by former President Barack Obama by an executive action in 2012.
"They (DACA recipients) often have no idea that they are undocumented until they apply for a job," Obama said.
It's been 11 years since that executive order and Gilbert Urbina, assistant director at the Hispanic American Center for East Texas, said there's been no action from Congress.
"When Obama did the speech, he said, I'm doing this as an executive order, but I'm signaling to Congress to do something about it," Urbina said. "What worries many people is that the program is temporary. It's not a permanent solution."
Just last week, a federal judge in the Southern District ruled the program illegal. No new applications are accepted, meaning many young students set to graduate in 2024 won't have access to education, jobs or legal status.
"What I like about DACA is I get to see the people that are benefiting from them. We have registered nurses, certified teachers, we have linemen that protect us whenever there are storms," Urbina said. "These are individuals are professionals, are already integrated into our community (and) in our servicing our the needs of the entire community."
CBS19 reached out to U.S. Congressman Nathaniel Moran, who represents East Texas in the U.S. House of Representatives, for a comment about DACA and its current status, but he has not yet responded. We will update this story when we hear back.
In the meantime, Urbina encourages constituents to call and express the need for clear legislation.
"The community has to understand that this program affects everyone. These individuals are part of our community. We need to protect them, and they can create a pathway for them to make this permanent."