WACO, Texas (KXXV) — President-elect Trump has made some big promises once he takes office in January, including mass deportation of undocumented immigrants.
25 News' Bobby Poitevint spoke to two locals who call Texas home but have fears of DACA possibly ending and potentially being deported.
"The U.S. is my home" Juan Carlos Cerda said.
Cerda has spent practically all of his life here in America and is a recipient of DACA.
Cerda now the Texas State Director for the American Business Immigration Coalition.
Through photos — you can see his life grow — through family, marriage, career, home ownership, and even receiving an Ivy League education.
Cerda is also one of the roughly 90K reported DACA recipients working in Texas. Still, he's "terrified" this American dream could all end once President-elect Trump takes office.
"Now I have a home, so I will probably be unable to make mortgage payments and lose my home and entire livelihood," Cerda said. "So it's very upsetting."
These uncertainties have forced him and his wife to have tough conversations if the unthinkable happens.
"A raid or deportation proceedings, our family members knowing where we are and just having a backup plan," Cerda said.
Cerda said he's hoping Congress will step in and not allow DACA to end.
"I call myself an American in every way except on paper," Oscar Silva said. "I grew up with the cartoons— learning the language."
From high school sweethearts to bride and groom — Silva and his wife are now conversing about him being deported, but through thick and thin, they'll be together.
"She’s not very familiar with the Spanish language, and also, she's a school teacher, and so one of the things we talk about is how it would be really hard for her to say bye to her students," Silva said.
Silva is a college student in Texas who is urging President-elect Trump to consider how productive undocumented immigrants are to the U.S. economy and to our local neighborhoods.
"We're very invested in our communities. We're very invested in this country," Silva said.
