Maricruz R., a Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals recipient who came to the U.S. when she was seven, remembers overcoming huge hurdles even at that young age. “I attended a school where there wasn’t any bilingual education,” she said.
Today, she’s a bilingual teacher in Oregon, and she feels her work isn’t just to educate, but also to inspire with her own personal story. “When we read books about farm workers,” she says, “I am able to share my stories with them of when I worked in fields.”
The educator shares her story as part of a first-of-its-kind video legal brief filed this month with the Supreme Court by immigrant rights advocacy group United We Dream. The group of DACA recipients tell the justices that, should they side with the Trump administration’s unlawful decision to terminate the popular program, it “will have a devastating impact on entire communities and the moral fabric of our nation.”
Maricruz is of course worried about her own future, but she’s also worried for her students. “We are short on bilingual teachers,” she said. But the role Maricruz plays in the lives of the students also cuts much deeper. “Something I work on is to make them feel that they belong here,” she says.
Maricruz’s successes in life have been because of her own drive, but DACA gave her a platform to launch from.
“With DACA’s protection,” the brief continues, “Maricruz was able to go back to school and obtain an associate’s degree in Early Childhood Education and, later, a bachelor’s degree. Now a schoolteacher in Salem, Oregon, Maricruz has taught children ranging from pre-kindergarten to elementary school.”
“She is able to drive to work, build a credit history, and support her family,” the brief continues. “As a member of the Oregon DACA Coalition, she has been a powerful voice for immigrants’ rights. She finds deep fulfillment in her teaching and volunteering: ‘I want to be able to give back. We are part of this community.’”
And she helps her students remember that they, too, are a part of this community. This is their home, and it should be Maricruz’s too.