Hundreds gather at Capitol to protest SB-4 and the possibility of dismantling DACA
President Trump is getting close to a decision of possibly doing away with the DACA program, affecting the fate of hundreds of thousands of young people brought into the country illegally as children.
This was just one of the issues many were protesting at the Capitol over the weekend in Austin.
Hundreds at the rally could be seen with signs aimed at SB-4 and DACA. Some were dressed as Aztec dangers; others had quinceanera dresses on to show they are proud of their culture.
“I am the proud daughter of Mexican immigrants and I want our governor, state legislators, Donald Trump to know that no law you pass no matter how hateful, how discriminatory will make me ashamed of who I am and where I come from, “ said Cristina Tzintzun, Executive Director of Jolt and one of the speakers at the rally.
Earlier in the week a federal judge temporarily blocked several parts of SB-4 also called the anti-sanctuary cities law from going into place Friday. Those at the rally said it's a step in the right direction but their fight against SB-4 is far from over.
Shelby Herrera is the President of the Texas A&M Collegiate LULAC Chapter, “Temporary relief is not permanent relief. So we have to keep pushing to continue showing resistance. We have to continue showing our elected officials that it's important for them to stand up for us so that's why events like this are extremely important,” she said.
Adding to their fight is the possibility of President Trump dismantling DACA, “The Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals” program set-up under President Obama.
The program protects children of illegal immigrants from deportation.
Those accepted under the program, known as "Dreamers" can become eligible for work permits here in the U.S. It would affect about 800,000 undocumented people who moved to the U.S. when they were children.
“We will not rest; we will resist this rhetoric that's being tossed around. This anti-immigrant sentiment is no longer acceptable; it has never been acceptable to begin with, so we will not stop fighting until we get the proper representation for our people," Herrera said.
Tzintzun said Latinos are the future of Texas and they make up 1 in 3 eligible voters and could soon be the majority. "They are more afraid of us than we are afraid of them. They're afraid because right now here in Texas, we hold the power in our hands to take them out of office if we so choose,” she said to a cheering crowd.
The President is expected to announce his plans for DACA on Tuesday.
If he doesn't end the program several states have said they'll challenge the program in court.