SALT LAKE CITY — When she was 4 years old, Nidia Romero remembers riding in the car with her mother and being told to go to sleep.
She didn't know her life was about to change forever.
"I just remember taking a nap in the car — falling asleep, (then) waking up — and we were in Texas," Romero recalled.
Taken across the Mexico-U.S. border as a toddler, Romero, now herself a mother of five living in West Valley City, grew up calling the United States home. But it wasn't until the implementation of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program began in 2012 that she felt truly at home in the only country she can remember.
It was not until then, she said, that "I feel free" and "I felt like I did not have to hide."
"I felt accepted," Romero told the Deseret News. "I didn't feel like I was different."
So-called "Dreamers" like Romero were joined by elected officials, immigration attorneys, business leaders and others who called on Congress to pass immigration reforms after the White House announced Tuesday that protections will be phased out for people brought to the U.S. as children by unauthorized immigrant parents.
The Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, created by President Barack Obama, has protected Dreamers from deportation and enabled them to work legally in the United States.
U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions said Tuesday that the program has been rescinded, but there will be a six-month phase out period.
One of the first Utahns to be approved for the protections, a young professional who earned a master's degree from a Utah university, spoke on the condition of anonymity: "The decision was not ideal but under the circumstances, it can be the best possible outcome. A lot can be accomplished in six months and the onus is on Congress to act."
The biggest relief, he said, is that people who have work permits under the program will be able to continue employment until it expires.
"It doesn't immediately disrupt our life and it gives us time to figure alternate solutions," he said.
Sessions said the Obama administration initiative was "unconstitutional," remarking that it circumvented federal immigration laws. While campaigning for president, Donald Trump vowed to end the program the first day of his presidency, denigrating it as illegal "amnesty."
Skyler Anderson, an immigration attorney in Utah, said the announcement impacted him "in a very personal way as I have had the great honor to work very closely with hundreds of Utah residents who have benefited from DACA. It saddens me to think about the concerns and fears I know they are experiencing right now."
There are about 10,500 people in Utah whose initial applications for protected status under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals have been approved, according to data kept by United States Citizenship and Immigration Services. Out of that group, a little less than 7,500 have been granted their applications for renewal of that protected status.
Those who qualify are attending or have completed at least high school and do not have any serious criminal history, Anderson said.
"These are the people we need in this country. They embraced our American values long ago because, quite frankly, they are the only values they know. Deporting these kids would be the psychological equivalent of sending one of my own U.S. citizen children to live alone in a foreign country," Anderson said.
Delegation reacts
Luis Garza, executive director of Comunidades Unidas/Communities United, said President Trump, in ending the DACA program, "is once again demonstrating his lack of moral character and complete disregard for humanity and the values that hold us together.”
He urged Utah's congressional delegation "to stand up and do the right thing for Utah families" by supporting the bipartisan DREAM Act.
"We specifically ask Sen. Orrin Hatch to sign on as a co-sponsor of the bill. The current administration does not support the future of our state’s youth, but Utahns have always believed in family unity and welcoming immigrants," Garza said.
Hatch, in a statement Tuesday, said he called Trump last week and urged him not to rescind DACA "because I believe it puts Dreamers, who were brought here as children through no fault of their own, in an extremely difficult position."
Hatch said he believes "we have a real opportunity for bipartisan solutions and compromise on issues including border security, high-skilled immigration and a path forward for our Dreamer population."
Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, called Tuesday for "balanced" immigration legislation.
“DACA was an illegal abuse of executive power, and it’s important to reaffirm that the president cannot unilaterally rewrite the law. Today’s decision puts the ball in Congress’ court to address the problem .... A balance between compassion and deterring future illegal immigration can be found," Lee said in a statement.
Rep. Mia Love, R-Utah, said as the child of immigrant parents, she was sensitive to “the position young undocumented immigrants" are in.
“From the beginning, Congress should have taken the lead in crafting a solution to this issue. No one person should unilaterally determine the fate of hundreds of thousands of others. The president’s decision today will allow Congress to craft policy that works for all," she said.
Rep. Chris Stewart, R-Utah, said the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program may have been well-intentioned, but “the way the Obama administration went about enacting DACA was unconstitutional. Authority to alter immigration law clearly only lies within the purview of Congress.”
Stewart said he believes the nation must protect individuals who came to the United States as children.
“I’m a cosponsor of two pieces of legislation that will continue to protect children of undocumented immigrants. These include the BRIDGE Act and the ENLIST Act. These bills bar the removal of individuals who were brought here under the age of 15 that are currently pursuing education, have recently graduated, or are serving in the armed forces. I look forward to Congress authorizing a long-term, legislative solution to this important and pressing problem,” he said.
Support for the program
A few dozen supporters congregated on the steps of the state Capitol to join Garza in calling for Utah's congressional delegation to act.
"DACA has been an undeniable success," Garza said. "Utah is stronger because (Dreamers) are here."
Garza estimated GDP lost in Utah's economy alone would amount to more than $475 million annually if Dreamers were to lose their protections and get deported on a wide scale.
Others who spoke at the gathering included state Sen. Luz Escamilla and Rep. Angela Romero, both D-Salt Lake City, advocacy group Mormon Women for Ethical Government and representatives from the offices of Salt Lake County Mayor Ben McAdams and Salt Lake City Mayor Jackie Biskupski.
Deyvid Morales, 25, said he came to the United States when he was 9. When he boarded a bus to go to college in Louisiana several years ago, he said, he was 45 minutes from campus when his vehicle was stopped, and that everyone in the vehicle was asked for proof of citizenship, which he was unable to provide. He said he was detained and put up for deportation.
"I lost my luggage, my tuition. I lost everything," Morales said.
More than a year later, on the brink of Morales' deportation being finalized, the deferred action program was instituted and he was able to stay, he said.
Since then, Morales has enjoyed multiple fulfilling jobs, including working for the Consulate of Mexico and for Granger High School in special education.
"It really just opened up opportunities to have jobs, to have careers," he said.
Now, Morales, from Salt Lake City, is once again worried about his long-term future.
Leaders, educators speak out
Lane Beattie, president and CEO of the Salt Lake Chamber of Commerce and former president of the Utah Senate, said the prospect of protections for Dreamers evaporating left him "heartsick."
The changes, Beattie said on KSL NewsRadio's "Doug Wright Show," "affect human beings, our neighbors, our employees, sometimes our bosses — and the reality is that we all are heartsick."
"This puts back on the shoulders of Congress something that has always been on their shoulders. It is their responsibility. They are the ones who can fix it," he said.
The Utah Immigration Reform Coalition, a wide-ranging group of political and business leaders in the state, released a statement "opposing the decision to remove the thousands of individuals that help make Utah's economy stronger."
McAdams called the Trump administration decision disheartening.
"But now that the deportation clock is ticking, I strongly urge Congress to quickly pass a law allowing deferred action for young people who came to the U.S. as children, to continue. The futures of 800,000 young people — including thousands in Utah — hang in the balance," McAdams said in a statement.
Rep. Angela Romero also expressed trepidation about receding protections for Dreamers, saying any punishment of them would be unjust.
"Many of these young people, this is the only place they know. This is for many their country and they love their country and they don't have a recollection of where their parents came from," Romero told the "Doug Wright Show."
State Sen. Howard Stephenson, R-Draper, laid blame at the feet of the White House and Congress, over a period of decades, for not being able to comprehensively improve the country's immigration system.
"It's been a system where we have said we want those workers, we need those workers, but we're not willing to normalize it in a process where they can come here legally and so they have to come here illegally," Stephenson told the "Doug Wright Show."
University of Utah President David Pershing said he was “deeply troubled” by the Trump administration’s decision and urged congressional leaders to arrive at legislation supporting affected immigrants.
"I want you to know that the University of Utah is unwavering in its commitment to undocumented students (with or without DACA), many of whom are feeling tremendous fear and anxiety as a result of today’s decision,” Pershing said.
Contributing: Ladd Egan