Lukas G, 23, Othello, Washington, Born in Mexico
My family was living together in Washington and I had just started college when my father was deported in 2010. My mom called to say he’d been arrested by ICE. I rushed to see him but was not allowed to say good-bye. My mom then had a very hard decision to make. She chose to join my father in Mexico and took my 
younger siblings with her. I got to choose for myself where I wanted to be. Since I’d been brought to the U.S. when I was three months old, this was the only country I knew and I wanted to graduate from college. I still had some brothers in Washington and all my friends were here. I worked my way through community college and got my AA on the very day that President Obama announced DACA, which gave me hope for my future.
I was able to attend Washington State University with the help of a scholarship program for Dreamers which discounts tuition. My major is Business Administration and I’m preparing for a career in Human Resources. Because of DACA, I was able to get a better job at an E-Verify food processing plant. This work helps me pay for college. My DACA status also allows me to visit outside the country so I was able to see my mom, dad and younger siblings last June. My life is so much better under DACA but I’m still in limbo. I’m very proud of my heritage and I’m proud of my hard work and accomplishments as an undocumented American. I live on the hope that someday there will be a real path to citizenship for me and the millions like me who are contributing their best every day to this country.
