DACA Recipient: ‘I Feel Very Lonely and Helpless’

Victor Espinoza is 35 years old and has been a DACA recipient for nearly 14 years. He came to the United States from Peru in 2001. Right now, he is in limbo because his Employment Authorization Document (EAD) has expired while his renewal is pending, and he cannot work. He reached out to The Latino Newsletter to let people know what he and other DACA recipients are going through in 2026. He spoke on the record and told us that he does not want to stay silent about his situation.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

Julio Ricardo Varela: How long have you been a DACA recipient?

Victor Espinoza: Since I was 22, essentially. I became undocumented at 21. I was previously on an H-4B visa, which is for dependents of H-1B visa holders. When I turned 21, I could no longer be a dependent. So 13, 14 years now.

JRV: DREAMers are getting older. You were a kid becoming a young man when DACA was announced in 2012. Now you’re 35. How do you process that?

VE: It’s tough. I sort of compartmentalize every two years. I renew, I talk to my lawyer with updates, and every two years, the political climate changes. Immigration law is really interesting because it changes with the political climate — it’s not always a straight line. I get stressed every year and a half because I have to renew within six months of expiration. And then I put it away. I never want to think about it, never want to call my immigration lawyer.

And yeah, I’m 35. My parents are here. They’re getting older, close to retirement age. I’m starting to become the adult. I’m the oldest, so I’m thinking not only about my own future but my parents’ too. I think for most people in their late 30s and early 40s, you start thinking about that.

JRV: You've been in the US since 2001 — that’s 25 years. How have you felt over the last 14 years of DACA, since 2012? How much has changed, or hasn’t changed?

VE: The first thing that comes to mind is frustration. Immense frustration and powerlessness. Since 2012, we've seen plenty of different political leaders, and unfortunately, there hasn't been any sort of path to citizenship — not even serious talks, especially during election years. And then, down the road, nothing happens. Meanwhile, we’re getting older. We’re contributing through taxes, through Social Security. We’re part of society. I think everybody deserves the right to just be a member of society, since we’re already contributing.

JRV: Has it gotten worse in the last year or two?

VE: These past few days have been tough. I work in tech. I just started a new job in January. Between the tech layoffs and AI layoffs, the job market is insanely brutal for everyone. But I’m on leave of absence right now because my EAD expired and I can’t work. I have no income. And this pending status has a very similar effect to a rejected case because I can’t work. I never know — if I run into an ICE officer, what do I have to show? An expired ID. Being in this pending status is insanely brutal.

I saw this coming. Given the political climate, I noticed my renewal was taking too long — I was four or five months in, and usually, it takes two or three months. I tried to get ahead of it. I asked my senator’s office to inquire with USCIS. I signed the privacy disclosure form and submitted everything. Thirty, 40 days later — no answer. Complete helplessness, every day. The senator's office can't help me. I have to watch my parents suffer and cry every other day. I could lose my job. I feel very lonely and helpless.

JRV: Where are your folks from?

VE: We’re all from Peru.

JRV: You've been here 25 years. You bought a home. Is this home?

VE: Definitely more my home than Peru, because I've been here most of my life. I speak fluent Spanish at home, but even that, my little cousins don't really speak Spanish anymore, and we tease them about it. We got this silly card game where you get a word — like “printer” — and have to say it in Spanish. And honestly, I’m not even as good as I thought I was. In America, you say “printear,” right? But the real word is “imprimir.” We've just been using “printear.”

And I have a home here — I bought one. This is a permanent thing, or at least until I pay it off.

JRV: You mentioned paying taxes, contributing. You own property. You trusted the government with your information to earn DACA. Do you feel like support for DREAMers is still there in the way it used to be?

VE: On paper, yes — the DREAM Act has always polled favorably, like 60, 70 percent. But living personally in a blue city, my opinion is that blue cities are getting targeted by ICE raids. I see masked ICE officers on the street sometimes on my way to work. It’s almost desensitizing. One day, I was on my way back from work, and I was thinking about stopping at the market, and I checked Facebook and saw there were ICE officers in the parking lot questioning people. I thought — what if I hadn't checked Facebook? The past year or two, it's been very visible. In terms of a long-term path to citizenship, no change.

JRV: What would you say to people about why they should care about you or anyone in your situation?

VE: This is the place we call home — for most DREAMers, I would say. We've been contributing to society, and we just want to be part of society. The difference between me and other immigrants in worse positions is that I was given a chance — a chance to go to school, get work authorization, find a job, and contribute. And I think a lot more people deserve that chance, because most immigrants come here because they want to be part of American society. They wouldn’t be going through all these struggles if they hated it here.

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Julio Ricardo Varela is the founder of The Latino Newsletter. He is also its current part-time publisher and executive director. He edited and published this edition.

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