Utah interest in deferred action reflects national trend

Intermountain Catholic

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Holy Cross Ministries and volunteers from Saint Peter and Paul Catholic Church in West Valley offer a workshop for people interested in applying for the deferred action policy. IC photo/Laura Vallejo

SALT LAKE CITY — Ricardo, 24, and Maria, 21, have a 1-year-old child and, like most parents, they want the best for their child.

"We want to be able to build stability," said Maria.

However, the young couple faces a hurdle: They are undocumented immigrants, although their child was born in Utah. They, like thousands of others, want to apply for a temporary permit to stay and work in the United States under the recently announced deferred action policy.

The policy, announced by the Obama administration in June, allows some young adults who are in the country illegally to apply for deferred deportation. The first day to apply under the new policy was Aug. 15; thousands across the country reportedly applied on that day alone.

In Utah on Aug. 29, Maria and Ricardo, with their baby, arrived at Saints Peter and Paul Catholic Church in West Valley to attend a workshop on the deferred action policy. The workshop was sponsored by Holy Cross Ministries.

"We are here more than anything because we do not want to be afraid anymore. We want to be able to go out and not have that bad feeling that we’re going to get deported," Ricardo said.

The four-hour workshop attracted dozens of people; it was the third one that Holy Cross Ministries had organized in different locations.

"We had 82 people attend in Park City, 40 in our office and 106 in Saints Peter and Paul," said Sister Veronica Fajardo, from the immigration services of the Holy Cross Ministries. The workshops consisted of three stations in which the solicitants first received a package with information about all the requirements needed to apply for the deferred action. Volunteers checked that the person has all the necessary documents, then another group checked that three main requirements are present: proof of identity, proof of residency in the U.S. for five years prior to June 15 of this year, and proof of academic record – that the person is currently studying or that they have a diploma or a GED.

"Sometimes people have cases either in the court system or with the police, so we let those people talk to a lawyer [on site] first, and come to a resolution if we can help them or not because there might be a lot of risks," said Sr. Veronica.

In these cases, people are charged $20 for the lawyer consultation. If the process goes through and the people fill all the paperwork, the fee is $150.

The deportation deferment — which carries a federal $465 application fee — has to be renewed after two years.

According to the Pew Hispanic Center, as many as 1.7 million could be eligible nationally.

"It’s very important to help our community because at the end we are all one community. In my case I am an immigrant, too, and I know firsthand how it feels to be scared and not knowing how the future is going to be," said Sister Fajardo.

Alfredo Valenzuela, one of the volunteers at the Saints Peter and Paul workshop, was very enthusiastic about being able to help people.

"This is just to return a bit of all the things that He [God] gives us," said Valenzuela. "This is just demonstrating my kids, with my example, that we have to help each other."