On Friday March 3rdLa Joya Link
, students from the DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) spoke out about their background stories regarding their ethnicity but were later joined by the new sheriff in town, Paul Penzone.

The program DACA was formed by Barack Obama in 2012 to help undocumented immigrants receive privileges such as deferred action from deportation.

This program not only helps eliminate the lack of privileges when it comes to being undocumented but it also helps their members eliminate the fear they have towards the law.

“There is fear that overwhelms me,” says DACA member Vasthy de la Madrid.

The fear of losing their families to the law is prominent during this time especially after comments from elected officials have surfaced.

“We are in a critical moment,” says Reyna Montoya who has experienced her own father being detained from her and her family for 9 months.

Maricopa County Sheriff Paul Penzone has spoken about the fear that some minority immigrant communities have,

“This organization has had a history of division from those that serve,” he says.

As sheriff, Penzone wants to rebuild the trust and safety for those who have lost any form of emotion to the law.

Sheriff Penzone spoke about his plans to change the culture that has been created by fear and mistrust.

“To change that culture, you have to be willing to make difficult decisions and lead by example,” he says.

Having 21 years of experience in the force, Sheriff Penzone will work on changing what needs to be changed to get rid of some of the fear created by past decisions.

Being a DACA member or not, there is fear that surrounds minorities,

“My fear is that people of faith and good will will remain silent,” says Montoya.

Taking on the situation one step at a time, Sheriff Penzone plans on strengthening the trust and confidence the minority communities have on law enforcement.

“As a nation, we have failed to show consistency, clarity, and fairness” said Sheriff Penzone.