Knocking on his second Congressional door on Tuesday morning is part of the process for DACA recipient Vincente Rodriguez, a 2017 University of California Riverside graduate who has temporarily put his plans to join the teaching profession on hold to lobby Congress to support a permanent solution for Dreamers, those minors who arrived in the United States through no fault of their own.

Vincente, who met in the offices of Tom McClintock of California and Francis Rooney of Florida on Tuesday, explained why personal contact is important before Congressional decision-making on legislation impacting Dreamers;

“I want to make sure that members of Congress see the debate in human terms. In Washington, people seem driven by numbers. I think it’s important to understand that behind each number, each graph, is a person whose future is hanging in the balance.”  

Collectively the Dreamers’ futures seem bright. Vincente, a double major in English and Ethnic studies,  is one of over 20 thousand collegians and college graduates with plans to soon join the teaching profession.

But right now, Vincente must wait- and hope. Due to the latest changes made by the Trump Administration, he is stuck in political limbo while the clock is ticking on his status in the only nation he has ever known.