Twenty-year-old Daniel Hilal was born in the United States to Venezuelan parents but grew up in Venezuela — that is, until his family fled Nicolás Maduro’s dictatorship in 2019. Now a college student and high school graduate in the U.S., Daniel calls this country his home. But he ears his Venezuelan parents may have to return after the recent revocation of their Temporary Protected Status. He works tirelessly to support them and is doing everything he can to help extend their stay while they search for a solution.
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Every day, Daniel wakes up ready to help his family and do his part at home. With his parents’ TPS recently revoked, the weight of keeping the household stable has grown, and he starts each morning knowing he is the one who must carry them through this uncertainty.Daniel’s Dad stays home, coffee in hand, anxious for the chance to finally work again and support his family. Since losing TPS protection, he can no longer safely leave the house or apply for work, watching Daniel shoulder the responsibilities he once shared.Daniel gets ready for another day of work, carrying the responsibility of providing for his family. As he organizes what he needs, he thinks about how the loss of his parents’ TPS placed even more pressure on him to become the family’s only source of stability.Daniel steps out of his home with hope, believing today could be a better day. Venezuela continues to face political repression and widespread human rights abuses, according to Alianza Americas. His family fled those conditions, but the TPS revocation now threatens to push his parents back toward the same danger they escaped.Before starting work, Daniel checks the mailbox hoping for news about his family’s case, finding none, he closes it and waits. The TPS termination leaves hundreds of thousands at risk of detention and deportation, according to the American Civil Liberties Union. For his parents, each day without news increases the fear of being forced to leave the country again.Daniel begins his Uber Eats shifts, one of his three jobs, working whenever he’s off from the other two, the only one in his family able to leave the house. He works three jobs and is the only family member who feels safe going out due to his parents’ immigration fear. The revocation of their TPS has made even simple outings too risky for them.After finishing a delivery, Daniel checks his phone for the next one. His goal is to make enough to keep his home stable. The termination affects more than 240,000 Venezuelans, according to the American Civil Liberties Union. With his parents unable to work or drive safely, every new delivery helps cover what they can no longer provide.Daniel makes a quick stop for gas, another small pause in his long day of work. These moments remind him how much effort it takes to fill the roles his parents once held before losing TPS protection and the ability to participate freely in daily life.“I don’t have days off, even when I would like one, I know it would all pay off at the end, it’s just a matter of time,” Daniel said. The policy change removed legal protection from more than 600,000 Venezuelans, described as the largest illegalization of immigrants in U.S. history, according to the Venezuelan American Caucus. His determination comes from knowing his parents have lost the safety they depended on and now rely entirely on him.Daniel goes to buy groceries, the only one in his family who feels safe doing it. Since their TPS was revoked, his parents avoid public places out of fear of encounters with authorities. What used to be ordinary errands have turned into responsibilities only Daniel can handle.After a long day, Daniel completes his homework, determined to achieve his dream of becoming an engineer. He studies with the hope that one day he can give his parents the security they lost when TPS protections were taken away.“I’m just one of thousands, but every small step matters, if I keep going, so can all of us,” Daniel said. The end of TPS has placed more than 675,000 people at immediate risk of family separation, according to the Communities United For Status and Protection Organization. His words carry the hope that families like his, now living without legal protection, can still push forward despite the uncertainty.
Alejandro Marquina Villalobos is a junior majoring in Digital Broadcasting. In the future, he’s hoping to make an impact nationally and internationally as a political journalist.
Esteban Rodriguez is a Senior majoring in TV/Broadcast media. He is a producer for Caplin News and the creator of FIU's Sports show, Sideline. He hopes to pursue this path of producing for sports or general news.
Marc Bourgeis is a junior studying interactive media and digital marketing. He is interested in pursuing content creation and aims to work in the digital media industry in the future. Marc has experience with marketing, graphic design, and video production.
