Recent arrests of migrants brought to the U.S. as children have sparked concerns among immigrant rights advocates. They fear the Trump administration is undermining protections established by the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. An "Enforcement Tracker" created by the coalition "Home is Here" reports at least 18 cases where DACA recipients have faced deportation or are at risk of deportation after being detained by immigration authorities since President Donald Trump took office.

Juliana Macedo do Nascimento, a spokesperson for United We Dream, a member of the coalition, stated, "This is just the tip of the iceberg. We know there are many more and that this administration is just really breaking the promise that the US government made to these people to protect them from deportation."

The tracker, which will be publicly released during a press conference with members of Congress, highlights the ongoing challenges faced by DACA recipients. DACA, initiated under President Barack Obama in 2012, offers deportation protections to individuals who were brought to the U.S. as children. It allows them to remain in the country and work legally for renewable two-year terms. To qualify, recipients must pass background checks and provide biometric information to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.

Some individuals listed in the tracker reportedly have no criminal records, while others have minor offenses. Advocates argue that these offenses do not warrant exclusion from the program and have not previously hindered recipients from maintaining their status. A spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security clarified, "Illegal aliens who claim to be recipients of DACA are not automatically protected from deportations. DACA does not confer any form of legal status in this country. Any illegal alien who is a DACA recipient may be subject to arrest and deportation for a number of reasons, including if they’ve committed a crime."

One notable case involves Paulo Gamez Lira, a DACA recipient from El Paso, Texas. On August 13, he was arrested by federal agents while pulling into his mother's driveway. Security camera footage shows agents surrounding his vehicle, instructing him to turn off the engine and not resist. The agents, some masked and at least one armed, forcibly removed him from the car, injuring his shoulder in the process. His children were present and can be heard crying in the video.

Gamez Lira's wife, Alejandra, expressed disbelief upon learning of his arrest, saying, "I felt like my whole world stopped for a moment, and I didn't know really what to do."

After his arrest, Gamez Lira was taken to a Port of Entry in El Paso for processing and subsequently transferred to an ICE facility, despite informing the agents of his DACA status. According to court filings, he was brought to the U.S. from Mexico as an infant and has lived in the El Paso area for nearly his entire life. He applied for DACA shortly after the program's inception in 2012 and has successfully renewed his status since then. Gamez Lira is a father of three, including a 3-month-old daughter with medical issues who spent her first month and a half in the neonatal intensive care unit, as noted by his wife.