Alejandro Sanz dedicates Latin Grammy award to DACA recipients

Nov. 17 (UPI) -- Alejandro Sanz won the Person of the Year award at the Latin Grammys Thursday and dedicated the honor to recipients of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program that faces termination under the Trump administration.

"They are our children and they are from our communities," Sanz said during his acceptance speech, referring to DACA recipients who arrived in the United States as undocumented immigrant children and later received temporary permission by the U.S. government under the Obama administration.

After accepting his award, Sanz performed Corazon Partio. He was later joined on stage by 30 DACA recipients who formed a choir to provide backup vocals.

"We are 30, but there are 11 million [undocumented immigrants]," one of the DACA recipients said onstage after the performance. "We don't want any more raids or walls."

President Donald Trump said in September he would end the program unless Congress passes a legislative solution for DACA recipients to stay. The program was established through an executive order signed by former President Barack Obama in 2012.

"Sometimes the laws are made in offices with no regard for the people," Sanz later said, according to El Pais.