People doing good

After broadcast, listeners pay renewal fee for DACA recipients

Bob CollinsBob Collins Jan 18, 2018
6

Between the Minnesota Vikings victory on Sunday (documented here earlier), and the possibility of an end to the program that allowed people brought to the U.S. illegally as children to stay, Minnesotans are in a giving mood.

The latest example comes from St. Paul immigration attorney Kara Lynum, who appeared on Tom Weber’s program on Minnesota Public Radio on Tuesday after the government resumed taking renewal applications for DACA recipients, although new applications won’t be accepted.

It’s not clear how long the window to renew will be open, which doesn’t give people much time to assemble the paperwork necessary to submit to federal officials. And then there’s the $495 filing fee. “Some people are scrambling now who don’t have $495 sitting in the bank,” she said.

That struck a nerve with one listener.

And, indeed, the listener paid the renewal fee for a woman — a single mom to a 2-year-old U.S. citizen, Lynum tweeted.

That kicked off an online campaign of sorts for people to support DACA by paying renewal fees.

A Golden Valley woman picked up the cause.

By Thursday morning, money for one other DACA renewal fee had been raised.

Lynum said on Weber’s show that it’s not entirely clear how quickly the government will act on the renewal applications — if at all. People were to begin losing their work permits without a DACA renewal on March 6.