As the fate of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) – a program that protects a set of young undocumented immigrants from deportation – recipients continues to hang in the balance, one activist group is hoping to make the renewal process easier. In September 2017, the Trump Administration put an end to the program, but the courts have kept it alive. Though the government isn’t currently accepting new applications, a judge recently ruled that the Trump Administration’s decision to end the program was “arbitrary and capricious because the Department failed adequately to explain its conclusion that the program was unlawful.” That means that soon, everyone who is eligible for the program may be able to apply. Either way, United We Dream will be around to help potential applicants with its new website.
The group recently launched Renew My DACA, a one-stop shop for applicants. Before applying, you can take a quiz to see if you’re eligible. If you are, you can use the site to get financial assistance for the prohibitive $495 fee. The site also offers the latest information about DACA and includes a seven-step guide to renewing. Soon, United We Dream will have a Spanish-language version of this site.
“We want to empower DACA recipients and their families as they’re going through this urgent DACA renewal process,” said Jassiel Perez, who serves as United We Dream’s creative manager and created the site. “Our new site is equipped with useful and straightforward tools like a quiz to determine if they’re eligible and a seven step guide on how to renew. As a DACA recipient myself, I know our community is living under constant attacks from the Trump administration and we want this process to be as stress-free as possible because we know how important it is that many people apply as quickly as they can.”
Visit Renew My DACA to learn more.
Update, May 18, 2018 at 3:45 p.m. ET: This post has been updated to include a quote from United We Dream.