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Eugene City Council Approves DACA Fund

Rachael McDonald

The Eugene City CouncilMonday approved a proposal from the Human Rights Commission which would set up a 10-thousand dollar scholarship fund for local DACA recipients to renew their status. 

The Trump Administration has threatened to rescind DACA, or Deferred Action for Childhood arrivals. It has also moved up the deadline for recipients to renew their status to October 5th. The newly approved fund would help with that $495 dollar fee.

Hugo Nicolas is a DACA recipient who lives in Eugene. He says he was brought to the U.S. by his mother from Mexico when he was 11.  Nicolas says having DACA has allowed him to get a driver’s license and made it easier to work and attend the University of Oregon. Nicolas says there’s a lot of fear in the Latino community especially since Trump was elected president.

Nicolas: “Even though I have deferred action. It is a protection. To be protected from deportation. But a federal agent can pull me over and stop me and deport me if they decide to. So, as we know, it’s not a pathway to citizenship. So we are always at risk.”

Nicolas says he keeps his bedroom door locked at night because he’s afraid of ICE coming to get him. He says having the support of the Eugene City Council and community means a lot.

Rachael McDonald is KLCC’s host for All Things Considered on weekday afternoons. She also is the editor of the KLCC Extra, the daily digital newspaper. Rachael has a BA in English from the University of Oregon. She started out in public radio as a newsroom volunteer at KLCC in 2000.
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