Some Americans are donating their COVID-19 stimulus payments to illegal immigrants

Some Americans have decided to donate their coronavirus stimulus payments to illegal immigrants who are not eligible to collect payments in the CARES Act that Congress passed.

A sanctuary city advocacy group in the District of Columbia called Sanctuary DMV is asking Americans to "redistribute" their $1,200 stimulus payments to illegal immigrants through a GoFundMe campaign, which they are promoting on social media.

As of Friday, they had raised more than $235,000 in donations. 

“We’re asking those who can to contribute their entire stimulus check to immigrants in the DMV who were purposefully left out of the government’s response to COVID-19,” the group wrote on a GoFundMe page.

“We also encourage people who earned above the threshold for receiving stimulus checks to contribute in a similarly meaningful way (around $1,200). These donations will go directly to the pockets of our immigrant neighbors to support them in the face of new and already existing challenges,” read the group’s post.

The group plans to work with its partner organizations such as Many Languages One Voice, Justice for Muslims Collective, and Restaurant Opportunities Center DC to distribute the money it collects to illegal immigrants.

They’ve also encouraged people to donate smaller amounts if they cannot afford to send the entire amount they have received from the federal government.

“If you are not in a position to donate your entire check, smaller donations are more than welcome! Every donation helps,” read the GoFundMe page.

According to their official webpage, Sanctuary DMV is an “all-volunteer solidarity group resisting policies & practices targeting immigrants in DC, Maryland & Virginia.”

They argue that COVID-19 “does not discriminate based on immigration status.”

More than 50 House Democrats including Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York; Ilhan Omar of Minnesota; and Joaquin Castro of Texas, support amending the CARES Act so that all illegal immigrants with tax identification numbers are able to receive the direct $1,200 payments.

Just the News has previously reported that some illegal immigrants who filed tax returns in 2018 or 2019 with active Security Security numbers would receive direct payments under the $2.2 trillion CARES Act.