SAN ANTONIO, Texas -- Their stories may be heart-rending. Their experiences may seem unimaginable. Their lives may still be at risk.
But the growing numbers of Mexican citizens who have fled rampaging drug trafficking cartels to seek American political asylum are finding the door slammed shut in their faces.
U.S. immigration judges are expelling Mexican asylum seekers, leaving them to face their cartel demons, according to confidential records provided to GlobalPost and interviews with seven lawyers handling such cases.
Complete Article: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/07/15/mexico-drug-war-asylum-se_n_234022.html
Fulfilling a campaign promise, Gov. Eliot Spitzer announced today that residents will be able to apply for state driver’s licenses without regard to immigration status. Applicants for driver’s licenses will no longer be required to provide a Social Security number or show that they are eligible for one. Instead, they will be allowed to provide foreign passports, previous state driver’s licenses and “other valid and verifiable documents” to prove their identity.
Officials in New York estimate that there are tens of thousands of undocumented, unlicensed and uninsured drivers in New York. Mr. Spitzer announced the change along with new security measures that he said would make the licensing system more tamper-proof. Currently, eight other states — Hawaii, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah and Washington — do not require drivers to prove legal status in order to obtain a license, according to the Spitzer administration.
Mr. Spitzer said that expanding access to driver’s licenses would improve traffic safety and lower auto insurance rates. But the move has spurred debate among opponents of illegal immigration, who believe that relaxing licensing standards effectively encourages undocumented immigrants to enter the country.
http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2007/09/21/illegal-immigrants-will-be-allowed-to-obtain-drivers-licenses/
[Posted by Maricela Gutierrez]
Why Denying Driver’s Licenses to Undocumented Immigrants Harms Public Safety
and Makes Our Communities Less Secure
The question of whether undocumented immigrants should obtain driver’s licenses has been
hotly debated in almost every state in the country. But the debate has been a distraction
from the real issues that states face in promoting public safety and protecting their
communities. States need to create practical, workable solutions, and denying undocumented
immigrants licenses is simply bad public policy. It increases uninsurance rates and the number of
unlicensed drivers, and it undermines effective law enforcement.
Approximately 12 million undocumented immigrants currently live in the U.S. For the
most part, these immigrants don’t live alone, but with family members who either are U.S.
citizens or otherwise authorized to be in the U.S. For the most part, they also are
employed, supporting their families and paying U.S. taxes.
Our immigration system is broken and needs to be fixed, but driver’s license restrictions
are not the answer. Immigrants do not come to this country to get a driver’s license, and
they will not leave because they are ineligible for one.
Congress must act to pass a comprehensive legalization bill that brings undocumented
immigrants out of the shadows. In the meantime, states must pass responsible policies that
protect everyone’s public safety.
