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Title: Richmond (Kentucky) to offer ID cards to immigrants: COULD BE FIRST U.S. CITY TO DO SO
Source:
Lexington Herald-Leader
URL Source: http://www.kentucky.com/mld/kentucky/12968778.htm
Published: Oct 25, 2005
Author: teve Lannen
Post Date: 2005-10-25 18:06:47 by Zipporah
Keywords: immigrants:, (Kentucky), Richmond
Views: 117
Comments: 15
The city of Richmond next week will begin offering identification cards to immigrants, regardless of whether they entered the country legally or not. The move could make the Madison County seat the first city in the country to issue such immigrant IDs -- and draw Richmond into the large and sometimes fierce national debate over immigration reform. The cards will be offered as part of a first-ever Latino citizen's police academy at a local church, officials said. Although some states give identification cards to immigrants regardless of whether they entered the United States legally, immigration experts say they are not aware of any other city or municipality in the nation that has gone as far as issuing its own immigrant IDs. Also next week, a Lexington-Fayette Urban County Government task force studying Hispanic issues is expected to hear a presentation on a proposed local identification card, though some city officials expressed doubts about whether there is enough evidence to support such a program. Critics call Richmond's move troubling and liken it to "aiding and abetting" illegal immigration. "We're not going to get a handle on this crisis we have with an all-time high illegal alien population if municipalities are going to undermine the enforcement of immigration laws," said John Keeley, a spokesman with the Center for Immigration Studies in Washington, D.C. In Richmond, City Manager David Evans said the cards will be used for identification purposes only and should help immigrants more easily perform tasks most citizens take for granted, such as cashing a check or properly identifying themselves to authorities. "I think it would be more of a help than anything else," he said. "I think it will be an asset for everybody." People interested in a card will be required to present two forms of identification such as a birth certificate or picture ID from their native country along with proof of residence in Richmond or Madison County, such as a lease or utility bills with their home address. A $10 fee will be charged. The cards will not adjust a person's immigration status or help them obtain a driver's license, Evans said. The decision to issue the cards was not voted on by the Richmond City Council, Evans said. The city already owns a picture ID machine, so it is not an ordeal to make the cards. "It's just something we can do as a public service. It's a service we can offer," he said. The main force behind persuading Richmond officials to offer the cards is Sandra Anez Powell, migrant outreach coordinator with the Kentucky River Foothills Development Council in Richmond. Figures from the 2000 Census indicate 328 Hispanics live in Madison County; the real number is probably much higher. The need for the cards became clear to her after the bodies of three men were found in the Kentucky River wrapped in tarps in April 2003. Authorities later determined the men were from Texas and had been executed in Lexington as part of a drug deal gone bad. For nearly two weeks, people speculated on whether the victims were local residents or migrant workers. Fear ran through Madison County's immigrant community, she said. "We need something that could help tell us if these are our guys or not," Anez Powell said. The cards could also help identify the dead if there were a catastrophe or natural disaster. Although the cards will not help change a person's immigration status, she said, they will acknowledge that the person is living and working in the community. "Because they are undocumented, it doesn't mean they don't exist," she said. That may be the case, but a local government should not do anything to help illegal immigrants, said Craig Nelsen, of Friends of Immigration Law Enforcement in Washington, D.C. "They're helping illegal aliens remain here," he said. The real problem, Nelsen said, is not in Richmond. It's the ongoing lack of will to enforce laws at the federal level. "You can't even blame the cities. They don't know what to do," he said. In Lexington, a mayor's task force on the Hispanic workforce will hear a presentation Wednesday from the Lexington Hispanic Association on local ID cards. Anez Powell is an association member as well. Lack of documentation "is a huge issue. It's the main problem the Hispanics here have," said association member Freddy Peralta. He is also on the mayor's task force. Alayne White, Urban County Government's social services commissioner and task force co-chair, said she is curious about the proposal and understands the need for a person to have proper identification. But she recognizes the controversy in implementing such a program. Unless a precedent has been set in other cities and the Hispanic Association can demonstrate the benefits, the cards could be "an incredibly hard sell," she said. Some states have issued ID cards and hundreds of cities have begun to accept the matricula consular ID card issued by the Mexican government. Earlier this month, the mayor of New Haven, Conn., said he wanted to give immigrants a form of ID so they could access social services, open bank accounts or prove their identity. But after radio talk shows and editorial writers pounced on the issue, Mayor John DeStefano Jr., also a Democratic candidate for governor, told the New York Times that his office was trying to determine "whether we could legally do it." Advocacy groups worry about whether municipal governments could be compelled to share information they gather with the federal government. Information in Richmond will be kept in-house, Anez Powell said. The cards could also have the unintended effect of singling out immigrants for abuse and discrimination, said Michele Waslin, director of immigration policy research at the National Council of La Raza. That organization is not taking a position on the issue, she said. "It's good that people can identify themselves, but it's not a complete solution," she said. Reach Steve Lannen in the Herald-Leader's Georgetown bureau, (502) 867-1354 or e-mail slannen@herald-leader.com. Poster Comment: Here is Mr. Evans phone number and email address: CityManager@richmond.ky.us Phone: (859) 623 - 1000
Fax: (859) 623 - 7618
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#1. To: Zipporah (#0)
Weren't Germans who invaded the country illegally shot?
HEY... The next time I hear someone defending Klantucky's Idiocy, I can point to this shit. Morons...
#2. To: Zipporah (#0)
 | So many morons, so few bullets. |
#3. To: who knows what evil (#1)
We're kinder and gentler now.. and besides family values dont stop at the border.. BARF!
Weren't Germans who invaded the country illegally shot?
#4. To: Zipporah (#3)
It's for the children ;)
We're kinder and gentler now.. and besides family values dont stop at the border.. BARF!
"Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities." - Voltaire
#5. To: TommyTheMadArtist (#2)
Morons... What I wonder is who put them up to it?? Of course this wasn't an idea born in Kentucky esp in a small town.. who put this idiot up to this? It's a city far from the border.. a city where the people in this small town are probably basically clueless as to the issue and wouldnt put up much a fight about it.. I called my state senator about this .. yes I'm from Kentucky!! And I told him that this guy was lying through his teeth about this being for immigrants in general .. he said how do I know?? I thought what a moron.. OF course LEGAL immigrants have their identification through the federal government its called a GREEN CARD!! Good lord makes you want to beat your head against a wall..
HEY... The next time I hear someone defending Klantucky's Idiocy, I can point to this shit.
#6. To: justlurking, Fred Mertz (#0)
Kentucky ping!
#7. To: Zipporah (#5)
Or build a boat ;)
Good lord makes you want to beat your head against a wall..
"Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities." - Voltaire
#8. To: timetobuildaboat (#4)
OH yes.. so American children won't have JOBS.. they want them all to take advantage of the welfare system .. thats it!! :P
It's for the children ;)
#9. To: timetobuildaboat (#7)
Hey.. no kidding! Time to leave this sinking ship for sure..
Or build a boat ;)
#10. To: Zipporah (#9)
Sometimes I think these illegal immigrant loving idiots WANT the LEGAL American citizens to sink. Why can't these stupid people see that illegal immigration is ruining our country? GAAAWWWDDDDD, I wanna scream at all of them, our government, our president, and the other blind iggits out there!!! America, English language, our entire way of life, screwed by a bunch of rich assholes who want cheap, human slave labor!
Time to leave this sinking ship for sure
Secure our borders, save our nation!
#11. To: nc_girl_speaks_up (#10)
Oh I called my state senator this evening after reading this.. I've been sending him info on illegal immigration and the last time we talked he said that it was up to the feds.. well tonight I reminded him of that conversation .. and told him now what? This is happening in our state.. are you going to do anything about it? He said he needed to read the article... When 89% of Americans want illegals DEPORTED then what does that say when both parties wont do a thing about it? It is tyranny.. and IMO treason.
#12. To: Zipporah (#3)
Speak for yourself...:-)
We're kinder and gentler now.
#13. To: who knows what evil (#12)
Well I WAS being sarcastic.. :P
We're kinder and gentler now.
#14. To: Zipporah (#6)
You would never know that this is a *red* state.
Bush: Worst. President. EVER.
#15. To: justlurking (#14)
Oh I called this guy.. and asked him what his rationale
is.. of course he tried to make some excuse that it was about all immigrants
legal and illegal.. when he was reminded that LEGAL immigrants dont need any
additional paperwork he danced around it saying he was misunderstood.. Now this
article: http://www.kentucky.com/mld/heraldleader/2005/10/25/news/12989606.htm
Richmond holds up plan for issuing immigrant ID cardThe city has put on hold
a controversial plan to offer identification cards to immigrants amid what the
city manager called "a misunderstanding" between city officials and the local
migrant outreach program. RICHMOND—The city has put on hold a
controversial plan to offer identification cards to immigrants amid what the
city manager called “a misunderstanding” between city officials and the local
migrant outreach program. “We were under the impression it was for legal
residents,” City Manager David Evans said yesterday. “The Hispanic outreach
office wanted it to be offered to everyone,” regardless of their immigration
status. A Herald-Leader story Saturday prompted a lot of calls to city
officials and Lexington talk radio from critics who were, in Evans’ words,
“barbecuing the city” over the program. Many of them thought, incorrectly,
that the identification card would confer legal status on illegal immigrants,
Evans said. The city is asking the Immigration and Naturalization Service
for an opinion on whether the program conforms to agency regulations. National
experts said last week Richmond would be the first municipality in the country
to offer immigrant ID cards. Because it was not clear when the INS response
would come, the city has dropped plans to hand out identification cards tonight
at the first meeting of the Latino/Hispanic Community Police Academy. {snip}
Evans was quoted in the Richmond Register newspaper Sunday as saying the
Herald-Leader story was wrong. He told the Register that applicants would have
to show proof they were here legally, and the city would not issue cards to
illegal immigrants. The Richmond newspaper did not contact the Herald-Leader
for comment about the story, headlined, “Newspaper gives wrong information about
IDs.” Evans said he made the comment to the Richmond paper before he had a
chance to speak with Anez Powell. Yesterday, Evans met with Anez Powell and
learned that her organization and city officials had different ideas about who
was to be included, Evans said. Evans acknowledged that the information
required to obtain a card did not include any document saying a resident was
here legally. {snip} ALSO, I'll try to find the article it had
something to do with a training program in Richmond for MEXICAN police! You would never know that this is a *red* state.
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