By: Daniel Nardini
The City of Richmond in Virginia has become the third city in the United States to issue city identification to undocumented living there. Many immigrant rights and Latino organizations pushed for this. Even the local police were in favor of giving identification cards to those undocumented who can prove they live and work in Richmond. The only ones against were a number of anti-immigrant groups. The only other two cities that issue identification cards to those undocumented who live in their jurisdiction are San Francisco and Oakland.
All an undocumented person has to do to get such a card is show a taxpayer number. Having such an identification will enable an undocumented person to be able to open a bank account, get a library card, and have some form of identification if stopped by the police. It will also help the local police because now they will be able to help those undocumented who have been victims of crimes. And the undocumented more than anyone else have been the prime target of criminals. Since undocumented could not open up bank accounts they had to carry large amounts of money, Armed robbers have taken advantage of this and robbed many countless undocumented. And of course undocumented have always been afraid to go to the police before this.
This new form of identification will also greatly help employers. It means their employees may feel more secure and less likely to be threatened or blackmailed by other employees. It also helps unions better protect all workers. The undocumented will now feel less threatened by the police and will feel more incentive to report crime in their community.
Some anti-immigrant advocates says that this will encourage more undocumented to move to Richmond. That maybe true or not, but it will at least keep whole communities stable. If the undocumented stay, then their families—most of whom are legal—will also stay. This will mean employers will not see their workers run away as is now happening in Alabama and Georgia where anti-immigrant laws are scaring away workers both legal and undocumented. And with 40 percent of Richmond being Latino (an estimated five to ten percent maybe being undocumented) anything that would drive away the Latino community will also kill Richmond’s business sector. Many businesses in Richmond, both Latino and non-Latino, depend heavily on the city’s Latino community for revenue.
The identification cards are far from perfect, and will not solve the wider issue of immigration. That has to be the work of the federal government. But at least it will go a long way to helping Richmond’s Latino community and Richmond in the short and long run. It is good to see the City of Richmond trying to use humane solutions in dealing with serious economic and social problems.
Richmond Identification for the Undocumented
By: Daniel Nardini
The City of Richmond in Virginia has become the third city in the United States to issue city identification to undocumented living there. Many immigrant rights and Latino organizations pushed for this. Even the local police were in favor of giving identification cards to those undocumented who can prove they live and work in Richmond. The only ones against were a number of anti-immigrant groups. The only other two cities that issue identification cards to those undocumented who live in their jurisdiction are San Francisco and Oakland.
All an undocumented person has to do to get such a card is show a taxpayer number. Having such an identification will enable an undocumented person to be able to open a bank account, get a library card, and have some form of identification if stopped by the police. It will also help the local police because now they will be able to help those undocumented who have been victims of crimes. And the undocumented more than anyone else have been the prime target of criminals. Since undocumented could not open up bank accounts they had to carry large amounts of money, Armed robbers have taken advantage of this and robbed many countless undocumented. And of course undocumented have always been afraid to go to the police before this.
This new form of identification will also greatly help employers. It means their employees may feel more secure and less likely to be threatened or blackmailed by other employees. It also helps unions better protect all workers. The undocumented will now feel less threatened by the police and will feel more incentive to report crime in their community.
Some anti-immigrant advocates says that this will encourage more undocumented to move to Richmond. That maybe true or not, but it will at least keep whole communities stable. If the undocumented stay, then their families—most of whom are legal—will also stay. This will mean employers will not see their workers run away as is now happening in Alabama and Georgia where anti-immigrant laws are scaring away workers both legal and undocumented. And with 40 percent of Richmond being Latino (an estimated five to ten percent maybe being undocumented) anything that would drive away the Latino community will also kill Richmond’s business sector. Many businesses in Richmond, both Latino and non-Latino, depend heavily on the city’s Latino community for revenue.
The identification cards are far from perfect, and will not solve the wider issue of immigration. That has to be the work of the federal government. But at least it will go a long way to helping Richmond’s Latino community and Richmond in the short and long run. It is good to see the City of Richmond trying to use humane solutions in dealing with serious economic and social problems.