denverpost.com
Undocumented Mexican immigrants (Illegal Aliens) seeking city services or stopped by police can now present an ID card issued by the Mexican government that will be accepted by city agencies just like a Colorado driver's license, Mayor Wellington Webb announced Thursday.
Denver police will start accepting the card immediately, and if a supporting resolution is approved by the City Council, undocumented immigrants can use it to get everything from a business license or a bank account to a building permit.
The mayor's decision makes Denver among the largest of more than 40 U.S. cities that now recognize the ID - known as a "Matricula Consular" - and which the Mexican Consulate in Denver has issued by the thousands since June. The card is controversial because it is used mostly by illegal immigrants who cannot get a U.S. driver's license or other identification because of their immigration status.
"These are members of our community who are filling a void of jobs Americans have chosen not to do," Webb said at a Thursday morning news conference at a Mexican restaurant in north Denver.
"The identification card does not establish legal status in the United States," the mayor said, "but it does provide official identification to undocumented immigrants."
Surrounded by elected officials and city workers, all of them Hispanic, Webb used the moment to press other themes important to Hispanic voters. He announced his opposition to Amendment 31, which limits bilingual education in state schools, as well as his support for Jesus Apodaca, the Aurora honors student and illegal immigrant whose case has divided Republicans and become a political litmus test among many Hispanic voters in the state.
Posted by Suzanne at October 4, 2002