Members of a Latino community group asked the Plainfield Advisory Commission on Hispanic Affairs Thursday to recommend creation of a municipal identification card for undocumented individuals and parolees.
Although a local group began offering ID cards about two years ago, Norman Ortega, vice president of the Tri-County Latino Coalition of New Jersey disputed their worth and said Mayor Adrian O. Mapp expressed support for a city-backed card. Ortega said Mapp pledged to forward a proposal for funding a municipal ID card to the governing body if the commission advised it.
The unofficial ID card was produced by Angels for Action and endorsed by former Mayor Sharon Robinson-Briggs, but after Mapp took office in 2014, he called on the group's leader, Carmen Salavarrieta, to cease and desist from issuing the cards.
Coalition treasurer Lenin Aguirre said some who purchased Salavarrietta's ID cards found themselves accused of presenting a false document when using it out of the city.
Initially PACHA president Flor Gonzalez said the commission should prepare a resolution to present to the mayor, but later agreed to hold a special meeting with the full commission to discuss recommending a municipal ID to the mayor.
Coalition President Alma Meza spoke in favor of the municipal ID, which she said would "bring men out from the dark," both the undocumented and parolees who can't get state or county ID cards. Others said municipal ID cards would help undocumented parents get children registered for school and aid in hospital visits.
The goal is to advise funding of a municipal ID card in the 2015 budget, coalition members said. The Mapp administration expects to give the budget to the council next month and then the council will hold deliberations on it.
The group discussed a recall of the estimated 800 unofficial IDs already issued, but Gonzalez also voiced concern about all the information that applicants had given. Aguiirre suggested the information should be "dissolved," but Ortega said, "The reality is you can't go back in time" and said he thought the unofficial card holders would want to get the municipal IDs.
Commissioner Maritza Martinez also raised the issue of a paid sick leave ordinance that she said would impact many Latino businesses downtown. The City Council decided not to move it to the March 9 agenda after numerous business owners complained it was burdensome and they were not informed of it, but only found out about it on a blog. Martinez urged opponents to come out in force in April to dissuade the council from passing the ordinance.
The meeting began late because Gonzalez and other PACHA members had been called on to help the family of a homicide victim. Gonzalez said the victim, Wilson Valdez-Caba, 31, was the second relative to be killed at the family's supermarket on Berckman Street and was the father of an 8-year-old son. As she described the incident, he had gone outside the supermarket to take in a girl, 4, as shooting erupted on the block. He then became a victim.himself, she said..
--Bernice
False information any parolee can get county photo identification as long as their a United States citizen.
ReplyDeleteHow would we know who the person on the I'd is who the say they are ? Just show up give any name and get I'd card?
ReplyDeleteParolees can get photo I'd from motor vehicles dept. so stop putting out false information.
ReplyDeleteSad to hear about the recent shootings and death and injuries. But haven't heard local reps such as Cory storch . That's your ward Cory!!!
ReplyDeletefrom the Colorado Department of Corrections and additional research with people
ReplyDeleteon parole in the Denver area contribute to our understanding about the problems
that formerly incarcerated individuals face as they try to reintegrate into society.
■ A quarter of people on parole in the metro area, more than one-third in Denver,
end up in homeless shelters or other temporary housing.
■ At least three-quarters had a history of drug problems before prison; 55% of
those whose parole was revoked report continued substance abuse problems
after release.
■ People coming out of prison feel unprepared and without the support they
need from their parole officers, families, or community organizations.
■ Finding and keeping a job is the number one problem identified by people
getting out of prison. Parolees cite lack of identification papers and driver’s
licenses, employers’ reluctance to hire people with criminal records, and
expenses associated with their parole as major work-related barriers.
http://www.ccjrc.org/pdf/Barriers_to_ReEntry.pdf
http://reentry.mplp.org/reentry/index.php/Ex-Offender_Identification_Issues_in_Michigan
ReplyDeleteNo No Way uh uh
ReplyDeleteID’s for undocumented (illegal) and parolees (undocumented)? I’m all for it as long as the process would include providing a valid birth certificate, finger printing, photos and background checks and it should not be funded with my tax dollars. If they want an ID after meeting all other criteria they should pay for it. I have to pay to get my license renewed every year, why should they get free id off my tax dollars? If the program does not have these criteria or something similar, we would only be adding to the immigration problem. Is there any wonder why congress does not want to pass the Presidents immigration bill- way too many holes in it.
ReplyDeleteAs far as the store on 6th and Berckman and that being the second family member to be shot or killed, maybe the investigation should start with the owners. At any given time you can see the gang-bangers and drug dealers hanging out in the store , the doorway of the store, in front of the store and it’s apparent the owner doesn’t have a problem with it, same as Clinton Ave liquor store.
There is an infallible way by which to obtain identification. You enter the country legally and you will receive all the documentation required to pave the road to citizenship while enjoying the largesse of this great democratic republic.
ReplyDeleteYesterday I met with Snow White to discuss this. However, the evil queen did not let us speak for long. Besides, Snow White was distracted by an unicorn flying around.
Delete