By Emma Andersson, Stella Burch, Margot Mendelson & Marisol Orihuela
Yale University

Issuing municipal identification cards to undocumented resident immigrants is an inexpensive and effective method by which the City of San Francisco can improve public safety and immigrants’ ability to engage positively and productively in the City’s civic life.  Under current law, undocumented immigrants in San Francisco have no access to official forms of identification.  Without such identification, undocumented immigrants cannot prove their residence, which puts them in significant personal danger and poses a threat to the City’s general public safety.  Many banks do not allow undocumented immigrants to open a bank account, leaving immigrants with no choice but to carry large amounts of cash on their person or hidden in their homes.  As a result, immigrant communities are prone to suffer from disproportionately high rates of theft in their homes and upon returning from work. Read more »

By John DeStefano, Jr.
Mayor, New Haven, CT

Our American values are built upon a careful balance of individual rights and initiative weighed against shared community action and institutions.  In New Haven, we have chosen to accomplish that goal by engaging all of our residents and offering a resident card irrespective of immigration status.  Not all agree with this direction.  And, some ask “What part of ‘illegal’ doesn’t the City understand?”  But, they miss the point and they miss our American history.  The point is that by not acting, the Federal government is winking its eye and tacitly acknowledging and legitimizing the presence of some 13 million undocumented residents. Therefore, we must, for reasons of public safety and for reasons of building a strong community; implement our own solutions.

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