Carla Axtman: Why We Should Give Illegal Immigrants Drivers Cards

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Tuesday, September 23, 2014

Carla Axtman, GoLocalPDX MINDSETTER™

Last year the Oregon Legislature resoundingly passed Senate Bill 833 with bi-partisan support. The law allows those who are in the state illegally to get a driver’s card. That card will allow these many thousands of people to drive legally and obtain insurance. 

To get a driver card under this law, each person must pass a written test demonstrating they know and understand the state’s driving laws. They must also pass a driving test in a vehicle that they must prove is insured. Essentially, those working to obtain a driver’s card would have to meet the same requirements that all Oregonians must meet for a conventional driver’s license except proof of legal residence in the United States.

That’s it.

Risk to public safety

It’s estimated that there are roughly 160-170,000 immigrants in Oregon who are here illegally. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to do the math here: that’s a whole lot of people on the road who haven’t had to demonstrate competence enough to get a driver’s card, much less have insurance. That’s a serious risk to public safety.

But even after that simple equation is penciled out, there’s actually opposition to this. Groups against the driver’s card gathered signatures and managed to get the law blocked before it could go into effect.  On the Fantasy Island in which they reside, those who can’t get driver’s cards just won’t drive and maybe they’ll just go away, leaving the roads to just the legal, insured drivers. 

The excuse for their opposition, they say, is that this policy allows those here in the country illegally to circumvent immigration laws and creates a national security issue. No, really. Except the law doesn’t change anyone’s immigration status and it doesn’t make it legal for someone to work here if they’re not eligible. 

Real costs involved

The problem of course with these opposition arguments isn’t just their absurdity. There are actual, real costs involved with thousands of unlicensed, uninsured drivers on the road. And it isn’t just about having a hefty bill after hauling a car to the body shop or mechanic after an accident.  A study by the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety found that one in five fatal crashes involve a driver who is definitely or possibly driving with an invalid license or no license.

Measure 88 is crucial to a number of Oregon’s key industries as well, including agriculture and the restaurant and lodging industry. Some opponents argue that illegal immigrants displace legal residents for jobs, but the evidence doesn’t bear that out. During the economic downturn when Oregon’s unemployment was much higher than now, Oregon farmers were scrambling for labor. Are opponents of Measure 88 truly prepared to cripple a huge piece of Oregon’s economy?

Those here with an undocumented status are going to drive. At the very least, many need to drive in order to get to work in areas where public transportation doesn’t exist.  That is the reason that many, if not all of them, are here. Until we finally decide as a nation to deal with the reality of migrant workers and why they’re here, that’s not going to change. Not allowing driver’s cards for this population is at best foolish, at worst it smacks of racist intent. There’s no other real explanation.

Carla Axtman is a landscape photographer, communications expert and rabblerouser extraordinaire. You can see her work at Carla Axtman Photography. 

Home Page Photo Credit: j.reed via Compfight cc

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