What kind of country lets people break their immigration laws with impunity?
2
While what happens to the parents visiting their son who serves this country does stink, it's important to realize that a. They are in the country illegally and b. entrance into any military or otherwise secured federal site requires a valid ID that is recognized as such by the Federal Government. That does not include the NYC ID, or my Costco membership card - neither is recognized by the Feds. Unless one is are picked up by one's host, it's pretty routine that the ID is also run through a quick background check with DHS.
I also agree with others commenting here: undocumented is used as a euphemism for not here legally; undocumented means I lost my passport or they lost my paperwork, not here legally here is a different pair of shoes. That being said, giving people such as these two parents a road to legal status is way overdue, and the only way to solve this crisis in a civilized way. Not a lot of hope for that until 2021 the earliest.
5
First of all, the city of New York is a New York state agency and any document that it issues is issued by a New York state agency. If New York city issues an ID card such as the IDNYC card, it is a valid state issued ID.
I would propose that the larger problem is that the NYC Law Department is not taking companies (such as Lowes, Home Depot, and banks) to court when they refuse to accept the IDNYC card as a valid state issued ID.
Further, I would point out that there is no law in the United States that a citizen must carry, never mind posses any form of identification. Courts have held that when stopped by police a person may be required to self identify and provide a "good account" of who s/he is, but that does not include having any form of identification.
5
Why someone here illegally would willingly register with the government is beyond me.
5
Contrary to popular opinion it these posts are any indication, the NYC ID is available to all New Yorkers, including those who have other forms of ID, not only undocumented immigrants. People with no other form of official photo ID were ASSURED that having and using the card would not target them.
In order for this to work, two things need to happen. First, it should be become unlawful to insist upon additional ID under normal, non-threatening circumstances (such as delivering a pizza as ordered). Second, New Yorkers who do not 'need' the ID should get and use them - show them as ID - as the new normal.
3
I like using my idNYC. As a library card, for acess to the arts and as Id.
3
The reason someone might be checked more thoroughly now than in the past might be that, after the Fort Hamilton Pizza incident revealed lax past practices, bases got a memo to tighten things up.
2
I am a native New Yorker, fifth generation.
I do not know how to drive and do not have a drivers license.
The NYCID is convenient for me for everyday use, rather than needing to carry around a passport or passport card.
2
Get a NY State non-driver ID at any NY motor vehicle office. See link for what to bring, etc.
https://dmv.ny.gov/id-card/bget-non-driver-id-card-ndid
1
The cost of a NYS non-driver ID can be up to $43, depending on how old you are and what you want to use it for.
NYC ID's are nothing more than a political ploy by Mayor De Blasio to ingratiate himself with parts of the electorate that see no problem with illegal immigration. They never had any legal standing and they should not in any way be given legal standing. In issuing worthless ID's, he is cynically working to court votes and usurping Federal responsibilities.
17
But they are objectively not 'worthless'. There are over 500,000 illegal immigrants in the city, and we're not arresting and deporting all of them tomorrow. The police can use IDNYC, for example, to identify people who would otherwise be detained pending verification of identity, as mentioned in the article. This represents a significant cost savings for the city, which no longer has to jail individuals that might have otherwise received a summons and a court date.
As a side note, it's so bizarre to me that New Yorkers want to remove nearly 400,000 people from the city's labor force. This would decimate the city's economy. Why would we want to decimate our own municipal economy?
5
It an Army Base. Of course they should be checking IDs. NYC ID fine for getting into museums, not the sam ething
12
What kind of country imprisons parents visiting their army sergeant son but pardons felons like Joe Arpaio?
15
Read the article more carefully:
"The couple, unauthorized immigrants who have been New York residents for more than 20 years, presented their city-issued ID cards at the base’s entry gate."
"unauthorized immigrants" is a euphemism for illegal aliens, people who are breaking the law to live here. Apparently, they have been breaking the law to live here for "for more than 20 years."
Chelsea Manning who released secret documents was given a pardon by Obama and Marc Rich by Clinton.
Who is Joe Arpaio?
8
Unfortunately ours does. But we lock up babies in cages, too, so go figure...
1
Do a Google search for "Joe Arpaio" before you post anything else.
"The New York City identification card program was supposed to offer protection to undocumented immigrants, allowing them to engage with city agencies and move freely through the five boroughs"
"undocumented immigrants" is euphemism for illegal aliens -- people who live in this country illegally.
In my work and in my travels, I know a number of immigrants who "move freely through the five boroughs." All of them followed US immigration law and are thus in this country legally.
Don't you think that it is profoundly unfair to American citizens like me and to those immigrants who followed US law, that people who broke the law to live here are allowed to live here and are even encouraged to do so by the NYC Mayor and City Council?
During the 1986 Reagan amnesty, the eVerify system was established that provides a nationwide database that prohibits unscrupulous employers from hiring people who do legally live here at low wages and potentially illegal working conditions since illegal aliens cannot legally complain.
What are needed are NY State laws and Federal laws that enforce the use of the eVerify system.
People scream and complain about Trump and now we will have two conservative Supreme Court Justices as a result of Democrats helping to elect Trump.
Democratic Mayors and City Councils just make that encourage law breaking just make it too easy to reelect Trump so we can have even more conservative justices.
25
How did their living here for 20 years and raising a son who entered military service injure you in the least?? It's ludicrous to think that humans like this do us harm of any kind whatsoever; instead, we are enriched in so many ways by them.
8
The City must educate people on where they can use this ID. I have many friends who applied for the NY ID and they relay on that. So how come people are getting detained when they show this ID?? Is the ID just a way for some officials to immediately know the person is undocumented? The City has created a big problem now and they should be responsible to fix it. If people cannot go to Army bases, they should have said so!! Now you have 3 people detained because they used that ID. Thank you so much Mayor
1
FYI: Whenever I've visited my son on Army bases, unless he's with me and shows his Army ID, they'll do a quick background check. It's routine. So those people who wonder if the local ID somehow identifies the person carrying it as an immigrant, it doesn't matter. They do a background check. Keep this in mind if you visit a base and have any kind of issue that might show up on it. It's best to meet the soldier off base, and not go through the gate at all.
Even if you go on base WITH a soldier, they sometimes ask to see the IDs of visitors (no full background check though), and will expect an ID that's approved for federal purposes.
13
I'm a native-born citizen.
I use my NYCID card whenever possible, because I don't want it to be a red flag for immigrants.
9
Norman,
It’s only a red flag for ILLEGAL immigrants, not the legal ones.
Of course, if the NYT was honest, it would have included ILLEGAL in its headline.
13
That's great. But not everyone has them and not everyone will be as conscientious as you. So, sadly, undocumented immigrants still have to be very careful.