How Driver’s Licenses Can Help Undocumented Immigrants

Brut America

Should an undocumented immigrant be able to obtain a driver's license? One state just passed legislation that gives them that right. Brut spoke to the bill's sponsor about how this move will help families.

Transcript

00:00We saw immigrant families in tears.

00:12We watched them react with complete jubilation at the fact that the impossible was possible.

00:21They come here and bring opportunities, they bring a vital workforce, they invest in small

00:29businesses, they culturally diverse our communities, they build up neighborhoods that have been

00:34abandoned by others.

00:35This common sense piece of legislation will empower hundreds of thousands of residents

00:41in our state and family members who need to get around, who are an important part of the

00:45workforce of our state.

01:03The fact that so many advocates, so many immigrants put themselves at risk and mobilize on behalf

01:07of their brethren, I believe that this sends a national message that we need to do more

01:13to respond to this anti-immigrant fervor coming from Washington, D.C.

01:18We have millions of people living in our nation who are contributing in all sectors and aspects

01:23of life, who need clarity on their status, need a pathway to citizenship.

01:29That is the only solution that will make sense for our country.

01:47I was born in Guayama, Puerto Rico, makes me a citizen by birth, but my father was an

01:51undocumented immigrant from Peru.

01:54He always had a driver's license and my father contributed economically as a small, independent

01:58contractor.

01:59I realized that I was privileged, that I never had to fear, as this generation's immigrant

02:04families do, that my father could be pulled over for a traffic infraction and deported

02:09or separated from his family.

02:11We've seen countless examples of that taking place across the country, especially in this

02:16political climate, and we wanted to make sure that immigrants in the state of New York know

02:21that we stand by them.

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