Thread: City refuses to accept Mexican consular cards

By MARISSA BELLES
Valley Press Staff Writer

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LANCASTER- Matricula consular cards will not be considered a valid form of identification for those wanting to do business with the city.

The new policy, brought forward by Councilman Ron Smith, was adopted unanimously by the City Council on Tuesday night.

A matricula consular card, or identification card, is a Mexican government-issued identification card that demonstrates a Mexican national is living outside the country. The card resembles a California ID card, but it bears the colors of the Mexican flag: red, green and white.

"They use these to get the same services and rights as regular citizens," Smith said.

Vice Mayor Ed Sileo commented that the immigration issue has nothing to do with race but rather breaking the law.

Matricula consular cards have been an issue of much debate in Los Angeles County. The county Board of Supervisors in February 2005 decided to allow county departments to continue accepting the matricula consular card as valid identification.

County Supervisor Michael D. Antonovich, whose 5th District includes the Antelope Valley, voted against the measure, saying the matricula cards easily could be counterfeited and used by terrorists to evade security measures.

The matricula card was designed with specific security measures, according to the Mexican Consul. Each card contains an infrared band and is encoded with government marks that are visible only with a special decoder. A Mexican official seal, known as the "advantage seal," appears over the person's picture and changes colors in light.

"The only way we can deal with these people is to use their own language and say, 'Adios,' " Coucilman Jim Jeffra said.

Councilman Andy Visokey said he was deeply disappointed in the federal government for not dealing with the immigration problem.

"This is the third item we have brought forward on illegal immigration," Visokey said.

The City Council unanimously agreed in August that business licenses should have an area where the applicant agrees not to employ undocumented or illegal workers.

Presented by Smith and Visokey, the goal was to give the city more teeth if a business is giving undocumented workers jobs.

"It also will make the applicant think when they are filling out their business license application," Visokey said at the time. "I've been wanting to do something like this, and when Councilman Smith approached me with the idea of a check box I was all for it."

In July the council added a stipulation to city contracts that anyone working for the city must be a legal U.S. worker.

Visokey spearheaded the resolution, which was approved July 11 after he was approached by the staff of Assemblywoman Sharon Runner, R-Lancaster.

http://avpress.com/n/19/1119_s3.hts

© 2006 Antelope Valley Press, Palmdale, California (661) 273-2700

and yet another victory. slowly we are winning, but this is only sandbags before the flood. There is much more to come.

YEAH!

We need to keep the juggernaut rolling, but we have to be ever mindful that if we don't stop the new Congress from foisting an amnesty on us, all these incremental victories will be rendered meaningless.

I am formulating a plan to try to restore some sanity to Congress, but it will take lots and lots (and lots more) of help from regular folks like yourselves and from some people whose voices reach a national audience, assuming that we can get such people on board. I will elaborate in a separate thread with a post I will copy (and slightly adapt) from my own site. I'll place it in the General Discussion section under the heading, A Serious Plan of Action.

YES!!!!!!!!! Someone is finally using good sense!

Can't get a valid ID from a Cracker Jack Box!

Dixie

Originally Posted by Dixie

YES!!!!!!!!! Someone is finally using good sense!

Can't get a valid ID from a Cracker Jack Box!

Dixie