Mexican consulate helps out local Mexicans
Friday, June 6, 2008
Last updated: Saturday June 7, 2008, EDT 2:54 PM
BY ELIZABETH LLORENTE
STAFF WRITER
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Mexican consulate officials issued hundreds of passports and identification cards to Mexicans in Passaic this week, in the hope that official documents will help illegal immigrants avoid arrest and deportation.

Mexican officials said their citizens – who account for more than half of the nation’s 12 million illegal immigrants – are particularly vulnerable to harsh treatment by local and federal law enforcement authorities since they’re the largest portion of the illegal population. Since February, they have issued thousands of passports and Mexican identification cards, known as “matricula,â€