Shannon Wong of the New York Civil Liberties Union, spoke to the
Common Council, prior to the municipal ID vote, supporting the city’s
policy of not enforcing ICE warrants.
MIDDLETOWN – Mayor Joseph DeStefano told the Middletown Common
Council Tuesday night that discussion about establishing a municipal ID
program has been “going on way too long.”
The mayor urged the council to move ahead and approve the concept, something Council President Miguel Rodrigues, himself an immigrant, insisted be passed.
Lawmakers voted unanimously to approve the concept of municipal IDs pending
working out of details. Many immigrants in the audience broke out in applause
after the vote.
Rodrigues had a message for everyone.
“What makes someone American isn’t blood or birth, but the allegiance to the founding principles of faith in the idea that anyone from anywhere can write the next chapter of our country,” he said.
Several residents who spoke before the vote also urged the council to support driver’s licenses for all.
One man expressed concern for his future. “Every knock at your door you could be gone,” he said.
