NJ Mayor: No More IDs for Immigrants

Plainfield's new mayor has shut down a nonprofit group's program that provides photo identification cards to the city's immigrant community.

Adrian Mapp, who took office last month, said he made the move due to residents' complaints that they were being deceived by the group. He said the ID cards allegedly were being ``peddled'' as a valid form of identification.

The residents' claims were disputed Carmen Salavarrieta, the leader of the Angels for Action, which began distributing the cards a few months ago.

Salavarrieta said the card was never meant to be honored as official government identification outside the city limits. She also noted that the city's former mayor and police chief gave their support to the program when it was launched.

More than 500 city residents already have obtained one of the cards, which are sold for $10. Salavarrieta said another 2,300 city residents were on a waiting list to get the cards.

Salavarrieta said the city's police director has assured her that his department would continue to honor the cards that have already been distributed. She said she will halt the program until she can convince the city to embrace it.

``I won't give out these cards anymore. He's the mayor, I'm not gonna issue them against his orders,'' she said. ``But we're going to show him that it's worth it.''
 

Copyright AP - Associated Press
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