DURHAM, N.C., Nov. 11 (UPI) -- A North Carolina city is considering permitting the use of Mexican identification cards for Mexican citizens residing outside Mexico, officials said.
The Durham City Council may be the first city in the United States to accept the Matricula Consular, an ID card issued by Mexico's consulate offices to Mexican citizens living outside the country, regardless of their immigration status, WTVD-TV, Raleigh, reported Thursday.
"The official purpose of the card is to demonstrate that the holder is a Mexican citizen living outside of Mexico. It includes an official Government of Mexico issued ID number and bears a photograph and address of the Mexican National to whom it is issued," the Durham city attorney said.
If the council approves the use of the card, it would be accepted as a legal form of identification for business conducted with the city, and police would also accept it for identification purposes, WTVD-TV reported.
Ronald Garcia with Mexican advocacy group El Centro Hispano said people are confused about the card.
He said it can't be used to vote, replace a valid driver's license or access government benefits. But if someone were pulled over without valid ID, the card could help them avoid legal troubles.
"Detaining and processing and then deporting people who haven't really committed a crime -- maybe they don't have all their papers in order, but that's really a part of our broken immigration system," he said.
"It really doesn't tell you anything about the legal or illegal status of the person being in the United States," said Mitch Kokai with the John Locke Foundation, a North Carolina independent political organization.
