Trump’s fight against migration does not stop, and now he wants to revoke 17,000 commercial driver’s licenses only in California. According to the authorities, people without federal work authorization should never have been allowed to have commercial credentials.
Behind every document there is a job, a routine and, in many cases, the entire income of a household, but the authorities say that the licenses were issued “by mistake,” although it is quite a coincidence that this news arrives just when federal restrictions are being imposed to limit migrants in essential jobs.
Not everything is politics, and now there are people who are going to lose their job, companies without the possibility of finding a replacement, and a state that admits the failure while pointing at Washington.
Their license will be canceled…
The Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) sent notices on November 6 and gave the affected people 60 days to respond. On paper it seems like enough time, but many fear that their employers will not wait that long.
And we are talking about people who have spent years driving trucks, buses or heavy machinery, who have their training, their exams, who adapted completely to the system looking for something with which they can survive in this system.
“Technical failure”
According to the DMV, the origin of the problem lies in system failures detected after an audit. A bureaucratic error, they say (the usual), but that error now threatens entire sectors, logistics, agriculture, construction. But nobody argues that these people do know how to do their job, rather that they should have legal permission to stay in order to do it.
The Trump factor
Of course, it is everywhere… this happens right in the middle of federal proposals to prevent refugees, asylum seekers and DACA beneficiaries from obtaining work permits. They say it is for “security,” but they are also scrutinizing licenses granted to migrants with limited English proficiency, with the intention (obviously) of expelling them from the country if they do not also comply with that rule.
The human impact
California has more than 720,000 active commercial licenses. 8 % belong to immigrants who could be affected, a small percentage that would be about 61,000 workers, and if it is established nationwide, it will be 194,000 affected people.
Let us not forget that behind every number there is a mortgage, a rent, children and a family that needs support. There are people who do not have a plan B, and neither does the state, because it will not offer any type of support program or job alternatives to these workers, in addition to not being able to confirm that these drivers “are dangerous.” Everything is being shameful.
Politics, blame and contradictions
Democratic officials have pointed at Trump as responsible for the chaos, but the uncomfortable detail is that the legal basis that allowed the revocation is state, not federal. That is, designed and approved by California.
Terrified of ICE
Think about it, the situation is not nice at all if you are an irregular migrant in this country, ICE raids are seen, militarized sieges and massive deportations. And, although California has spent years washing its image and presenting itself as a refuge for migrants, this type of decision (which has been made in California) only makes these workers feel fear every day of their existence.
What options do drivers have now?
Appeal or look for another job, neither option is simple nor fast, especially if they have needs to cover. Companies, for their part, are already looking for substitutes, but the labor market does not have enough qualified drivers to cover the portion of these migrants, all super logical, don’t you think?
Instead of walking toward a more welcoming future for everyone, what we are experiencing is the continuous criminalization of migrants, who come to this country to look for a better future, they called it the American dream, but now, for many, it is only a nightmare.