LANSING, Mich. — Gema Lowe has protested and rallied at the Capitol building in Lansing a number of times throughout the years. She’s even in marched in Washington D.C. with Movimiento Cosecha’s Licenses For All campaign. However, sleeping in tents overnight was a different experience.
“Sleeping at night, it was cold at night,” Lowe recalled during an interview in September. “It was nice during the day but it was cold at night. But it’s also a sense of unity in fighting for what we need. It’s really for immigration.”
Lowe and others with the Movimiento, an immigrant-led nonprofit, did just that back in September. Chapters from across the state came together for a common cause.
“It was a sense of community because people stopped at the tent. People brought us food. We formed a little community through those three days,” Lowe said. “We also did action. So, we at some point were rallying in the streets, and we went into the capitol everyday. We saw at the capital it was a schedule for sessions.”
On one of those days, State Rep. Padma Kuppa (D-Clausen and Troy) stepped outside to meet them and hear their story, she said.
“It turns out it’s not undocumented immigrants alone,” Rep. Kuppa said. “There’s a lot of people who would benefit from this. I’ve had people who are in H1-B or J-1 Visas who live in my district and outside the district because I do have the unique role of being an immigrant myself. Not just the child of immigrants but an immigrant.”
Rep. Kuppa is an advocate for Licenses For All, also known as the Drive SAFE bills (Safety, Access, Freedom, and Economy). She said it’ll help those in the undocumented community get licenses to help with college admissions, adoption papers, and becoming a U.S. citizen, among other things.
“I heard from a vet in Grand Rapids, on the west side of the state, that there were workers that were coming together in one van and only one person — the driver — had a license,” she said. “And the rest of the workers, when he got sick with COVID, the rest of the workers couldn’t come.”
According to the American Immigration Council, there were 100,000 undocumented immigrants in Michigan in 2016. In 2018, they paid $143 million in state taxes and over $317 million in federal taxes.
Rep. Rachel Hood said those are numbers that can’t be ignored.
“That undocumented community is a valued community in Michigan, a highly valued community. It is critical to keeping our economy moving forward,” Rep. Hood said. “Giving these individuals, whatever that broad group of people I’m talking about, giving them the dignity of having a driver’s license so that they can go about their day is critical for them. It allows them to deliver food to their families, get their kids to school, take care of their healthcare needs, and get to those jobs where we need workers so desperately.”
Before 2008, undocumented people in Michigan could obtain driver’s licenses. However, that changed when former Attorney General Mike Cox determined that only permanent residents could get them.
Since then, Rep. Hood, Movimiento Cosecha and others have been fighting to get the back.
In September 2021, a public hearing was scheduled. However, minutes before it was scheduled to begin Speaker Jason Wentworth cancelled it. In an email in 2021 to Fox 17, his office stated that other lawmakers asked him to cancel due to concerns with the policy and wanting to focus on finalizing the budget at that time.
“We are hopeful that after the election, once politics dies down on this issue, we’ll be able to get back to the table for that public hearing, and maybe even move some bills in lame duck because this is important for Michigan,” Rep. Hood said.
Fox 17 reached out to Speaker Wentworth multiple times over the last two months, requesting an interview or comment about the status of the hearing.
Fox 17 has yet to hear back.
Lowe said this isn’t a Democrat or Republican issue. It’s about getting them their licenses back. So, she’ll be waiting for that hearing to happen.
“We were in Massachusetts where Cosecha fought for it for many many years. And, we passed drivers license for all in the state of Massachusetts in June this year,” Lowe said. “Since then, another state Rhode Island did it. So, there’s 22 states right now that have returned the licenses. So, Michigan has to be the next one.”
