Efforts to keep undocumented immigrants from driving legally are underway once again – with help from the Oregon Republican Party.
Two political hopefuls with ties to Oregonians for Immigration Reform, an anti-immigrant advocacy group based in Salem, have collected 1,000 signatures for Initiative Petition 43, tentatively called Repeal The Equal Access to Roads Act, paving the way for its advancement to the official ballot title drafting process.
The petitioners need to collect 112,200 valid signatures in order for it to appear on the November 2020 ballot. The measure would give voters the opportunity to repeal House Bill 2015, which Gov. Kate Brown signed into law earlier this year, removing the requirement that a person provide proof of legal residence in the United States in order to secure a driver’s license.
The law went into effect Aug. 9, making it possible to drive in Oregon legally for the more than 100,000 undocumented immigrants the Pew Research Center estimates to be living in the state.
More than enough signatures were gathered at the Oregon Republican Party booth during the Oregon State Fair in Salem this past weekend, according to messaging from the Stop Illegal Drivers campaign based in Oregon City.
Mark Callahan, a former Congressional candidate, and current Congressional hopeful Angela Roman are listed as chief petitioners of the act. Callahan is on the board of Oregonians for Immigration Reform, which the Southern Poverty Law Center designated a hate group, and Roman is a former member of the Oregon Three Percenters, a right-wing anti-government militia. Roman made headlines in 2017 when, while working as an aid to Rep. Mike Nearman (R-Independence), she was convicted of a weapons charge.
Correction: The original version of this story indicated that Oregonians for Immigration Reform is behind the current repeal effort. According to chief petitioner Mark Callahan, he and Angela Roman are the only people collecting signatures, and Oregonians for Immigration Reform is not involved with the campaign “at this time.” He said he could not say whether or not the group would be involved with the campaign in the future.
This most recent development should come as no surprise. It’s exactly what opponents of undocumented immigrants did the last time the Oregon Legislature passed a law that would allow undocumented immigrants to legally obtain driver’s cards in 2013. The following year, Oregonians for Immigration Reform launched a veto petition referendum and successfully referred it to the November 2014 ballot, where voters reversed the law with 66% of the vote.
The One Oregon Coalition, with support of hundreds of organizations across the state, is prepared to defeat this measure as it defeated the anti-sanctuary-state measure last fall, said Iván Hernández, communications manager at Causa, Oregon’s largest immigrants rights organization.
“House Bill 2015 allows all Oregonians who meet DMV requirements to take care of themselves and their families, and that is why it received bipartisan support in the Legislature,” said Hernández. “That is why it received support from hundreds of businesses, civil rights organizations, immigrant organizations – a large coalition of folks who stood up for Oregon values, because in Oregon we believe in taking care of each other and treating others as we would like to be treated. For many generations, Oregon has been a beacon of hope for people. Our ancestors came here in search of a better life, and we understand that modern-day immigrants are doing the same thing.”
Email Senior Staff Reporter Emily Green at emily@streetroots.org. Follow her on Twitter @greenwrites.