Activists held a vigil outside of Trinity Episcopal Church in Woodbridge tonight, urging New Jersey lawmakers to move forward with legislation that expands access to drivers licenses for all this year.

“Access to licenses is critically important to Latino working families that need them to drive to go to work and pick up their kids up from school,” said Christian Estevez, president of Latino Action Network. “Our community has been waiting too long for this. We urge legislators to act quickly.”

“This is our moral test as a state. Which side are we on? As our presidential administration criminalizes, excludes and separates immigrant families, our legislators have an opportunity to send a clear message that we value our immigrant community. Enough of “routine” traffic stops ending up in detention, deportation and family separation. Our communities need drivers licenses now,” said Brian Lozano, community organizer with Wind of the Spirit.

“We supports access to driver’s licenses because our immigrant communities, including the Bangladeshi community, should have the ability to drive safely, to contribute to our economy and support their families. We need to be able to drive, denying this right is of no benefit to our state or to our community,” said S. Nadia Hussain, Co-founder of the Bangladeshi American Women’s Development Initiative (BAWDI), a community-based organization that supports and advocates for Bangladeshi American women, girls and families in New Jersey.

“As the winter gets colder, we have to wait in the snow and rain for the bus or walk our kids home in freezing temperatures. We call on our state legislature to take action now to pass expanded access to drivers licenses,” said María Amalia Hernandez, member of Make the Road NJ. “Immigrant families are under attack across the country – expanding access to drivers licenses is the best way for our state to stand up for respect and dignity for our immigrant communities.”

“Expanding access to drivers licenses will make New Jersey roads safer as more drivers are trained, tested, and insured,” said Erika Nava, Policy Analyst with New Jersey Policy Perspective.
“Not acting on this issue is a missed opportunity to make our roads safer, economy stronger, and communities more inclusive.”

“Necesitamos que ya se pasen las licencias de conducir por que es un derecho que nos merecemos como comunidad es hora que NJ demuestre que está con nuestra comunidad ya no podemos esperar más,” said Jairo Palomo, member of Faith in New Jersey.

Translation of Jairo Palomo’s statement: “We need to have driver’s licenses pass urgently it is our right as members of the community that we deserved, it is time for NJ to show leadership, we can’t not wait any longer.” said Jairo Palomo, member of Faith in New Jersey.

Twelve states and Washington, D.C. have expanded access to driver’s licenses to qualified drivers, regardless of immigration status.  New Jersey would become the 13th state to expand access to driver’s licenses in the U.S., following states like California, Utah, Washington, and the District of Columbia which have successfully implemented similar expansions.

The Let’s Drive NJ Campaign is supported by a diverse array of faith, labor and community organizations from across the state. More information about the campaign can be found at
LetsDriveNJ.org.