Emanuel rolls out Chicago ID for ‘undocumented’ and those ‘on the sidelines’

By Matt Finn | Fox News

Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel has officially unveiled a new ID program he says is designed to welcome the “undocumented” community and people “on the sidelines” into the city.

“If you want somebody who’s undocumented to feel comfortable to be able to drive their child to school and all the benefits, they have to be part of the city.”

– Mayor Rahm Emanuel, on the new Chicago IDs

“If you want somebody who’s undocumented to feel comfortable to be able to drive their child to school and all the benefits, they have to be part of the city,” Emanuel said.

The name “municipal ID” was initially floated for the program, but Emanuel revealed that Chicago’s city IDs would actually be called “City Keys.”

He said City Keys were designed to give a person who doesn’t have an ID or a driver’s license essentially the same benefits as those who do. “When somebody says, ‘Can I see your driver’s license?’ — what that unlocks and what that smooths out and all the speed bumps that literally get eliminated because you have a driver’s license,” Emanuel said.

The mayor says the IDs will also provide benefits including discounts at cultural centers, on public transit and for veterans and senior citizens at locations across the city. Chicagoans will be able to link their public transit and library card to the ID and potentially even open bank accounts with it.