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(From left) Jesse Chapman, president of the Rigler PTA, Reyna Lopez of Causa and Nathan Means, treasurer of the Rigler PTA, attended a teach-in this week on Oregon's driver card measure. Ballot Measure 88 would allow immigrants who can't prove they're in the U.S. legally to get a driver card. Sept. 30, 2014. Rebecca Koffman/Special to The Oregonian

(Rebecca Koffman/Special to The Oregonian)

At Rigler School in Northeast Portland on Tuesday night, a mother, speaking in Spanish, told fellow parents what it feels like to drive without a license.

Going to work, taking children to school or to the hospital, she said, "we are fearful, scared that we might have an accident. We are looking always for the police, looking for places where we can turn around or hide."

The woman, who preferred not to give her name because she's an undocumented immigrant, was at a teach-in about Measure 88 -- one of the most controversial issues of this election cycle.

The measure, if passed, will make four-year limited-purpose driver's cards - not licenses - available to those who can't prove they're in the U.S. legally but who pass driver's tests, have proof of identity and date of birth, and have lived in Oregon for at least a year. The driver card, unlike a driver's license, couldn't be used to register to vote, as identification for air travel, or to obtain government benefits that require legal residence.

The issue hits home for many in the Spanish/English Dual Immersion School where 86 percent of students qualify for free and reduced lunch and 81 percent are students of color. And it's not just a concern for immigrant parents.

"I want my daughter to grow up in a community where everyone has the same chance to succeed," said Jesse Chapman, president of the PTA, which put on the event.

Another parent, Laura Moulton, has gotten to know many Latino parents through the school's Café Español, a weekly get-together where parents who want to practice Spanish meet with native Spanish speaking parents. She said she has been "blown away" by other parents' stories.

"Here I am, complaining because it's a drag to have to take my kids to violin lessons," she said, while other parents live in a different world, "getting stopped, at night, in the rain, with their new baby, having their car confiscated."

The teach-in began with a history lesson from Reyna Lopez, director of civic engagement at Causa, an immigrant rights group. She explained, in English and Spanish, that until 2008, Oregon allowed residents to get driver's licenses without proving legal residency. This year alone, she said, 80,000 people won't be able to renew their licenses.

Rigler parent Maria Damaris Silva acted as Spanish-English interpreter at this week's teach-in on Oregon's Ballot Measure 88. Sept. 30, 2014. Rebecca Koffman/Special to The Oregonian.

Since 2008, Causa and other groups have worked to restore the right. In May 2013, Gov. John Kitzhaber signed the driver's card bill into law. Then opponents gathered enough signatures to freeze the law and put it to a public vote.

Driver cards, proponents argue, will improve community safety by reducing the number of untested drivers on the road and enabling more drivers to qualify for insurance. Lopez added: "It's just the right thing to do."

Opponents see Measure 88 as a back-door attempt to expand the rights of undocumented immigrants under the guise of concerns about community safety. The website of Protect Oregon Driver Licenses says the driver card law "seeks to legitimize the presence of illegal aliens in Oregon by issuing them highly coveted state issued ID in the form of a driver card."

The Portland Council PTA and many local farmers, unions, businesses and church groups support Measure 88.

Fernando Madrid, a staffer at Rigler, told the group in English and Spanish that people need to drive "to go to work and to bring the bread, you say in America, to bring the bacon."

One man, speaking through a parent interpreter, said his license will expire in 10 days. "I have never asked for any benefits. My record is very clean. My family depends on me, on my wages."

Another father who has been a soccer coach for years and who as a licensed driver gives kids rides to soccer and practice, said his license will expire next year.

"I have two children who depend on me to drive them everywhere. I don't know what will happen with my job when I can't drive, then what will happen with my children?"

Washington, California and Nevada all allow undocumented immigrants driving privileges. A woman named Laura said her husband is looking for an apartment in Vancouver in preparation for when his driver's license expires. She and their children will remain in Oregon.

-- Rebecca Koffman