The Revolutionary patriots might be rolling over in their graves today as the Boston City Council meets to \u201cexplore\u201d the proposition of extending to non-U.S. citizens the privilege and right to vote.<\/p>\n
\u201cAll members of a community should have the right to participate and be included in the governance of that community,\u201d said Council President Andrea Campbell in the order<\/a> she filed with the council before Tuesday\u2019s hearing.<\/p>\n Campbell\u2019s order would give voting privileges to green card holders, legal permanent residents and to other visa holders and those benefitting from Temporary Protected and Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) status. While illegal aliens are not presently on the table, giving lawbreakers the right to vote was part of Campbell\u2019s plan earlier this year.<\/p>\n \u201cI want to have conversations about how noncitizens can fully participate and come out of the shadows to do so. These residents generate millions in taxes coming from folks who are identified as undocumented, DACA, legal permanent residents as well as having green cards. We should be open-minded and keep it open as to how they could participate,\u201d she said<\/a>.<\/p>\n Even for liberal Boston, that was too far for some of her colleagues.<\/p>\n \u201cVoting is a U.S. citizen\u2019s privilege, it\u2019s the ultimate privilege. And I for one will continue to fight that it remains that way. … Voting for noncitizens is a step too far,\u201d said Hyde Park City Councilor Tim McCarthy at the time, according to the Boston Herald<\/a>.<\/p>\n Any change in law would have to be approved by the full council and then by the mayor, the Legislature and the governor.<\/p>\n In addition, the order states it is the \u201cresponsibility\u201d of \u201clocal governments\u201d to \u201cexplore inclusive practices including providing documents in multiple languages and interpretation services at meetings and events\u201d sponsored by the City. There is no price tag yet on costs associated with providing transcription and translation for the hundreds and thousands of annual events in Boston.<\/p>\n Speaking of language, none has been released yet, so it remains unclear exactly who will be included under Campbell\u2019s \u201cwelcoming\u201d umbrella.<\/p>\n