Reply #297: First, [View All]

[Ms. Toad]

I agree with you that the voter ID law is evil, and designed to suppress voters likely to vote democratic. I am amazed at how few folks in this thread remember how poll taxes and literacy tests that served the same purpose not so very long ago. (For what its worth - this is essentially a poll tax, given the cost in both time and dollars that obtaining an ID requires (in MO, for example, the cost of the ID was waived - BUT the cost of obtaining the documentation (copies of birth certificates, for example) necessary to get an ID was not), and a literacy test (not measuring traditional literacy, but bureaucratic literacy with regard to negotiating the maze of overlapping bureaucracies one must get through to establish ID).)

That said, you didn't mention what state your mom was born it - Kansas (where she last lived, as an example) has an option of filing a delayed certificate of birth. It does require lots of documentation - but some of it could be available through public records. It specifically permits substitution for the affidavits your mom can't get. Additional documents at least 5 years old can be used (newspaper articles - perhaps coverage of her wedding, coverage of a major birthday (my hometown newspaper in Nebraska would have had lots of folksy articles with this information), census records - there's a link from the website). The state where she was born probably has similar procedures for folks born in the era when home births were more common. Since she got a passport 20 years ago, its possible there is already a delayed certificate of birth on file with the state from that effort - if you haven't checked it would probably be worth it.)

Good Luck!