A Black woman who was born during the Jim Crow Era says she’s unable to renew her driver’s license.
According to CBS News, Janette Gantt Palmer, a 76-year-old retired postal worker from Miami, said she can’t obtain a Real ID license, now mandated by federal law, because she doesn’t have an official birth certificate or a U.S. passport.
Gantt Palmer was born in February 1949 during segregation in Aiken, South Carolina. She never received a birth certificate, which was common among Black Americans at the time, as they were often denied access to hospitals due to Jim Crow laws.
“Back in those days, we were born at home. Nobody going to no hospital,” Gantt Palmer said. “The lady came to your house and helped your mom have the baby.”
For decades, Gantt Palmer drove legally using her postal worker ID and Florida-issued license. However, the Real ID Act, which was passed by Congress in 2005 and went into full effect last week, requires individuals to present verified documents proving their identity and citizenship to receive federally approved identification.
“After waiting two hours in the line, I said, ‘I’d like to renew my driver’s license.’ ‘Oh no, you need this and you need that,’” Gantt Palmer said. ”For what, what reason? I never had it before.”
The Real ID Act affects driver’s license renewals and travelers, who must provide a compliant ID or risk being turned away at airport security checkpoints.
Gantt Palmer is now trying to apply for a delayed birth certificate through the South Carolina Department of Public Health, which requires at least three historical documents to establish identity. U.S. Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart’s office is also exploring ways to expedite documentation before the 90-day extension on Gantt Palmer’s license expires.
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