Marseille, France, scraps plan to ID homeless

Protesters at the city hall listed their grievances over the plan, which was designed to serve the bearers in the event of emergency: it revealed medical histories and breached confidentiality, it stigmatized the homeless with an identifying document but most seriously, the cards with yellow triangles evoked memories of badges Jews were compelled to wear in some European cities occupied by Nazis during World War II.

"Our original aim was to find a way to identify people living on the streets, and who often have their documents stolen," said Xavier Mery, a Marseille deputy mayor in charge of helping the homeless. He added the card was meant to be carried in a pocket and list only a name and blood type, although photographs of the card, displayed before the rollout of the program, suggested is was to be worn with a lanyard around the neck and included a column, headed "pathologies," to list allergies, illnesses and medical histories.

"I don't want to be singled out like this. That happens enough already, but with this, where on earth are we heading?" said an unidentified man at the protest.

Three hundred cards were distributed by the city council and the local ambulance service before Mayor Jean-Claude Gaudin scrapped the plan.

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