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Do We Really Have to Explore Dora’s Immigration Status?
Absurdity takes many forms in the immigration debate. For example, restrictionists have blamed immigrants for everything from global warming and our mortgage crisis to the swine flu epidemic and leprosy. (Where did my other sock go? Immigrants!) But this week, we reach a new level of absurdity—the exploitation of a bi-lingual cartoon character. In a […]
Read MoreTrio of Republican Border Enforcement Amendments Fail
Three Republican amendments to the Supplemental Appropriations Act (H.R. 4899) failed this morning. The amendments, which included proposals to ramp up border security spending from Senators McCain (AZ), Kyl (AZ), and Cornyn (TX), failed to garner the necessary sixty votes needed for passage. The Supplemental Appropriations Act is a broader bill that funds the troop […]
Read More1,200 National Guard Troops to the Border: A Bargaining Chip or More Political Pandering?
Yesterday, President Obama met with Senate Republicans to discuss, among other things, moving forward with comprehensive immigration reform. But what came out of the meeting was a letter to Senator Carl Levin, Chairman of the Armed Services Committee, requesting 1,200 troops to be sent to the U.S.-Mexican border and a $500 million request for additional […]
Read MoreArizona is Not the First State to Take Immigration Matters into their Own Hands
UPDATED 05/26/10 – Arizona’s controversial new immigration law (SB 1070) is the latest in a long line of efforts to regulate immigration at the state level. While the Grand Canyon State’s foray into immigration law is one of the most extreme and punitive, other states have also attempted to enforce federal law through state-specific measures and sanctions. Oklahoma and Georgia have passed measures, with mixed constitutional results, aimed at cracking down on illegal immigration through state enforcement. Legislators in 45 states introduced 1,180 bills and resolutions[i] in the first quarter of 2010 alone, compared to 570 in all of 2006. Not all state legislation relating to immigration is punitive—much of it falls within traditional state jurisdiction, such as legislation that attempts to improve high school graduation rates among immigrants or funds. The leap into federal enforcement, however, represents a disturbing trend fueled by the lack of comprehensive immigration reform at the federal level.
Read MoreRiding the Anti-Immigration Wave: The Short- and Long-Term Political Implications
Despite the mounting pressure (boycotts, legal challenges, protests) to repeal Arizona’s enforcement law (SB 1070), polls indicate that the majority of Americans support the law by almost two to one—and, at last count, as many as 17 other states are considering similar legislation. However, while it may seem advantageous for some in the GOP to […]
Read MoreIs Opting Out of the Secure Communities Program an Option?
The Department of Homeland Security has continued its effort to have the Secure Communities program up and running in all jails across the country. Secure Communities is a program designed to identify immigrants in U.S. jails who are deportable under immigration law. Under Secure Communities, participating jails submit arrestees’ fingerprints not only to criminal databases, […]
Read MoreClass Action Challenging Arizona Law Reveals Depth of Constitutional Rights at Stake
Yesterday, a diverse group of individuals and organizations filed a class action challenging Arizona’s harsh immigration enforcement law SB 1070, scheduled to go into effect on July 28, 2010. This law, among other things requires state and local law enforcement to check the immigration status of individuals it encounters, and makes it a state crime […]
Read MoreDoes Sarah Palin Support Arizona’s Law? You Betcha She Does!
In her latest right-wing cheerleading routine, former Alaska Governor/Tea Party Squad Captain, Sarah Palin, shook her political pompoms for Arizona Governor Jan Brewer at a press conferences defending Arizona’s controversial immigration law (SB 1070). Palin, who appeared shoulder to shoulder with Gov. Brewer on Saturday, used the opportunity to take a few pot shots at […]
Read MoreImmigration, Oil Spills and America’s Slippery Slope
It’s hard not to draw parallels between the two biggest stories in today’s headlines—a massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico and a punitive new immigration law in Arizona. While on some basic level most Americans care about the environment and immigration, it’s not until something really goes wrong that most people begin to […]
Read MoreDivine Intervention: Why Evangelicals Matter in the Immigration Debate
In the latest faith-based immigration effort, a group of Evangelical leaders and hundreds of conservative grassroots advocates joined Senator Chuck Schumer (D-NY) yesterday to discuss the need for bipartisan support on an immigration bill. Today, a large group of Arizona faith leaders (Evangelicals, Christians, Catholics and members of the Jewish faith) planned to meet with […]
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