Immigration Policy Center

Published on Mon, May 03, 2010

It's not every day in Arizona that the police are so eager not to do their job. Yet the state's latest anti-immigrant crack down has evoked protests from cops across the state, who fear that a new measure to criminalize undocumented immigrants will only make it harder to deal with local crime.

Broad opposition to the law, SB 1070, has produced some of the immigration debate's strangest bedfellows: civil rights advocates have aligned with police chiefs to warn of the consequences of entangling local police in federal immigration policy. And law enforcement officials nationwide have warned that the growing trend of localizing immigration enforcement undermines years of progress in establishing “community policing” techniques that are believed effective in preventing crime.

Published in the Colorline Magazine

Published on Wed, May 05, 2010

The 287(g) program, a lightning rod for criticism, is slowly and quietly melting into an expanded version of Secure Communities, a different and more under-the-radar government program.

Advocates and experts have noticed the switch, as the line to sign up for 287(g), a program that deputizes local police officers to enforce immigration law, has slowed, and the support for Secure Communities, a program screening prisoners for immigration status, grows.

Published in the Latin American Dispatch

Published on Fri, Apr 30, 2010

Two lawsuits challenging the constitutionality of Arizona’s new immigration law – and the promise of more to come – represent the latest in a surge of outrage over the first-of-its-kind measure to crack down on illegal immigration. The lawsuits follow high-profile protests, calls for boycotts, and a travel advisory from Mexico urging its citizens to steer clear of Arizona.

Published in the The Christian Science Monitor

Published on Fri, Apr 30, 2010

Michele Waslin, senior research analyst, American Immigration Council; Washington, D.C.: This law is very problematic, and I believe there are several groups that are already preparing lawsuits challenging it. The White House is also taking a look to see if there is anything that can be done by the federal government. More than anything, this law highlights the fact that our immigration system is badly broken. We’re seeing more and more of these harsh anti-immigrant laws at the state and local level.

Published in the The Columbian Missourian

Published on Thu, Apr 29, 2010

The Senate leadership is planning to introduce a summary outline of an immigration bill shortly before 6 p.m. on Thursday, one day after circulating a draft to advocacy groups. The framework—whose existence I reported earlier this week and which is spearheaded by Sen. Charles Schumer (D-NY), Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.), and Sen. Robert Menendez (D-NJ)—seems to have been written with the intention of attracting support from moderates on both sides of the aisle. But if Dems can't get Republicans to sign on, will they go it alone?

Published in the Mother Jones

Published on Tue, Apr 27, 2010

Now that Arizona has enacted the most xenophobic anti-immigration law in this country, get ready for the big Hispanic exodus.

But it won’t be an exodus back to Mexico or to Central America. It will be a stampede toward Miami, Los Angeles, Chicago and other cities with huge Hispanic populations, where Latinos will be able to live without fear of being stopped by police because of the color of their skin or for speaking Spanish.

According to a bill passed by the Arizona legislature and signed into law Friday, police officers would have to arrest anyone when they have “reasonable suspicion” that the person does not have valid immigration papers. And it would allow anyone to sue local or state officials who they believe aren’t carrying out the law.

Published in the Youngstown News

Published on Fri, Apr 23, 2010

No surprise to see John McCain supporting this unAmerican attempt to mandate that police demand citizens show their papers.

What a phony McCain is. Where does he think is: The Occupied Territories?

Published in the Veterans Today

Published on Sun, Apr 25, 2010

Ours is a nation of immigrants. That’s what we’re told from our earliest years in grade school. The vast majority of Americans are descended from those who came (voluntarily or not) from other continents.

But the topic remains controversial. And immigration both legal and not is changing the American landscape. Demographers tell us that by 2050, the proportion of Hispanics in the U.S. will more than double to 29 percent, making them the largest segment after whites at 47 percent.

Published in the The Southern Pine Pilot

Published on Sun, Apr 25, 2010

On March 21, we joined a busload of Central New Yorkers on a trip to Washington, D.C., where tens of thousands of people rallied for comprehensive immigration reform. We returned home ready to face the usual barrage of falsehoods that poison our national discourse on immigration — myths meant to demonize immigrants and prevent reform.

Published in the The Post Standard

Published on Fri, Apr 23, 2010

Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer just signed into law the controversial immigration bill that has drawn national scrutiny and triggered furious protests. "I firmly believe it represents what's best for Arizona," she said. The bill "strengthens the laws of our state. It protects all of us." And, she added, "it does so while ensuring the constitutional rights of all in Arizona remain solid, stable, and steadfast."

Published in the Newsweek