Undocumented Immigrants
Anti-immigrant Bill Dies in Mississippi
originally posted by Chris Bober for IMAGINE 2050 » Immigration [click here]
Mar 4th
So what’s got me smiling today? Could it be the “surprised kitten” YouTube clip floating around the office? No, as sweet as that is, I’m most excited about Tuesday’s civil rights victory in Mississippi which saw the state’s legislature kill the so-called “Immigration Reform Act of 2010” (SB2032).
The bill, which initially passed the senate, died in a house committee despite being promoted by the anti-immigrant group, the Immigration Reform Law Institute (IRLI) and a last minute endorsement by the white supremacist hate group, Council of Conservative Citizens.
This alarming and fiercely anti-immigrant bill (co-authored by Senators: Michael Watson, Chris McDaniel, and Lee Yancey) called for severe penalties for undocumented immigrants caught with false identification. It also included 287(g) provisions for local and state law enforcement and language which would have created a “new crime” to “transport” or “harbor” undocumented immigrants in the state of Mississippi.
Of course, the transporting part got my attention too. Especially, because according to the bill, one can “conceal, harbor, or shelter from detection” an immigrant in “any building or means of transportation.” This, unfortunately, would have opened the door to a whole new dimension of racial profiling and meant offenders would see over $1,000 in fines and at least a year in prison.
The Council of Conservative Citizens, the reconstituted old White Citizen’s Council, which has referred to blacks as “a retrograde species of humanity” and opposes “all efforts to mix the races of mankind” promoted SB2032 on their website this week writing, “Please call your representatives and urge them to keep this bill alive, pass it, and continue to drive illegal immigrates (sic) out of our state.”
In order to “drive immigrates (sic) out of (their) state” those writing the bill (see above) would have had to include penalties which were sufficiently scary and extreme. Indeed, had it passed, SB2032 would have drastically changed existing state laws by charging undocumented immigrants (21+), found in possession of false identification, with a felony. This felony charge would include a $10,000 fine and up to 10 years in prison. To put this into perspective, the existing laws in Mississippi state that a U.S. citizen convicted of manufacturing false identification (i.e., those people in the business of making fake ID’s) can only face a $5000 fine and/or up to 3 years in prison.
Furthermore, the 287(g) provisions in the bill would have given greater power to state and local law officials to enforce immigration laws – which has led to abuses of power in the past – most notably, Sheriff Joe Arpaio’s extreme actions in Maricopa County, Arizona.
However disturbing, it is not surprising that language found in the bill is similar to model legislation promoted by the Immigration Reform Law Institute. IRLI is the legal arm of the John Tanton Network and primarily pushes legal causes which unfairly target immigrant communities. On their website, IRLI offers model legislation for policymakers interested in “planning state and local enforcement of immigration law.”
In one such model – Model Ordinance I – it states that it is not lawful for a business or person to provide safe haven for an immigrant “knowing or in reckless disregard of the fact that an alien has come to, entered, or remains in the United States in violation of the law.”
SB2032 states similarly that it would be against the law for anyone in Mississippi to “shelter from detection” any undocumented immigrant whether “knowing or in reckless disregard of the fact that the alien has come to, entered, or remained in the United States in violation of law.”
It is not clear whether the Immigration Reform Law Institute played a part in the development of this legislation; however, it is frightening that legislation like SB2032 fits so nicely within the ideology of groups like IRLI and CofCC.
With despicable and discriminatory legislation such as SB2032 (so willingly pushed by those in state legislatures), I worry that an anti-immigrant and white nationalist vision of America may move forward right under our noses. It’s enough to wipe the smile right off my face.
Cross-post: Republican Bill Seeks to Deprive American-Born of Citizenship
originally posted by Imagine 2050 Editors for IMAGINE 2050 » American Identity [click here]
Feb 20th
Alex DiBranco highlights an ongoing threat, not just to the children of immigrants, but to any American whose ability to prove birthright is compromised.
A proposed bill sponsored by Rep. Gary Miller (R-CA) wants people born in the U.S.A. to no longer receive automatic birthright citizenship.
The 14th Amendment, definitely one of the more awesome amendments in that it determined people born in the U.S. are all citizens, not slaves, states, “All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside.” Miller wants a federal law that says that “subject to the jurisdiction thereof” bit excludes children born in the U.S. to two undocumented parents.
And what is that jurisdiction bit actually used for? The only babies born in the U.S. who are not automatic citizens are the children of diplomats. Diplomatic immunity means that they are, in fact, not subject to the jurisdiction of U.S. laws, and cannot be prosecuted under our legal system. Undocumented immigrants, however, are in violation of a civil law, and most definitely subject to the jurisdiction of the United States — they can be prosecuted, sentenced, and imprisoned if they commit a crime. The children of undocumented immigrants certainly don’t have immunity from U.S. law either (I assume Miller is not saying that they should?); they are subject to the same laws as every other resident of the United States.
Read the entire article here.
Cord Jefferson Gets it Wrong on Immigration and Black America
originally posted by James E. Johnson Jr. for IMAGINE 2050 » Immigration [click here]
Feb 19th
Let’s just say up front I am not sure when Cord Jefferson’s writing is tongue-in-cheek or trying to be serious. Recently, he blogged ‘In Defense of John Edwards’ and talks about why progressives do not have the right to be as upset with Edward’s actions as conservatives, which I am sure was written with tongue firmly planted in cheek. His latest blog in The Root, ‘How Illegal Immigration Hurts Black America’ Jefferson liberally mixes fact and fiction to weave his tale.
Jefferson brilliantly ignores his own sources or twists them like pretzels to craft his fictional piece so that it has the feel of legitimacy.
1. He conveniently ignores an entire paragraph in the referenced Washington Post article which explains why there is higher unemployment by young Blacks such as Dlonta Spriggs. “Traditionally the last hired and first fired, workers in Spriggs’s age group have taken the brunt of the difficult economy, with cost-conscious employers wiping out the very apprenticeship, internship and on-the-job-training programs that for generations gave young people a leg up in the work world or a second chance when they made mistakes. Moreover, this generation is being elbowed out of entry-level positions by older, more experienced job seekers on the unemployment rolls who willingly trade down just to put food on the table.”
2. He also links to a NY Times article, but fails to highlight the following: “Hispanic immigrants had a bigger drop in jobs from 2007 to 2008, although black workers continued to have the highest unemployment rate, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.” The article states the job loss by Hispanic foreign-born workers declined by 4.8% compared to 2.1% for Blacks.
3. His blog suggests that undocumented immigrants make more than African Americans when he states that the median household income of African Americans in 2007 was lower than undocumented immigrants’ median household income for the same year, $32,000 versus $37,000 by his account. But he fudges the data by taking Census Bureau figures for African Americans in 2006 and figures from the Pew Hispanic Center figures for unauthorized immigrant for 2007 (they note unauthorized immigrant income at $36,000). The Pew report also states undocumented immigrants make approximately $14,000 per year less than the median household income of U.S. born residents.
4. I became a bit confused when Jefferson threw in the fact of historical discrimination in hiring practices by employers towards Blacks. ‘Besides competing for work while simultaneously attempting to avoid drastically deflated paychecks and benefits, unemployed African- American job seekers must also frequently combat racial discrimination. In a 2006 research paper called “Discrimination in Low-Wage Labor Markets,” a team of Princeton sociologists discovered that, all else being equal, black applicants to low-wage jobs were 10 percent less likely than Latinos to receive positive responses from potential employers. Furthermore, employers were twice as likely to prefer white applicants to equally qualified blacks.’ Is he trying to say that the employers are all undocumented immigrants?
It is not surprising that Jefferson turns to Mark Krikorian (who thinks that Haitians were not colonized long enough before they overthrow their slave masters in their revolution for independence), of the John Tanton Network’s think-tank Center for Immigration Studies for help in blaming immigrants as what ails Black America. As some Center for Immigration Studies reports have also been called in to question for not telling the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth. The Tanton Network has long tried to drive a wedge between Blacks and Latinos in an effort to advance its extremists views on immigration.
One would hope that Mr. Jefferson will write a serious blog that really discusses ways to help reduce the level of unemployment and underemployment among America’s Blacks. One in which he quits blaming those least responsible and starts talking about the real issues that are at the root of the problem: discriminatory hiring practices that lock Blacks out of jobs and advancement, poor educational systems that reduce employment opportunities, outsourcing of jobs historically held by Blacks to other countries, and labor laws that make it more difficult for workers to organize unions to help protect their wages and benefits.
Anti-immigrant Forces Target Struggling American Communities
originally posted by Jill Garvey for IMAGINE 2050 » Immigration [click here]
Feb 19th
Kobach
Tanton
The man at the heart of the most influential anti-immigrant network in the country, John Tanton, has created an empire of organizations consisting of lobbyists, lawyers, legislators, and “experts” who have infiltrated the very depths of social and political debate.
Lately, that has been no more apparent than in Arizona’s Maricopa County, where the Tanton Network’s favorite attorney, Kris Kobach, is busy working with notoriously brutal Sheriff Joe Arpaio. A Kansas attorney, professor, and politician with controversial associations, Kobach has a history of preying on vulnerable communities. Communities weakened, for example, by corruption or political division.
Maricopa County residents learned that the hard way when Kobach abruptly appeared with a plan to train over 800 deputies in the art of terrorizing the immigrant community. Supporters of Kobach’s program say it will help local deputies enforce federal immigration law, but fail to take a cue from the federal government’s recent decision to strip deputies of their power to make immigration arrests. Additionally, it does little to help the sheriff’s office fend off persistent accusations of racial profiling and related legal troubles.
Maricopa residents aren’t alone.
Last year Kobach partnered with a small group of Fremont, Nebraska residents to propose a city ordinance that would make it a crime to aid or abet undocumented immigrants. And just last month Kobach sued the Board of Regents for the University of Nebraska System, the Board of Governors for the State College System, and the Board of Governors for each of the Nebraska Community Colleges to end the practice of public universities offering in-state tuition to students who cannot prove citizenship. Interestingly, fewer than 50 undocumented students are receiving in-state tuition at Nebraska’s colleges and universities.
Kobach has attempted to pass severe anti-immigration laws in towns across Pennsylvania, California, Missouri, and Texas. What do these communities have in common besides Kris Kobach? They reap no benefits from the anti-immigrant laws and ordinances he is trying to implement and are often left with a costly legal mess.
In Hazelton, PA, after an ordinance crafted by Kobach and fellow IRLI attorney Michael Hethmon was struck down by a federal judge, the city was forced to pay for all legal fees.
Mr. Kobach has penetrated all these communities while drawing a hefty paycheck from the Immigration Reform Law Institute, the legal arm of the anti-immigrant group, the Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR). The Southern Poverty Law Center, a respected civil rights organization, lists FAIR as a hate group on its website, based on FAIR’s association with white nationalist organizations.
What appears to the public as a myriad of voices advocating for immigration enforcement is nothing more than a series of front groups and spin-offs seeking to overwhelm reasonable debate on immigration. Tanton founded the Federation for American Immigration Reform 30 years ago and shortly thereafter U.S. Inc. These two entities jointly fund and support most of today’s national anti-immigrant groups. They operate under names like Center for Immigration Studies which serves as the Network’s quasi-think tank, or the Coalition for the Future American Worker which pretends to be the voice of American workers. Names meant to belie the most sinister aspect of John Tanton’s Network. Civil rights groups continue to uncover the Tanton Network’s troubling associations with racists, white supremacists, and political extremists. One is the Pioneer Fund, a foundation committed to eugenics and “scientific racism”. The Pioneer Fund provided John Tanton with the funding he needed to build a multi-million dollar operation.
Anti-immigrant groups are using vulnerable communities like Maricopa County and Fremont to give their leadership mainstream legitimacy in the immigration debate, regardless of the cost to residents. While the Phoenix community embroils itself in a costly debate, Kris Kobach is busy building his campaign for Secretary of State in Kansas and his national political profile.
The Tanton Network’s agenda is obvious – create racial divisions among Americans using immigrants as the wedge. In communities across the nation, from Arizona to Nebraska to Pennsylvania, our towns and cities have become casualties of the anti-immigrant movement’s intolerant agenda. Before anti-immigrant rhetoric takes hold, they must loudly and collectively reject extremist groups. It is in our nation’s best interest.
Make Justice Happen in 2010
originally posted by Jill Garvey for IMAGINE 2050 » Immigration [click here]
Jan 5th
2010 could be the year that our generation achieves its greatest civil rights victories. As with all things, the possibility of great success comes with the potential for crushing failure. Every activist, social worker, educator, and organizer will have to be at the top of their game to make this year historical and set the pace for years to come. Here are five things to strive for in 2010:
First, pass immigration reform. Pulling millions of residents out of the shadows will do wonders for our nation. It is imperative that we seize on the opportunity to push for reform that legalizes as many immigrants as possible. The societal problems that stem from a broken immigration system will fester and worsen if we don’t leverage everything we got in favor of a path to citizenship. Some say it’s complex, I say it’s just common sense; stop using taxpayer money to hunt, detain, and deport otherwise law-abiding residents. We’ve got better things to do with our hard-earned money than to terrorize our neighbors. Demand reform and advocate for spending resources to help Americans weather the economic storm.
Second, support immigration reform by supporting health care reform. It ain’t pretty, but the two go hand-in-hand. And frankly, this is exactly what we voted for. So all the “I heart Obama” liberals that crawled into the closet on January 21st (you know who you are), you need to pull your butts out of neutral and get back in the game. Your responsibility as a voter didn’t end at the ballot box.
Third, protect the 14th Amendment. The 14th Amendment defines American liberty by protecting birthright citizenship and upholding equal voting rights. Therefore, it has stood as the cornerstone of equality, and also as a target for those who wish to deny opportunity to all. Those who oppose it are treading on decades of brave civil rights gains. Keeping the 14th amendment intact may be the greatest gift we can provide future generations. With almost 9% of adult African Americans having no way to prove their citizenship, the destruction of the 14th Amendment in an unacceptable blow to Black Americans and native-born children of immigrants alike.
Fourth, confront racism head on. Like deadly bacteria, bigotry grows wherever it goes unchallenged. Hate crimes and organized racism are on the rise just as communities of color are facing some the worst institutional racism and economic challenges in our nation’s history. It is a recipe for disaster. The hateful become more bold as the oppressed become more desperate. It’s scary stuff, but we cannot be afraid to call out racism when we see it. 2009 found racism hiding in the halls of Harvard, the recovery of a great city, and in the hearts of killers. 2010 could be the year that no children die at the hands of hate.
Fifth, promote a person’s right to individual freedom. Over the last few years, America has been all over the map when it comes women’s and LGBTQ rights. Same-sex marriage was banned in California but legalized in Iowa. President Obama reneged on his promises to the gay community, but defied conventional political savvy to appoint a transgender woman to the Commerce Department. A Latina woman, Sonia Sotomayor, was elected to the Supreme Court just as a doctor was gunned down for performing abortions. What the heck is going on? Grown men and women should be able to marry whomever they choose. Women have the right to choose an abortion, and doctors have the right to live to perform them. Period.
After a tragic decade, America is due for a progressive makeover. And now that we’ve established that progress doesn’t magically materialize out of a broken Republican party or a bloated Democratic one, we can get down to the business of real change. Not just change we can believe in, change we can grab onto and ride into the sunset. I’m ready for it, are you?