World Language Communications Blog

THIS WEEK IN IMMIGRATION: 
For FULL ARTICLES, go to: www.immigrationimpact.com

Utah Attorney General Condemns Immigration Knock List
Utah officials and community leaders reacted swiftly and with revulsion to the announcement this week that confidential state records had been breached to compile a list of more than 1,300 supposedly undocumented people living in Utah, including pregnant women and children. At a press conference this afternoon, State Attorney General Mark L. Shurtleff condemned the list, noting that "some call it a blacklist, but I call it a hit list." Speaking for himself and on behalf of the governor of Utah, Gary R. Herbert Shurtleff made it clear that the release of confidential information was "not the way we do things in Utah" or in this country. Read more...

A Closer Look at the Seven Lawsuits Challenging Arizona Law S.B. 1070
Almost immediately after Arizona governor Jan Brewer signed S.B. 1070 into law, lawsuits were filed in federal court in Arizona challenging the law. The lawsuits all seek the same result - a halt to the law's enforcement-although each suit argues different grounds. Some suits cite civil liberty violations, racial profiling and unlawful regulation of federal immigration law, while another suit states that the police training videos exacerbate conflicts between federal and state law. As July 29, 2010, the date S.B. 1070 is set to go into effect, draws near, litigants and supporters on both sides of the lawsuits are seeking swift resolutions. Ultimately though, the timing of any resolution will depend on the court. Read more...

The List: A Modern Day Witch Hunt in Utah
It's the stuff of fiction. A vigilante group with a vaguely patriotic name creates a list with the help of someone - perhaps a disgruntled government-employee/mole - who is fed up with the system (think Michael Douglas in Falling Down). The list contains the names, social security numbers and other private information of hundreds of people whom the vigilantes deem "undesirable." The list even identifies pregnant women and their due dates and recommends that they be first on the list for "elimination." The list is delivered to a wide range of government, law enforcement and media groups, accompanied by a letter insisting action be taken to remove the undesirables. Read more...

The Right Side of History: Religious Leaders Urge Immigration Reform at Hearing
At a House Judiciary Subcommittee on Immigration hearing Wednesday, a panel of conservative religious leaders made the case for common sense solutions to our immigration problems - comprehensive immigration reform (CIR) that secures our borders, follows the rule of law and provides a pathway to citizenship for the roughly 11 million undocumented immigrants currently living in the U.S. While the hearing, The Ethical Imperative for Reform of Our Immigration System, started off with ethical and biblical arguments supporting and opposing reform, it later evolved into what most immigration debates eventually boil down to - fairness, justice and the punitive aspects of a reform effort. Read more...
 Undocumented Youth Pin DREAMs on Congressional Action
Every year, undocumented immigrants come to the U.S. along with their young children. These kids grow up in the U.S., speak English, and hang out with their friends just like other American kids. But unlike their classmates, they cannot join the military, work, or pursue their dreams because they don't have legal status. Every year, roughly 65,000 undocumented students graduate from high school, but many don't apply for college, even when they're at the top of their class, because they can't afford it. These hard-working students are not eligible for loans or work study and must often pay high out-of-state or international tuition rates. They often live in fear of detection by immigration authorities. The DREAM Act - which would benefit these students as well as the U.S. economy - proposes to fix these problems, but not without the political will of Congress.Read more...
 It's the Constitution, Governors! Why Playing Politics with the DOJ's Lawsuit is a Bad Idea
Republican and Democratic governors alike might need a tutorial on the concept of checks and balances, given the dismay they are expressing over the federal government's lawsuit against Arizona's SB 1070. Democrats are purportedly worried that it will hurt their chances in tough state elections, while Republicans are calling the lawsuit hypocritical because the federal government is litigating instead of legislating immigration. Let's review. As the lawsuit very clearly and eloquently lays out, the Constitution empowers Congress to regulate immigration. The President and his executive branch carry out the laws (and are given the discretion regarding how to exercise them). And when the states pass laws that conflict with this scheme, the federal courts are the referee. Read more...