06/27/12 Immigration reform champion Rep. Luis Gutierrez (D-IL) took to the House floor this morning to discuss the Supreme Court ruling on SB 1070, Arizona’s “show me your papers” law. Gutierrez gave a quiz titled, ”Pick Out The Immigrant.” Watch the speech below.  You’ll hear Gutierrez ask how Arizona officials determine which of the following are immigrants [...]
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06/26/12 The Department of Justice has set up an email address and hotline in response to the Supreme Court ruling on Arizona SB 1070′s “show me your papers” provision, a law which would allow law enforcement officers to check the immigration status of detained individuals based on “reasonable suspicion.” This provision, Section 2(B), will lead to [...]
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06/26/12 As Mitt Romney fails to propose a solution to the immigration problem, evangelical leaders have been growing increasingly frustrated with him. Evangelical leaders recently came out in full support of comprehensive immigration reform during this month’s “Evangelical Immigration Table” and supported the Arizona v. US Supreme Court decision while remaining concerned over the prospect of [...]
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06/26/12 With a 5-3 majority vote, yesterday, the Supreme Court sent a strong signal to the nation that Arizona’s anti-immigrant law is NOT a model for our country.  The ruling was a warning to other states not to follow in Arizona’s footsteps. While the Justices ruled that most provisions of the law were unconstitutional, they let [...]
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06/25/12 Similar to the way he ducked the key immigration questions at his speech at last week’s NALEO conference, Mitt Romney today avoided a substantive response to today’s Supreme Court ruling on Arizona’s immigration law – despite being in Arizona.  Additionally, while Romney’s statement attempted to call out President Obama for a lack of leadership on [...]
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06/25/12 Today, the Supreme Court of the United States ruled on Arizona vs. United States re: the state’s controversial anti-immigrant law, SB 1070. From the Associated Press: The Supreme Court struck down key provisions of Arizona’s crackdown on immigrants Monday but said a much-debated portion on checking suspects’ status could go forward. The court did not [...]
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06/22/12 A decision from the Supreme Court on Arizona vs. United States is expected next week, where the issue in contention is whether the law usurps the federal government’s power to regulate immigration laws. While we wait for a decision, Puente Arizona is taking the lead by strengthening “Barrio Defense Committees” in Arizona, where members of the community connect, [...]
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06/14/12 In addition to their amazing cover story and video on the DREAM Act and the plight of immigrant youth, TIME Magazine today has a great story on the “fiscal fallout of state immigration laws,” or what happens to states that try to “deport their way to prosperity.” As the article begins: State-level immigration laws don’t [...]
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06/08/12 Two new polls show that both Latinos and non-Latinos continue to embrace common sense, federal immigration reform and a path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants.  While some politicians continue to hide from the issue, suggest tentative baby steps forward, or hope the states will step in, the American people are unequivocal: undocumented immigrants should be put on a path [...]
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06/06/12 Just when you think Sheriff Joe Arpaio can’t sink any lower, he does. Arpaio, as you’ll see in the video below, proudly compares his infamous Tent City to concentration camps: I already have a concentration camp. It’s called Tent City. Concentration camps in the United States? In 2012? The strangest thing is that he’s proud [...]
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05/14/12 Perhaps one of the most notable things about the lawsuit the Department of Justice filed against Arizona Sheriff Joe Arpaio last week is its breadth.  Arpaio is being charged with quite a range of offenses, from mistreating Latino prisoners to mass racial profiling to intimidation of political opponents to violent misconduct.  The Associated Press today highlights [...]
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05/10/12 The Department of Justice announced yesterday that it is filing a lawsuit against Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio, following a months-long delay during which “America’s Most Corrupt Sheriff” refused to reform his enforcement practices or agree to the independent oversight of a monitor. The development is the latest in a series of events that began [...]
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05/04/12 The Arizona state legislature this week declined to increase funds for the developmentally disabled, declined to grant 100,000 poor children greater access to health care, and declined to fund much-needed highway and education projects—but it did consider reimbursing recalled state senator Russell Pearce for $216,000 for costs incurred during his failed 2010 campaign, when Pearce [...]
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05/03/12 One of our main takeaways from last week’s Supreme Court hearing on Arizona v. United States was the troubling disconnect between the discussion in the court room and how the law would actually play out on the ground.  By insisting that discussion of the law’s effects were off the table, Chief Justice John Roberts ensured [...]
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05/03/12 It was brutal, violent end to the life of one of Arizona’s most notorious anti-immigrant leaders, J.T. Ready — and he killed four people along with himself. From the Arizona Republic: For several years, Arizona vigilante J.T. Ready conducted armed, civilian patrols along the U.S. border, urging the use of violence to prevent smuggling and [...]
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05/01/12 Traditionally known as International Workers’ Rights Day, and more recently known as the “Day Without an Immigrant,” this May Day labor, immigrant, and Occupy activists are joining across the country to call for a slate of progressive changes.  Marches, rallies, and protests are planned in over 40 cities, including Milwaukee, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Atlanta, [...]
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04/30/12 The general election has started in earnest, which means the etch-a-sketching has begun. Last week on CNN, Anderson Cooper 360 aired a segment probing into Mitt Romney’s recent (and changing) positions on immigration, and what he has said about the subject as he travels from conservative South Carolina to Latino-vote heavy Florida.  He’s said that [...]
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04/30/12 Last week, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) released its long-awaited response to last year’s report from the Secure Communities Task Force. Secure Communities, the Obama Administration’s signature immigration enforcement program, has been fiercely criticized by law enforcement experts, state governors and legislatures, community leaders and members of Congress as a deportation dragnet that has systematically [...]
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04/27/12 This has been a historic week on immigration policy in an election year.  Below is the America’s Voice take on some of the major political storylines surrounding immigration. If upheld, the Supreme Court ruling on the Arizona “show me your papers” provision would have a huge mobilizing effect on Latino voters.  At the Supreme Court’s [...]
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04/27/12 One of our takeaways from yesterday’s Supreme Court hearing on Arizona v. United States is the serious disconnect between the discussion in the court room and how the law would actually play out on the ground. Incredibly, at the start of the federal government’s case, Chief Justice Roberts told Solicitor General Donald Verrilli that he [...]
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04/25/12 Today the Supreme Court heard the case Arizona v. United States, the federal government’s challenge to Arizona’s anti-immigration law, SB 1070.  The specific legal question at issue is whether four provisions of SB 1070 are pre-empted by the U.S. Constitution, which would mean that states such as Arizona cannot intrude on an area of federal [...]
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04/25/12 Today, hundreds of opponents of SB 1070 gathered in front of the U.S. Supreme Court to speak out againstArizona’s “show me your papers” anti-immigration law, lift up firsthand accounts about the devastating impact SB 1070 has had on individuals, families and communities in Arizona, and demand federal action on real, positive immigration reform.  At a press conference [...]
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04/24/12 With the Supreme Court set to hear arguments for and against Arizona’s anti-immigration law on Wednesday, April 25th, we turn to another court for its ruling—the court of public opinion.  In advance of tomorrow’s proceedings, America’s Voice Education Fund analyzed how immigration and SB 1070-type laws are play out  among the American people. The results might be [...]
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04/23/12 This week, all eyes will once again be on SB 1070. On Wednesday, the Supreme Court will hear arguments on the Arizona law and will soon decide whether to strike it down forever, or open the door to Arizona laws across the country. Exactly two years ago today, Governor Jan Brewer signed Arizona’s now-infamous “show [...]
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04/20/12 Today, Mitt Romney heads to Arizona for multiple campaign events.  Against the backdrop of next week’s U.S. Supreme Court argument in U.S. v Arizona, the Romney campaign yesterday attempted to distance the candidate from his past support of Arizona’s “show me your papers” immigration law. The stakes are high.  Last weekend, at a closed door [...]
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04/20/12 Next Wednesday, the Supreme Court will hear oral arguments in United States v. Arizona, a case focused on the constitutionality of Arizona’s SB 1070 “show me your papers” immigration law.  In addition to its implications for the continued spread of costly and Draconian state-based laws, the eventual ruling – likely in June 2012 – has [...]
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04/19/12 On Wednesday, the U.S. Supreme Court will hear the case of Arizona v. United States. It’s the challenge to Arizona’s harsh “show me your papers” anti-immigrant law, SB 1070, brought by the Obama administration. As Jed Lewison writes today at DailyKos, Mitt Romney is a supporter of SB 1070, which he views as a “model” [...]
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