Arizona's Anti-Immigration Law
Jennifer L. Manning, April 25, 2010
On Friday, April 23, 2010, Arizona Governor Jan Brewer signed into law Arizona's immigration bill SB 1070, which is scheduled to go into effect at the end of the summer, 90 days after the legislative session ends. It is considered to be some of the toughest anti-immigration state law in the nation.
The law requires immigrants to carry their alien registration documents at all times and makes it a crime (a state misdemeanor) if an immigrant does not carry their immigration documents. Arizona police officers will have the power to detain anyone they "reasonably suspect" is in the country illegally to determine the immigration status of the person.
This anti-immigration law gives police officers broad discretion in determining whom they "reasonably suspect" are in the country illegally as it does not prohibit them from using a person's race or ethnicity as a basis for their determination. Opponents are concerned that this will encourage racial profiling by police officers.
Arizona State Sen. Rebecca Rios stated, "I don't want my son or anyone else's son targeted
simply because of their physical characteristics. There's no reason I should have to carry around any proof of citizenship, nor my son." These concerns about being harassed by the police simply because of the color of their skin are shared by many.
For more information on the new Arizona law, please see:
SB 1070
"What does Arizona's immigration law do?" CNNPolitics.com, April 23, 2010, Dana Bash, Ed Hornick, Kristi Keck.
"Arizona Enacts Stringent Law on Immigration," NY Times, April 23, 2010, Randal C. Archibold.
"Hispanics Fear Profiling Under New Arizona Law" April 24, 2010, Associated Press
Return to our Immigration News Blog
Our staff speaks Russian and Ukrainian - Мы говорим на русском и украинском языке
