Last Friday, Arizona Republican Gov. Jan Brewer signed Senate Bill 1070 into Arizona state law despite the opposition of hundreds of protesters demonstrating outside of the capitol building.
The new law will give Arizona police the legal power to detain an individual for questioning if there is “reasonable suspicion” that they are undocumented. The bill states that those individuals who are unable to produce valid visa documents may be arrested, jailed for six months and fined $2,500. The bill also grants nongovernmental actors the power to sue state government agencies that fail to enforce immigration laws and criminalizes the hiring of illegal immigrants or knowingly transporting them within the state of Arizona.
Under current federal immigration law, state and local law enforcement can ask about an individual’s citizenship only if they are a suspect in a crime. Some legislators say that Arizona’s new mandate abuses this law.
Arizona state Senator Richard Miranda (D-Tolleson) said, “This bill states that law enforcement officials only need a reasonable suspicion that you are maybe here without documentation. This leads to a greater possibility of racial profiling. This is not just if you are Latino or Hispanic — anyone of color may be subject to racial profiling.”
Hours before Brewer signed the bill, President Obama called the bill “misguided” saying it threatened “to undermine basic notions of fairness that we cherish as Americans, as well as the trust between police and their communities that is so crucial to keeping us safe.” He urged the federal government to pursue comprehensive immigration reform or face the possibility of further unjust state policies.
While speaking at the capitol building during the ceremonial signing of SB 1070, Brewer stated that illegal immigration has put the safety of Arizona citizens in jeopardy due to federal government inaction. Gov. Brewer said, “We cannot sacrifice our safety to the murderous greed of drug cartels. We cannot stand idly by as drop houses, kidnappings and violence compromise our quality of life.”
However, an Immigration Policy Center study found that the incarceration rate of U.S. born men 18 to 39 years old was five times higher than the incarceration rate of their immigrant counter parts, both documented and undocumented. Federal Reserve economist, Pia Orrenius, stated that evidence suggest that young immigrant Mexican men are substantially less likely to commit crimes than men born in the United States. “The number of immigrants in a community cannot explain changes of crime rates or the level of crime rate,” she said.
Arizona state Rep. Russell Pearce, the bill’s writer, said to CNN, “Illegal is illegal.” He promised that without undocumented immigrants “we’ll have less crime. We’ll have have lower taxes. We’ll have safer neighborhoods. We’ll have shorter lines in the emergency rooms. We’ll have smaller classrooms.”
A declining economy is also a possibility. Immigrant rights organizations are advocating for a boycott against Arizona and similar reports are emerging nationwide. Jesus Serrano, the independent owner-operator of a Los Angeles based trucking company, stated that 70 drivers have already refused to enter the state of Arizona. In addition, tourist agencies are preparing for the possibility of a loss of tourism due to the Arizona bill that is expected to become law in late July.
Roberto Miranda is a senior political science and Chicano and Latino studies double major and contributing writer for the Daily 49er.
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