Immigration

Federal Court Blocks 2 More Provisions Of Beason-Hammon Immigration Law - Beason & Hammon Pleased

October 15, 2011 by Left in Alabama

More provisions of Alabama's immigration law were struck down yesterday.  The 11th Circuit Court of Appeals blocked implementation of Sections 10 (which made not carrying citizenship papers a crime) and 29 (required schools to check citizenship status) of the Beason-Hammon Immigration Law (HB56).  Reactions have been mixed, to say the least. 

Scott Beason and Micky Hammon say they're pleased with the court's decision.

I remain confident that once the judicial process has run its course, even the handful of provisions that have been stayed will be enacted," House Majority Leader Micky Hammon, R-Decatur, said.

...

 "I'm still very pleased. I don't think either one of those sections is a big loss to the bill. The law is still in place,"  Beason said. 

Beason also said he was "excited."  So they're happy and excited that Alabama is being dragged through the courts and portions of their poorly written law are being struck down?  How bizarre.  I will never understand how the Republican mind works, but those don't seem like normal, healthy, reactions.

Board Meeting of Decatur Committee on Church Cooperation Open To the Public

October 14, 2011 by Left in Alabama

The Committee on Church Cooperation (CCC) in Decatur, Alabama made news this week for going above and beyond the mandates of Alabama's harsh Immigration Law and requiring those seeking assistance to provide proof of citizenship on every single visit. 

"We thoroughly check everybody out," Monk said. "We've even got wind that a lot of them have illegal Social Security cards. So I've tried to educate my staff on what to look for."

...

"It used to be about 10 percent (Hispanics) that we served," Monk said. "Since cracking down, I haven't seen anybody, especially in the last month.

The CCC did not welcome the publicity about its citizenship requirement, fearing it would dissuade contributors (many of them churches) from supporting the organization.   That's a valid concern since the original Decatur Daily article quoted several church officials who were surprised and disappointed to find the CCC made proof of citizenship a requirement for assistance. 

Immigrant Jobs: A Journalist Goes To The Tomato Field

October 14, 2011 by Left in Alabama

More of this, please ...

I met up Wednesday with four men desperate enough to take on hard, low-paying jobs that, for decades, have been reserved for Mexican migrants.

...

"It's OK. It's just work," laid-off electrician Jeb Stuart Lessley said. "But I don't want to do it forever."

...

Because our agricultural system, which keeps food prices low, has exploited immigrant labor because it could. ...  Our dirty little secret -- that we keep our grocery prices low only by failing to pay a living wage -- is out.

Farm work is hard work, really hard labor.  In the real world it is dangerous, dirty and uncomfortable ... anything but a romantic, pastoral occupation.  Pay is incredibly low and the physical wear and tear on bodies mean few people can make a career of it.  Chicken plants are just as bad and construction is not much better.

"A Climate of Fear in Alabama" Highlights from America's Voice Blogger Conference Call

October 13, 2011 by Left in Alabama

On Tuesday, I participated in a blogger conference call organized by America's Voice.  Various speakers from Alabama and from other coalitions spoke.  Since I'm in Alabama and have followed this issue pretty closely, I suspect it was far more valuable for folks outside the state.

Here are some of the highlights:

Reverend Angela Wright of Greater Birmingham Ministries praised the organizational efforts of various coalitions working on the issue and noted:

"The Legislature had absolutely no idea how strong the outcry would be.  There's a group of unlikely bedfellows coming together against the law."

She did share some anecdotal stories about families selling their entire home and contents for very little because they're desperate to leave.  Parents are giving guardianship to others in case they get deported. "There's a lot of fear and desperation."

Alabama Historian Wayne Flynt On HB56: "Meanest, Most Hateful Thing I've Ever Read"

October 13, 2011 by Left in Alabama

Wayne Flynt is a man who cares about the welfare of working class Alabamians as much - or more than - their middle class brethren. He's not a softie.  The author of "Poor But Proud: Alabama's Poor Whites" is not someone who stands by quietly while those people get treated unfairly.

Nor is he someone who'll stand quietly by while anyone is being denied their basic human dignity and their civil rights. His voice and vision carry weight: Flynt has this to say about Alabama's immigration law:

"This is the most mean-spirited, hateful thing I’ve ever read," he said.

Flynt said the chief argument for the bill — that illegal workers are taking jobs from Alabamians — is bogus.
[...]
He said the controversy will hurt efforts to recruit new jobs and industry to Alabama, where the economy is increasingly reliant on foreign direct investment.
[...]
The message, he said, "is that we only like immigrants if they come with car plants."
[...]
The irony, Flynt said, is that we are all a nation of immigrants.