I have a hard time writing on here. First I have to attempt to form an opinion on complex issues, then I have to make sure it doesn't line up with yours, then I have to decide how provocative or melodramatic I should be (should I compare the Arizona law with Jews having to carry around their papers in Nazi Germany?)
I don't know much about the law, but you said it "instructs state law enforcement agencies to ascertain the citizenship status of anyone reasonably believed to be in the country illegally." Apart from watching somebody hop over a fence, I don't know many other ways that you can tell that someone is reasonably an illegal immigrant.
Statistically, if you take a large group of Hispanics and a large group of Caucasians, there will be many more illegal immigrants in the Hispanic group. This means if you're looking for illegal immigrants and you target Hispanic people you have a better chance at finding them. It's racial profiling, but it seems to work. It works in the short term at least. I don't know what the long term effects are on a nations image or on a group of its citizens when they are treated as second class.
You've painted a nice picture of illegal immigrants as people who come into our country with heads on pikes and leave them out as lawn ornaments, but I was watching the news on ksl last night and I got some different facts. While studies in Utah have been "inconclusive", on a federal level they are "definitive" that illegal immigrants have a positive impact on the economy. Also, while many think that they send all of the money they make back to their families in Mexico, the average amount of money sent is between 10 and 15 percent of their paycheck.
Can't the police already check out anybody who is acting legally suspicious? Do they really need a new law to remind them to check Hispanic people twice?
You say the country is being invaded by people who break our laws. If you're going for a technicality, then yes, every illegal immigrant has broken one law.
It's estimated that the population of Utah is about 4.8% illegal immigrants. The Utah State Prison (go aggies) only holds prisoners who have committed a felony. Over the past 8 years 5% of the prison population was undocumented immigrants. That means that an illegal immigrant is just as likely to commit a felony as any other Utahn, so beware of your neighbors.
I only have statistics for Utah, but I'm sure the problem is worse in Arizona. Senator Russell Pearce, the author of the Arizona bill, said, "They're rapists, they're drug runners, they're human smugglers." This criminalizes all undocumented immigrants and turns feelings of hate toward them, and not just those committing the crimes. When the only difference between a Hispanic US citizen and an undocumented immigrant is a piece of paper or place of birth it's easy to see why some Hispanic US citizens are feeling attacked.
I know you use the phrase, "shut up" a lot, but I think the legal Hispanic community has some legitimate concerns to be voiced.
*all numbers and statistics are from ksl
