Sanctuary County

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Tuesday July 08, 2008 · 8:52 AM PDT

2008/07/08 · 08:52

Restrictionist members of Congress use the term "sanctuary" to describe a city or town that restricts its law enforcement agency from going after undocumented immigrants unless those immigrants have committed some real crime that might threaten public safety.

In the past couple of months, however, politicians in the state of Arizona have become concerned that Maricopa County, Arizona, is becoming a sanctuary of another sort. That county is under the jurisdiction of Sheriff Joe Arpaio, who has gained national notoriety for his high-profile sweeps of immigrant communities and roundups of undocumented immigrants.

While he and his men have concentrated on undocumented immigrants who are working here without permission, a backlog of tens of thousands of unserved felony warrants has built up under his watch.

From ImmPolitic

ImmPolitic

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Monday July 07, 2008 · 12:08 PM PDT

2008/07/07 · 12:08

Two immigration must reads so far today: One was today’s Washington Post Metro section front page look at law students aiding in immigration law clinics. With so much deportation going on and with so many obstacles to legal immigration and staying legal, it’s all hands on deck.

The second was the lead story in Sunday’s New York Times by Julia Preston on how the business community is starting to stir to put pressure on GOP lawmakers about immigration. Employers trying to play by the rules are being tarred with the same brush as bottom-feeding employers who exploit the illegal status of workers. Until we find ways of allowing for sufficient legal immigration, many small business owners are suffering.

ImmPolitic

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Saturday July 05, 2008 · 4:18 PM PDT

2008/07/05 · 16:18

The New York Times editorial page, which IMHO has been the most consistently insightful source of opinion on fixing our broken immigration system, has another superb editorial today.

Despite the National Guard and millions spent on border guards, technology, and the fence, we are still a magnate for immigrants, especially from Mexico, who, given that legal immigration channels are non-existent or hopelessly backlogged, are being smuggled or otherwise getting in. Maybe fixing the immigration system to make immigration safe, legal, and orderly is more complicated than just beefing up our Southern border.

ImmPolitic

Community (This content is not subject to review by Daily Kos staff prior to publication.)

Friday July 04, 2008 · 8:25 PM PDT

2008/07/04 · 20:25

While America is suffering another bad case of anti-immigrant fever, on this July 4, we should look at our long history of embracing immigrants and immigration. This collection of quotes reminds us that immigration is not what's wrong with America; it's what defines America.

RSS

Sanctuary County

Immigration Must Reads

NYT Edit: False Victory at the Border

Immigrants Are America