American Civil Liberties Union
Director of the ACLU Immigrants' Rights Project
PROFILE
Cecillia Wang
Guest
FROM Cecillia Wang
Which Way, L.A.?
Arizona Sheriff Joe Arpaio on Trial As Sheriff of Maricopa County, Joe Arpaio became famous for holding detainees in tents under the blazing Arizona sun and for making inmates wear pink underwear. But it's his focus on immigration enforcement – what he calls "crime suppression" and the plaintiffs call "racial profiling" -- that's led to a class action lawsuit scheduled to open tomorrow in a federal courtroom in Phoenix. Will it hurt him or help him in this year's campaign for a sixth term? Will it move Washington any closer to immigration reform?
To the Point
America's 'Toughest Sheriff' and Federal Immigration Law Sheriff Joe Arpaio became famous for holding detainees in tents under the blazing Arizona sun and for making inmates wear pink underwear. But it's his focus on enforcing immigration law by racially profiling Latinos that's led to a class action lawsuit scheduled to open tomorrow in a federal courtroom in Phoenix. The Maricopa County Sheriff is the darling of immigration hard-liners and the target of the Obama Administration, which has filed a separate civil rights action. But the case also illustrates the chaos caused by 26 years of inaction by Congress and successive administrations in Washington. We hear what Arpaio symbolizes for both sides of a polarized nation and the potential legal consequences for immigration reform.
Which Way, L.A.?
Alabama, Illegal Immigration and the Presidential Campaign With no federal action on immigration reform, more states are passing crackdowns of their own. Arizona is old news. The New York Times calls Alabama's tough new immigration law " the cruelest and most unforgiving in the nation ." Groups opposed to illegal immigration say it's the right way to go. But it won't go into effect tomorrow as scheduled. A federal judge has delayed implementation while she considers a number of constitutional issues. Where do the President and his GOP challengers stand? Will the growing Hispanic vote help make illegal immigration an issue in next year's campaign?
To the Point
Alabama, Illegal Immigration and the Presidential Campaign Alabama has outdone Arizona with a punitive crackdown on illegal immigrants that was scheduled to become law tomorrow. It's being held up temporarily by a federal judge, while Georgia, South Carolina, Utah, Indiana and other states wait to see if it reaches the US Supreme Court. With 12 million undocumented workers in the US and no federal reform, the big question is whether the Constitution allows states to act on their own. Meantime, immigration could be important in next year's campaign . We look at the President's record, his GOP challengers and the growing Hispanic vote.
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