In late April 2010, Gov. Jan Brewer of Arizona signed into law SB1070, a controversial immigration bill which authorizes police officers to stop someone if there is
“reasonable suspicion” that the person may be an undocumented immigrant and demand proof of citizenship. The law makes it a crime to not carry immigration documents on your person and is aimed at prosecuting and deporting undocumented immigrants.
We are appalled by the unconstitutional nature of this law and join the many opponents who stand in unity against it. The law is likely to lead to racial and ethnic profiling and to threaten public safety if immigrants fail to report crime or cooperate with authorities for fear of deportation.
The law, which is the strictest measure to be passed by a state in recent years, highlights the ever-growing need for comprehensive immigration reform. To learn more about this new measure, see the following links:
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/24/us/politics/24immig.html
http://www.washingtonpost.com/newssearch/search.html?st=Arizona%20Law%20SB%201070