Arizona Governor Jan Brewer followed tough words with tough action when signed the "Safe Neighborhoods" bill into law on Friday. State House Bill 1070 is considered to be the nation's strictest law against illegal immigration. Among other changes, the bill requires all immigrants to carry proper identification at all times and broadens the power of local police to detain anybody suspected of immigration violations. State and local leaders who support the bill praise its sweeping reforms and cite the state's violent crime rate as reason alone for strict measures. On the other side of the debate, activists and lawmakers, including President Obama, have called the bill a "misguided" attack on the "basic notions of fairness that we cherish as Americans."
After the House's historical vote to reform health care on Sunday, many Americans are asking, what's the next big reform issue? If you ask the thousands of protesters who descended on Washington over the weekend, immigration tops the bill. The last attempt to overhaul the immigration system was defeated in Congress three years ago.
As the census approaches, a debate has begun to brew in Hispanic communities – to stand up and be counted, or not? We talk with two pastors who stand on opposite sides of the issue: Dr. Juan Martinez, who is mobilizing his community to participate, and Rev. Jose Lopez, who is mobilizing his community in boycott.
The rate of federal prosecutions is at an all-time high, showing an increase of nine percent since last year. According to a new study by Syracuse University's TRAC project, this increase is primarily related to an increase in arrests of immigration violators. We talk with John Schwartz of The New York Times and Valeria Fernández of the Feet in 2 Worlds Program about the increase, and what it signifies for the Obama administration's stance towards immigration reform.
Read John Schwartz's article in The New York Times.