What's the matter with Arizona?

The new Arizona law aimed at Mexicans living illegally in that state will almost surely backfire.  No one seriously objects that some people here illegally may be found and deported.  That is not the problem.

The first problem is that the law requires proof of legal residency.  Most people would not be able to do this.  Your driver's license is not enough, and only 10% of the citizens of the USA have passports.  As for birth certificates, many people don't have them, and those that do don't carry them around.

Couple that with the second problem, which is another provision of the law which allows people to sue municipalities if they don't enforce the law.  This puts pressure on police to make arrests of people in groups that the majority wants targeted--gay Mexican socialists, for example. 

Moreover, people may be arrested and detained if they are merely suspected of being here illegally--in other words, for just standing around.

Politically, the law will be a short-term winner for those who passed it, and for others who would like to ride the "bash the brown people" bandwagon.  Colorado gubernatorial candidate, Scott McInness, trying to shore up his "tea party" support, says he'd like to do something similar in Colorado.

More circumspect Republicans ought to be wary.  California was not-so-long-ago a Republican state.  In 1994, the California GOP, with Prop 187, tried to cut illegal immigrants out of social services, health care, and education.  California Latinos were insulted, and went overwhelmingly Democratic as a result.  Now, California is one of the most reliable Democratic states in the nation.

Comments

[toujoursdan]

You say: As for birth certificates, many people don't have them, and those that do don't carry them around.
-----------------------------------

Actually, birth certificates cannot be used to prove legal status. 20% of the legal residents of this country are naturalized citizens and have foreign birth certificates. There are also a rising number of American born ex-pats who have renounced their citizenship and become sole citizens of another country (mostly because of America's foreign income tax law). They are no longer legal residents.

There are really only two reliable forms of proving legal status. An American passport (for domestic born and naturalized citizens), or foreign passport with a valid visa, and/or a "Green" card (for non-citizen legal residents).