Essay, Research Paper: Immigration

Should legal immigration be Substantially Reduced? CA s Anti-Immigrant Proposition 187 is Voided. (Online) Available http://aclu.org/news/1999/n072999b.html, July 29, 1999. National Id s on the Horizon? (Online) Available http://aclu.org/news/w050296a.html, May 2, 1996. In these press releases, the ACLU discusses the (then) recent and current information on the debate over immigration. This section keys in on two main points. The first being Proposition 187 being voided. And secondly National Id s on the Horizon? The press release CA s Anti-Immigrant Proposition 187 is Voided discusses the mediation of Proposition 187 and the background and history concerning it. Ever since Proposition 187 was passed, it has been a controversial issue. Proposition 187 being voided now means that no child in the state of California will be deprived of education or stripped of health care due to their place of birth. It also makes clear that the state cannot regulate immigration law, a function that is clearly assigned to the federal government by the U.S. Constitution. California has now stamped the death certificate of Proposition 187.
The article National ID s on the Horizon? discusses two amendments in the Senate. The first one being an amendment to drop the provisions on asylum, which immigration advocates say would have drastically reduced the rights and protection of asylum seekers. This amendment passed by a vote of 51 to 49. Under the provision, refugees who said they were fleeing persecution and arrived in the United States without valid travel documents would have their asylum claims heard by a lone immigration officer. If the officer denies the claim, the immigrant would face immediate deportation without further judicial review. The second amendment was to scrap several pilot programs to determine the best way to allow employers to verify immigration status. This amendment was rejected by a vote of 54 to 46. Part of this program would be to have a national ID system. This program will end up costing taxpayers over 2.5 billion dollars.