News

Jul 14, 2010

AT LEAST ONE Mississippi lawmaker plans to file legislation in 2011 that mirrors the controversial Arizona law that attempts to control that state's illegal immigration problem.

Rep. Becky Currie, R-Brookhaven, will author such a bill when the Legislature starts its session in January.

The Arizona law has been widely criticized by many as being too strict and promoting racial profiling. The law, signed recently by Republican Gov. Jan Brewer, expands police power to stop anyone suspected of being in the country without legal documentation. It is scheduled to take effect July 29.

President Obama's administration has filed a lawsuit in federal court to block it.

The illegal immigration issue has become a thorny problem for which no sensible solution has been found.

Allowing the police to stop someone simply because they may not be a U.S. citizen goes too far.

Arizona's law, if upheld by the federal courts, will only put the burden on other states where illegal immigrants will likely go.

That will force each state to set up its own law to control illegal immigrants, thus creating a patchwork of laws.

Illegal immigration is a federal problem. President Obama has promised to make immigration reform a key issue for Congress to address.

The states and federal government have taken some positive steps to address the issue, such as the E-Verify program that lets businesses ensure they are hiring legal workers.

We have seen in our own neighborhood how big the issue has gotten in South Mississippi with the 2009 raid of Howard Industries in Jones County that led to the arrest of 595 workers suspected of being in the country illegally.

Should Mississippi lawmakers approve a bill that mirrors the Arizona law?

We would suggest the Legislature await the outcome of the federal lawsuit that accuses the Arizona law of being unconstitutional.

But even if it turns out the law passes constitutional muster - which we don't believe it will - allowing racial profiling goes against everything this country stands for.

We understand the concern about illegal immigrants coming to Mississippi and taking jobs that citizens should have. Those illegal workers and those businesses who hire them should be punished.

But Mississippi is in a unique position when it comes to the problems with discrimination. We still suffer the sins of prior generations who not only practiced racial discrimination, but actually legalized it.

Illegal immigration is a federal problem. The pressure should be on our representatives in Washington to find a solution.