Alabama's anti-immigrant law conjures oppressive reactions of Bull Connor -- and coalition of

[pampango]

conscience of Martin Luther King Jr.

http://blog.al.com/birmingham-news-commentary/2011/07/viewpoints_alabamas_anti-immig.html

Alabama's law empowers law enforcement officers to arrest anyone they suspect of being in the country illegally and authorizes the state's Department of Homeland Security to establish its own immigration police force. The law also requires public schools to verify the immigration status of students and their parents, even though the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that all children, regardless of immigration status, have the right to public education. Other provisions prohibit offering transportation or renting housing to undocumented immigrants.

Following the principle explicitly stated in Arizona -- "attrition through enforcement" -- the Alabama law seeks to frighten undocumented immigrants into leaving the state or going deeper underground, where they will be vulnerable to exploitative employers, unscrupulous landlords and violent criminals. While today's bigots find more sophisticated ways to intimidate minority groups, there's a short distance between Bull Connor and today's slumlords, sweatshop owners and anti-immigrant demagogues.

Fortunately, the current controversies have produced not only newer versions of Bull Connor but also a coalition of conscience that recalls the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., who led the Birmingham protests in 1963.

Labor, religious and civil rights organizations, including the Southern Poverty Law Center, the American Civil Liberties Union, the ACLU of Alabama, the National Immigration Law Center, the Asian Law Caucus and the Asian American Justice Center, have filed a lawsuit against the Alabama law. They are making solid arguments against a law that harkens back to the segregationist slogan of "states' rights" by pre-empting the federal government's authority over immigration enforcement. Recalling the concerns at the heart of the civil rights movement, the lawsuit says the Alabama law violates the 14th Amendment and Equal Protection Clause rights of minorities by subjecting them to unlawful interrogations, searches, seizures and arrests based on racial profiling.

Repressive laws in Alabama and elsewhere recall the sins of Bull Connor. Thankfully, the response by individuals of conscience from every heritage revives the spirit of Martin Luther King.

[sudopod]

1. Sigh. Kick nt

[awoke_in_2003]

2. another kick and sigh...

you fight to get rid of assholes, and exponentially more pop up to take their place.

[sudopod]

3. MLK marched in Birmingham nearly half a century ago.

Some days I just want to pack it in and move to Mars.

No assholes on Mars. We can start over fresh.

[awoke_in_2003]

4. MLK...

stood up in the face of fire hoses, abusive cops, and rabid dogs. He stood up and proclaimed himself a man. It is so sad that so few like him exist these days.

[sudopod]

5. Pay attention people!

goddamnit