…where the wingnuts spread across the plain.
And the laws they pass will smell like ass;
While the brown folk are targeted for pain.”
While the brown folk are targeted for pain.”
Alright, I’ll spare you the rest of my pre-caffeinated lyrical desecration. Not that there isn’t good reason for it:
An Oklahoma State House of Representatives committee approved a strict immigration bill on Wednesday for a full vote in the Oklahoma House. The Oklahoma Taxpayer and Citizen Protection Act of 2007 [HB 1804 text, DOC] seeks to prevent illegal immigrants from obtaining state identification, and would require all state and local agencies to verify citizenship status of applicants before authorizing benefits. The bill would also require public employers to enter job applicants into an electronic immigration database to verify legal status, and would repeal a 2003 law that permits illegal immigrants to attend state colleges at in-state tuition levels.
sígame…
It looks like my former state of residence is going the way of Georgia. Let’s review the consequences.
- less people will have any form of identification.
- racial profiling will run rampant anytime a “suspected” undocumented immigrant seeks any type of assistance from the state or local government.
- more databases of identification information will be collected by the government, and we all know how secure that information remains.
- less educational opportunities will be offered to people already residing in the state.
Of course, these bullets (pun intended), hold true no matter where sweeping legislation like this is enacted. They are usually accompanied with some type of dog whistle bill that signals to all the white folk that the American™ culture is under assault. The Okies in the State Legislature, like good little TancredoBots, are following the plan to a T:
The Oklahoma legislature is also now considering the Oklahoma English Language Act [HB 1423 text, DOC], which would require all official business of the state to be conducted in English, with exceptions. AP has more.
Oh, the irony. I wonder if they’ll get rid of the peace pipe and non-assimilated feathers on the state flag too?
Crossposted from Latino Político
Offered as a warning in case your area is seeing similar legislation enacted.
Interestingly enough, even the olive branch on the state flag is not native to the region, an immigrant as it were.
heh, yep. so much for their double dose of peace imagery.
It reminds me of the approach taken by home builders. They find a site, determine that it has a lot of tall oaks, and start to build the new subdivision of “Tall Oaks.” First move: Cut down the oaks.
In Oklahoma, they invaded the states, determined that there were a lotta injuns there, copied their sacred pipe for the flag, and killed all the injuns.
didn’t work out too well in colorado:
ahhh, yes….as they return to the glory days of chain gang labour
beware, indeed.
march on the pentagon: 3.17.07
Draft Al Gore: 2008
for highlighting that dada, i saw it yesterday and was appalled. Although, it’s not surprising, as that leaves more money to be pocketed by the corporate entities developing these agreements with the correctional systems.
Inhumane, all of it.
Here is the action page from the United Farm Workers to send the Governor a letter opposing.
what the odds are that Brad Henry would veto that particularly noxious legislation if it indeed manages to get passed.
according to the AP it’s a toss-up
Maybe his office needs to start getting phone calls? š
Hey Manny…I just don’t know anymore…more bad laws and ideas that multiply and do absolutely nothing to solve any of the damn problems that need to be addressed..it’s all reactionary racism that just creates more and more problems and promotes racism.
i know…i wish there was some good news to report, but unfortunately the role of Documenter of Atrocities is in higher demand.
One of the most obnoxious consequences of legislation like this is that it ends up making it impossible for all kinds of people with LEGAL status to acquire drivers licenses.
U.S. immigration law is ridiculously overcomplicated. There are all kinds of ways to be in LEGAL status WITHOUT having a currently valid visa stamp, nor a green card, nor U.S. citizenship. But the boneheads who write such laws and the implementing regulations underneath them invariably oversimplify.
For example, a person can be admitted to the United States as a “J-1 exchange” student for long-term training such as a Ph.D. program.
There are three main documents involved.
First, the person gets a form called a “DS-2019” from the program sponsor, typically a university. That authorizes the person to be admitted for studies if the person otherwise gets admitted to the United States.
Next, the person takes that form to a U.S. Embassy abroad and gets a J-1 visa stamp in his passport. Contrary to conventional knowledge (and contrary to misconceptions commonly spouted by idiots like our current Attorney General and Homeland Security Sectretary) the visa stamp does not confer status (it doesn’t make you a J-1 nonimmigrant, for example) and it is also NOT necessary to have a currently valid visa stamp at all times. Instead, in U.S. law, the visa stamp simply gives you permission to get on a plane and present oneself for admission at the border.
There at the border, the DHS inspector looks at the DS-2019, looks at the visa stamp, and then admits the person and confers J-1 status by issuing a little white card called the I-94, which is stapled into the passport.
It is that third document, the I-94 card, that gives status.
However, for J-1s (and for other kinds of students) the I-94 is not marked to give the person admission up until a fixed date. Instead, it says the person is admitted for “D/S.” What does that mean? That means “Duration of Status.” In other words, it means that the person will continue to be in valid J-1 status so long as the person has another document (a valid DS-2019) that extends the status up to some certain future date.
A person might keep one I-94 for many years, extending status year by year by getting new DS-2019s, while the visa stamp in the passport expires years ago. But the person continues to be in perfectly lawful status and eligible for a driver’s license.
But try explaining that to the knotheads at the DMV!
you would think it would be better to have more people on the streets who have taken some form of driving exam and understand the rules instead of less, but alas…the fever that gripped this country after 9/11 rages on.
I thought I would just pick one article, but a lot of B.S. is happening here in Missoura too.
http://news.google.com/news?q=missouri+immigration+law&hl=en&um=1&sa=X&oi=news&c
t=title
Last Saturday, I went to an immigration forum at UMKC law school and had to tell some up-tight “white guy” Rep. Nolte, that Immigration Law is civil law not criminal law.
I think I know why Kris Kobach is such a nut. If you use the men urinals at UMKC School of Law your bound to hit your head on this big wood support beam just above them. It is bound to bruise your brain a little bit.
http://news.google.com/news?hl=en&um=1&ct=title&ie=UTF-8&q=missouri+immigration+law&
amp;btnG=Search
try this post much better
Unfortunately, it’s everywhere a4l. It was all so predictable too. The GOP needed their scapegoats last election season and got them, with help from the rabid talkingheads and the growing vigilante movement. What saddens me, though, is when middle-of-the-road voters buy it hook, line and sinker. The point of these diaries and to raise awareness of the actual consequences of passing bills like this. Not a good situation. Hopefully sanity will prevail on the Hill.
Actually, they are considering something similar in Missouri. They are talking about making Missouri an English-Only state.
I was honored to live in a home where we had several exchange students living with us through high school, and one of the big things we talked about was how the U.S. seems hellbent on preventing diversification of language. While it may be required in some school programs, officially speaking, it’s as if the English-only crowd are suffering from a persecution complex.
Can’t help but smile, though, when I see my peers who are fully bilingual code-switch without even thinking about it. š