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Immigration Day for Employers

May 5th, 2008 Posted by Amelia

Demonstrations snarled traffic across the country on Thursday, May 1 as protestors celebrated Immigration Day on May Day. In Chicago, 2,000 pro-immigration marchers created havoc in the Loop. In San Diego, more than two dozen groups advocating immigration rights and social reform staged an afternoon protest. In New York, immigrants awaiting deportation filed a suit against the Department of Homeland Security or DHS.

At least 29 state immigration laws have been passed in the past 2 years. Most provide stricter penalties for employers who knowingly hire illegal immigrants.

However, a few laws prevent the police or other government agencies from checking the immigration status of people who file complaints. This means that illegal immigrants who are the victims of a violent crime, or of an unscrupulous employer, need not fear deportation if they file a complaint.

Proponents of these laws say that without them, illegal immigrants become easy marks for criminals. Opponents say that the laws encourage illegal immigration.

During an exclusive interview, an ICE agent we’ll call “Bob” revealed that law enforcement officers are in a tough spot when it comes to enforcing federal immigration laws.

“Tough immigration laws are popular, so Congress passes them. But, it’s a mixed message. They don’t appropriate the funds for ICE and other agencies to properly enforce the laws. There are times, at the end of the fiscal year, when we have to stop picking up illegal immigrants, because the agency doesn’t have the money to deport them unless it’s a major criminal.”

Bob points out that using these tactics is a win/win situation for Congress. “They get credit for passing tough immigration laws, but can blame ICE if they are not enforced.” He also notes that America is a nation of immigrants, and many people have sympathy for undocumented workers, even if their own ancestors came through Ellis Island legally.

The ICE agent we call “Bob” asked not to be identified by name because he fears repercussions. He also pointed out that arresting illegal aliens is a very small portion of what ICE does. “ICE enforces customs laws, including working with other agencies to curb the flow of illegal drugs into the country. We have a big role in preventing terrorist attacks.”

Bob also pointed out that many of the illegal aliens who are deported are violent criminals with a history of murder, rape, assault or robbery. Their crimes take place in the US, as well as in their home country. Among his arrests, Bob counts helping to round up a multiple murderer and war criminal. The man was convicted of genocide and war crimes in Rwanda after being turned over to the war crimes tribunal by ICE. He is currently incarcerated for life.

“Most illegal immigrants are honest, hardworking people. But the majority that ICE deports are hardened criminals who entered the country illegally. Some slipped through the cracks and legally immigrated after lying about their past.”

A sampling of recent immigration laws shows the wide spectrum.

An Arizona law would put employers out of business if they knowingly hire an illegal alien. Under the Legal Arizona Workers Act, an employer would lose his or her business license for 10 days for the first offense. After the second offense, the employer would permanently lose his or her license. Opponents of the bill say that it has increased discrimination against legal Hispanic workers, although there are few studies that support this position.

The Arizona law also requires employers to use E-Verify, the free DHS software that cross checks a new employee’s paperwork for fraudulent documents.

In contrast, an Illinois law successfully challenged in court by the DHS would have made it illegal for employers to voluntarily use E-Verify.

The Illinois Right to Privacy in the Workplace Act, Section 12a would, in effect, make it illegal for employers to rigorously comply with federal laws requiring employers to check a new employee’s I.D. and verify that the employee can legally work in this country.

Chicago is the largest city in Illinois and a place where sympathy for immigrants is high. During the late 1800s, most residents were immigrants from Germany, Ireland, Poland or Sweden. Most current Chicago residents are second-, third- or fourth-generation Americans who grew up listening to their grandparent’s stories of moving to this country.

Chicago has a larger Polish population than any city in the world except Warsaw. The “City with Big Shoulders” also has a huge Hispanic community – in fact, only Los Angeles and New York have larger Hispanic communities in the U.S. Chicago’s Italian-American community is the 3^rd largest in the nation, and the city also has large communities of Czechs, Ukrainians, Romanians and Lithuanians.

All of these factors create strong pro-immigrant sentiment in Chicago, which is not always shared by voters in rural Illinois.