Immigration

2010

In Oklahoma, a referral from the legislature will propose amending the state constitution to make English the official language. The initiative would add a statement to the constitution that requires all government business to be conducted in English, except as required by federal law. More than half the states in the U.S. have declared English as their official language, including seven--Alabama, Alaska, California, Colorado, Florida, Missouri, and Utah--by ballot measure.

In Colorado, former Congressman and failed Presidential candidate, Tom Tancredo has filed a ballot initiative that would require all state and private employees to be screened to ascertain their immigration status.

Finally, a California activist is attempting to qualify an initiative that would require state and local agencies to verify the immigration status of any individual seeking public aid. Under this proposed law, children of undocumented residents would not be eligible to receive public benefits, including education, regardless of the child’s citizenship.

2008 and Background History

The anti-immigrant initiative movement first burst onto the national scene in 1994 with California's Proposition 187, which directly attacked immigrants' access to social services, health care, and education. This movement has utilized the initiative process as a tool to advance its divisive agenda ever since.

In 2006 immigration was a hot-button issue as comprehensive immigration reform was debated in Washington and Congress failed to act. In the spring, more than a million people took to the streets calling for comprehensive immigration reform. What the activism represented was a rejection of the divisive tone that had marked much of the immigration debate and the political power behind support for bi-partisan reform that offered solutions.

In that year, seven immigration related measures passed in a handful of western states - Arizona, Colorado and New Mexico- but the divisive anti-immigration rhetoric that fueled many GOP congressional campaigns fell flat at the ballot box, as Republicans lost both the Senate and Congress. In fact, in Arizona where four anti-immigrant initiatives passed, Republicans lost two congressional seats with fiercely anti-immigration candidates. In Colorado, while two anti-immigrant measures passed, Republicans lost a competitive Congressional race and the Governor's office.

2008 was a dramatically different story. Stung by losses in 2006 congressional elections, anti-immigration measures that might have appealed to the GOP base didn't materialize. In Arizona, there was a push on anti-immigration ballot initiatives but of the four initiatives that were circulated, only one made the ballot. In Arkansas, a proposed initiative to bar illegal immigrants from obtaining state benefits failed to make the ballot. The measure would have required government agencies at the state, county and city levels to verify the lawful presence of any person 14 or older applying for most public benefits. Opponents argued successfully that the initiative would only duplicate state and federal laws and was unnecessary. In the end, only three states had anti-immigration ballot initiatives--Arizona, Missouri, and Oregon--and two of the three failed.