EL DORADO — A decision this week by U.S. District Judge Susan Bolton to issue a temporary injunction delaying the most contentious provisions of Arizona’s new immigration law was met with protests Thursday across the country, including one in Union County.
The Conservative Action Project of Union County held a “We Support Arizona” rally Thursday evening at the Union County courthouse.
John Wilson, vice president of the organization, told the crowd that the federal court “chopped up the law,” but we are “hanging together on this, and we are not going to give up on it.”
Jeannie Burlsworth, founder and chairman of Secure Arkansas, denounced Bolton’s decision during a speech at the gathering. “What is Arizona trying to do?” asked Burlsworth. “Protect people of that state from chaos. They wantto enforce immigration laws, which is only common sense. Can you go into any other country, walk in, get educated, get benefits, free utilities ... can you do that? No. All we are trying to do is put an immigration law in force.”
In her decision, Bolton issued a delay on a section of the Arizona law that required officers to check the immigration status of a person while enforcing other laws.
She also barred enforcement of a requirement that aliens carry their immigration papers at all times and blocked officers from making arrests without warrants of suspected illegal aliens.
“Requiring Arizona law enforcement officials and agencies to determine the immigration status of every person who is arrested burdens lawfully present aliens because their liberty will be restricted while their status is checked,” said Bolton, a President Bill Clinton administration appointee who was assigned the seven lawsuits filed against Arizona over the law.
Other provisions that were less contentious were allowedto take effect Thursday, including a section that bars cities in Arizona from disregarding federal immigration laws.
Several signs with slogans of support for Arizona’s immigration crackdown dotted the courthouse lawn in El Dorado as Burlsworth spoke. “Gov. Brewer and Arizona have it right - enforce the law,” read one sign. “God Bless America,” another proclaimed.
Secure Arkansas led a failed effort recently to gather enough signatures to put an immigration-related state constitutional amendment on the November ballot. The group needed 77,468 signatures but collected only 67,542, according to the secretary of state’s office. The deadline for submitting signatures was July 2.
The Secure Arkansas proposal would have required anyone 14 or older who is seeking public benefits from a state agency to sign an oath saying he lives legally in the country.
“We just wanted to get this on the ballot so you can vote on it, whether you wanted to have our taxpayer funds go to illegal aliens,” Burlsworth said. “Are they eligible [for public benefits]? Federal immigration law says no.”
Burlsworth said Arkansas has one of the “fastest-growing Hispanic populations in the country. Fifty-one percent of the state’s immigrants were undocumented in 2004 and 2005, compared to 29 percent nationally.”
She called Arkansas a sanctuary for illegal aliens, telling the crowd that there are more than 200,000 illegal aliens in the state right now.
“Somewhere along the line, we have to ask our government to stop,” she said.
According to its website, Secure Arkansas’ vision is to “preserve the Constitution, ensure State Sovereignty, thereby ensuring all individuals the unalienable Rights of Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness.”
Burlsworth called on the crowd to join her group so “we can make a difference in this 2010 election.”
Arkansas, Pages 15 on 07/31/2010