Published: Examiner.com, June 6, 2011
Georgia followed in the footsteps of Arizona’s SB 1070, when it passed its own anti-immigration law, HB87, in Atlanta this May. Both acts are viewed as engendering racial profiling, by many. The law requires people stopped by police to provide proof of citizenship, if the police ask for it. Certain counties in Atlanta Metro had already implemented and enforced similar reforms, including the Atlanta suburb of Gwinnet County. The more progressive Fulton County and City of Atlanta had not, however.
Last week, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), the Southern Poverty Law Center, and a host of Civil Rights groups filed a class action lawsuit against the State of Georgia over HB87, claiming that it violates the Supremacy Clause of the US Constitution. The lawsuit states Georgia is interfering with the authority of the federal government in matters of immigration. It was filed in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia.
The ACLU and Civil Rights groups are currently involved in nearly identical lawsuits against the State of Arizona, which may provide legal precedent for them in the Georgia case. Furthermore, the US Justice Department filed a similar lawsuit against the State of Arizona over SB 1070. In that case, the US Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld that parts of SB 1070 are unconstitutional, and Arizona is appealing to the US Supreme Court. The US Justice Department could also file suit against the State of Georgia.
Utah and Alabama have passed anti-immigration legislation, and other states are pursuing similar laws, with the Arizona law as a model. The US government decided to sue Arizona partly to prevent other states from following its example, however the outcome of the various lawsuits embroiling the State of Arizona will likely determine the future of such laws in America.
http://www.examiner.com/political-buzz-in-atlanta/georgia-sued-over-anti-immigration-law
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