A modest proposition

Arizona recently passed one of the most socially progressive laws in the history of the United States.

The last time America saw such a progressive movement towards civil rights was with the Jim Crow laws of the late 1800s. Jim Crow would be proud of the governor of Arizona, Jan Brewer, not to mention Mr. Bonaparte, as dear Jan appears to be trying to combine Napoleon imperialism with our great constitution.

God bless Ms. Brewer; she appears to recognize the well-thought-out, sound-minded ideals of Mr. Crow. Even though radical humanitarians put down Jim Crow’s wonderful philosophy, she is resurrecting it with much more fervor.

A new light has emerged from the southern regions of the United States as Arizona has pioneered the first lawfully discriminatory law since the “Separate but Equal” clause with Senate Bill 1070. This will help law enforcement officers catch those unwanted Hispanic immigrants in our country that are just trying to make a living and support their families, radically different from other American citizens.

Senate Bill 1070 allows officers to reasonably require identification and birth certification from any individual who is considered illegal. Even though the fourth amendment states it is unlawful to search or seize without probable cause, as well as it being unlawful to target people based on race or ethnicity, it could be argued that being in a border state as well as being Hispanic is enough probable cause to merit lawful harassment.

I can see it now: officers targeting Hispanic families buying groceries or going for a walk or buying ice cream in order to weed out those unwanted America-hating individuals. It shouldn’t matter if their ancestors have lived in America long before Arizona was even a state, because just as every German in America during World War II was a Nazi, we can rightfully assume all Hispanics in Arizona are there illegally.

Our country was founded on keeping immigrants out, except for when we moved Native Americans off their land and immigrated here to escape persecution and attain a better life; we have always pushed isolationism and nativism as our best policy (and the Statue of Liberty was our best April Fools joke, along with its infamous quote:

“Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!”

In fact, it could probably be said the Native Americans were just keeping the land ready for our arrival.

I also believe vacationing in Arizona will skyrocket, as more and more individuals will want to visit a place that strictly regulates which nationalities aren’t accepted. All in all, this bill is great. I hope to see more laws like this created, like requiring all people wearing kilts to provide identification that they are Scottish, or requiring any person drinking Guinness to provide proof of Irish ancestry. We need to stand together and sift through this melting pot that we call America.

The Mainstream is a student publication of Umpqua Community College.