Congressman Jose Serrano released a statement on Friday criticizing a new immigration law in Arizona which gives the authorities increased powers to identify, prosecute, and deport illegal immigrants.
Serrano said:
It is a sad day when any state makes racial profiling and discrimination the law. This is a deeply flawed measure that singles out a specific group for harassment.
Our nation has a long tradition of welcoming immigrants, but today the government of Arizona turned their back on that tradition in favor of anti-immigrant grandstanding.
We all know that the only way to bring immigrants out of the shadows is to enact comprehensive immigration reform with a pathway to citizenship.
Laws like this give greater urgency to our work to pass a humane, non-punitive comprehensive immigration reform package. The time has come for action, before this law becomes a model for other anti-immigrant activists and is replicated elsewhere.
