Arizona Burning

By now, everybody has an opinion on Arizona's new immigration law, SB 1070. Polls have showed 70 percent of Arizona residents and over half of all Americans support the tough new measures, which allow police throughout the state to stop anyone they suspect of being illegal immigrants and ask them to provide proof of residency.

That still hasn't stopped some opponents of the bill from speaking out. For me, perhaps the biggest statement came from the NBA's Phoenix Suns. In the midst of their playoff series against the San Antonio Spurs, the Suns decided to take a stand against the law. Owner Robert Sarver, General Manager Steve Kerr, and former league MVP Steve Nash all denounced the law in the media. On Cinco De Mayo, the Suns decided to wear their "Los Suns" jerseys as a sign of solidarity with Arizona's Latino community.

In a time where athletes are often too concerned with their public image to make any sort of political statement, the Suns' gesture speaks volumes about their organization. The NBA tries to hammer home the idea that their teams honestly care about the communities through its NBA Cares PR campaign. The Suns (and the Spurs, who wanted to join the protest, but couldn't due to logistic reasons) proved to me that players and management do indeed care.

As for my personal opinions on the law, I think its something that P.W. Botha would have been proud of. You can't tell me with a straight face that some measure of racial profiling won't come into play in enforcing the law. I'll be the first to say that our country needs a comprehensive immigration policy. Issues such as the security of our borders, the spread of Mexican drug cartel violence to Southwestern states, and the status of immigrants already in the country do need to be addressed by the Obama Administration. However, this law reflects more the fear and frustration of the Arizona citizenry and the need for politicians such as John McCain and Jan Brewer to make strong election year statements than an attempt to actually address the immigration issue in a way that's fair to everyone.

In trying to understand why Arizona took such an extreme position, you can look to Arizona's past for answers. Arizona hasn't necessarily had the best track record on issues of civil rights. In 1964, it voted for native son Barry Goldwater during that year's presidential election. On the surface, that seems rather harmless. Unless your Al Gore, your home state will vote for you during a presidential election. But consider that the only other states to vote for Goldwater were in the Deep South, which was angry that incumbent Democratic president Lyndon Johnson had the audacity to sign the Civil Rights Act of 1964 into law that summer.

In the late 80s and early 90s, Arizona made national news when voters decided against having the Martin Luther King Jr. Holiday. In response, opponents organized a successful convention boycott of the state. Several college football teams rejected the annual Fiesta Bowl held in Tempe. The NFL moved Super Bowl XXVII away from the state as well. Eventually, the state got the message and signed the holiday into law.

Besides the immigration bill, the state has also signed into law an education reform billed aimed at ending ethnic studies classes throughout the state. Many schools in Arizona, specifically in Tucson, teach courses based around Latino culture. Now, due to fears of promoting "ethnic chauvinism," the courses will be cut. Proponents believe such programs promote a hatred of whites and the belief that Latinos are oppressed people.

Let's think about this for a second. Basically, these kids are to be taught they live in a colorblind society. But if they look like an illegal immigrant, well..............

At the end of the day, immigration does need to be reformed. But are you sure you want to follow Arizona's lead in doing so?