Tennesseans Demonstrate Priorities: Economy First, Comprehensive Immigration Reform Afterwards

Nashville, TN –   Thursday’s gubernatorial primary results sent a strong message to politicians throughout the state that Tennesseans are by and large unswayed by anti-immigrant, anti-Muslim rhetoric. Proving pollsters correct, Tennesseans supported the most moderate, economy-focused candidates, while rejecting those candidates who pandered to extremist views on immigration and religious freedom.

To the dismay of most, this primary season in Tennessean has been replete with political theatre and anti-immigrant antics; from gubernatorial candidates claiming that Islam, the world’s second largest religion, is a cult perhaps undeserving of First Amendment protections, to campaign ads focused on securing “our border” with Mexico, while only 6% of votes indicate that immigration is the most important issue (56% say the economy). We even saw a legislative delegation visit Arizona to present a commendation to Governor Brewer for a harsh, new anti-immigrant law, delivered after a federal judge determined it to be unconstitutional (and un-American).

“It’s disturbing that any candidate, let alone one running for governor of our state, would consider disregarding the interests of a significant percentage of Tennesseans,” says Stephen Fotopulos, Executive Director of the Tennessee Immigrant and Refugee Rights Coalition. “These attempts to marginalize Tennessee's newest residents for political gain are particularly misguided considering the growing importance of the immigrant vote.”

Tennessee is home to over 250,000 thousands immigrants, one third of whom are naturalized U.S. citizens eligible to vote. This number is steadily increasing, as the foreign-born population in Tennessee is the fastest growing demographic in the state. Additionally, there are 60,000 Muslims who have made Tennessee their home – the majority of whom are U.S. born and also eligible to vote. As these numbers grow, Tennessee politicians will realize that lambasting these growing populations is an unsound long-term political strategy.

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Just like last year, 2010 saw numerous efforts to criminalize and further marginalize members of the immigrant community. There were renewed attempts to burden all segments of society—nonprofit agencies, state employees, local sheriffs, educators, small business owners—with the complex task of verifying legal immigration documents. There were also several measures that would prevent immigrant students from attending community college, prevent immigrant mothers from receiving prenatal care, and prevent some US citizen children from registering their birth certificates in TN.  Thanks to our collective efforts, we have been able to hold the line in Tennessee and prevent the sweeping, anti-immigrant legislation that has passed in other states. 

If you "click to read more," you will find a description of some of the challenges and successes during the 2010 legislative session. Although there were several notable disappointments, we were able to defeat over 95% of the anti-immigrant bills this session and push the effective date of one bad bill until next year. Our efforts would not have been possible without the tireless work of immigrant leaders, our allies, and everyone who took the time to get involved. 

Given the challenges this session, the increase in anti-immigrant legislation across the country,  and the continued failure of Congress to fix our broken immigration system, it's clear that our struggle is far from over. As the campaign season heats up in Tennessee and the 2011 legislative session approaches, we ask that you please stay connected to the work and ready to take action.

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Decision Exposes TN to Racial Profiling of Lawful Residents, Sheriffs Forced To Become Immigration Experts

More Info: SB 1141 Fact Sheet: Arizona-like Policy, Bad for TN (Updated Regularly)

Nashville, TN –   On Monday afternoon, Governor Phil Bredesen signed SB 1141/HB 670into law. His decision comes despite a broad-based community campaign in oppositionand countless letters from community leaders throughout Tennessee, including the ACLU, Tennessee Senator Tim Barnes, the Bishop Diocese of Knoxville, and the Tennessee NAACP.

“We are disappointed that Governor Bredesen declined to show leadership on this incredibly important issue,” says Stephen Fotopulos, Executive Director of the Tennessee Immigrant and Refugee Rights Coalition (TIRRC). “More importantly, we are now left with a terrible piece of legislation that burdens local governments and fails to make our communities safer. There are smart, effective ways to enforce our nation’s immigration policies, and this new TN law includes none of them.”

“We all want solutions to our broken immigration system, but this law makes the problem worse by creating an impossible situation for our sheriffs,” says Fotopulos. “There are quite literally hundreds of conditions they will have to check to verify compliance with federal immigration rules. Without training or access to federal databases, jailers will be forced to profile everyone who looks or sounds foreign-bornand possibly flood immigration authorities with useless records. By passing this legislation, our state government has sent a clear message that it's okay for untrained law enforcement officers to treat any foreign national or non-white resident with heightened suspicion. The new law doesn’t go into effect until January of 2011, and jailers have a great deal of work ahead of them to prepare for this unfunded mandate."

As passed, SB 1141/ HB 670 requires that every jailer in the state inspect the immigration documents of every person detained, with no specialized training, funding, oversight, or access to federal immigration databases. Beyond asking questions about citizenship, SB1141 requires jailers to determine whether someone is in compliance with complex, federal immigration laws. For example, jailers would be required to inspect a detainee's papers to determine if a tourist or student visa is current or whether a petition for political asylum has been approved.

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(LARRY MCCORMACK / THE TENNESSEAN)

UPDATE: On Monday, June 28th, Gov. Bredesen signed SB1141/HB670 into law. It will not go into effect until January 1st, 2010. Click here to read TIRRC's official statement.

On June 9th, the Tennessee legislature passed HB670/SB1141, a bill mandating that every jailer in the state inspect the immigration documents of every person detained, with no specialized training, oversight, or access to federal immigration databases. Beyond asking questions about citizenship, SB1141 requires jailers to determine whether someone's immigration visa is still valid. For example, jailers would be required to inspect a detainee's papers to determine if a tourist or student visa is current or whether anfor political asylum has been approved.

By passing this bill, our general assembly has sent a message to people around the world that it's okay to subject foreign nationals to heightened suspicion and special interrogation. But Tennessee is not Arizona.

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