SB 1141 Fact Sheet: Arizona-like Policy, Bad for TN
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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 SB1141/HB670, 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 a petition for 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.
In calling for Governor Bredesen to veto the bill, the Knoxville News Sentinel points out: "A provision of the bill passed by the Legislature, however, calls for the sharing of information 'if the keeper of the jail determines that the individual is in violation of the Immigration and Naturalization Act … or if such status cannot be determined.' In other words, it would be up to the jailer to decide whether to turn over information. Racial and ethnic profiling—intentional or not—would be a constant risk." (Knoxville News Sentinel)
The risk of unlawfully profiling foreign-born individuals was also highlighted by comments from the House sponsor himself, Representative Vance Dennis. "I've seen many instances where someone is incarcerated in a local jail and there's a reasonable suspicion that they're not in the country legally based on factors, most prominent to me, that they are not able to speak English," he said (Chattanooga Times Free Press). Perhaps a surprise to Representative Dennis, there are hundreds of thousands of foreign nationals in the United States, visitors here with permission but not necessarily fluent in English.
STATUS of Bill (as of 06/28/10):
On Monday, June 28th, Gov. Bredesen signed SB1141/HB670 into law. It will not go into effect until January 1st, 2010.
Links:
TIRRC Official Statement About Governor's Decision Not To Veto Bill
TIRRC Press Release About Community Vigil
TN State Senator Tim Barnes letter to Gov. Bredesen
Bishop Diocese of Knoxville letter to Gov. Bredesen
Salahadeen Center of Nashville letter to Gov. Bredesen
State NAACP letter to Gov. Bredesen
Congregation Micah letter to Gov. Bredesen
Clarksville NAACP letter to Gov. Bredesen
Official language of SB 1141/ HB 670
Press:
The Interview: ACLU-TN leader talks about new immigration law (Nashville City Paper)
100 immigrant advocates rally against Arizona-like measure (Tennessean)
ACLU Demands Veto of Arizona-Type Tennessee Legislation (Nashville Scene)
ACLU Of Tennessee Calls On Bredesen To Veto Racial Profiling Legislation (The Chattanoogan)
Editorial: State immigration bill flawed, unnecessary (Knoxville News Sentinel)
Tennessee: Bill would make jailers determine immigrant status (Associated Press)
Stop bill that would allow profiling (Tennessean)
