The chairman of the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights said Friday he will ask his panel to study how tough new immigration laws in Georgia and other states are affecting people’s civil rights.
Martin Castro, a President Obama appointee, said these states are trying to tackle an issue best left to the federal government. He called Georgia’s House Bill 87 “wrong-headed,” and predicted states will unintentionally damage their economies through such measures.
“You are going to have ramifications that go beyond that one immigrant that you want to take out of the economic system,” said Castro, who emphasized he was not speaking for the bipartisan commission. “And that job that you open up is not going to be taken by a U.S. citizen."
While debating HB 87 this year, Georgia lawmakers complained the federal government was not doing enough to seal the borders. Lawmakers also said the state needed to prevent illegal immigrants from burdening taxpayer-funded resources and taking jobs from U.S. citizens
Castro, a descendant of Mexican immigrants, disclosed his idea for the study during an interview Friday after speaking at the Georgia Association of Latino Elected Officials’ Hispanic Heritage Month luncheon in Lawrenceville.
His panel advises the president and is charged with investigating complaints of discrimination and voting rights violations. Half of its eight members are appointed by the president. The other half are appointed by Congress. The commission has the power to issue subpoenas and hold hearings.
Noting the commission has previously studied immigration issues, Castro said he will pitch his idea to the panel in the next two months. The goal is to study what effect state immigration laws are having on the civil rights of immigrants, legal residents and U.S. citizens.
Partly patterned after a groundbreaking law in Arizona, Georgia’s measure authorizes police to investigate the immigration status of certain suspects and punishes people who transport or harbor illegal immigrants. A federal judge in Atlanta has temporarily halted those provisions amid a court challenge brought by civil and immigrant rights groups. Several other states have adopted similar laws, including Alabama and Utah.
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