E-Verify forum raises applause and heckling
news-leader.com
Written by Jess Rollins
5:09 AM, Feb. 1, 2012
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Speakers at a Tuesday forum on the proposed E-Verify ordinance were (from left) Jerry Wilson and Joe Jenkins, in favor of the ordinance; and Yolanda Lorge and Tim Rosenbury . / Nathan Papes / News-Leader
Forum participants debate need for immigration checks.
Some in the crowd scoffed and heckled. Others applauded loudly as the otherwise tame debate drew to a close.
It started as a quiet crowd in the Central High School auditorium Tuesday evening but grew louder at the end of the two-hour panel discussion focused on the so-called E-Verify ordinance.
Springfield voters will decide the controversial measure in less than a week. If approved, it would require all “business entities” operating in Springfield to check employees’ immigration status using the federal E-Verify computer program.
At Tuesday’s panel discussion, Ozarks Minutemen spokesperson Jerry Wilson and Springfield businessman Joe Jenkins spoke in favor of the measure; Yolanda Lorge, president of Grupo Latinoamericano, and business owner Tim Rosenbury spoke in opposition.
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Springfield architect Tim Rosenbury speaks in opposition of the proposed E-Verify ordinance during a forum Tuesday night at Central High School sponsored by The League of Women Voters of Southwest Missouri on Tuesday, Jan. 31, 2012 .
During the panel debate, Rosenbury argued language in the ordinance was at odds with federal law which could expose the city to potential lawsuits.
Lorge argued the ordinance would lead to discrimination.
Jenkins said the ordinance would be a simple and inexpensive way to ensure businesses only hire legal workers.
Wilson said voters needed to approve the measure to protect against a potential surge in illegal immigration.
The crowd of more than 100 listened quietly to the panelists until the final minutes of the discussion.
Wilson gave his closing argument.
“Consider what you’ve heard here tonight,” Wilson said, “and ask yourself, ‘who’s looking out for America?’”
He continued: “Is Yolanda Lorge with Grupo Latinoamericano looking out for America? No. She’s looking out for Hispanics and illegal immigrants. Is the NAACP looking out for America? No. They are looking out for African Americans…”
Wilson went on to question whether several other groups were “looking out for America” including the Service Employees International Union and the News-Leader.
Some in the crowd could be seen standing up and walking out of the auditorium.
At the end of his argument, Wilson explained the Ozarks Minutemen, who gathered the signatures that brought the measure to the Feb. 7 ballot, have been unfairly labeled as racists and bigots.
Wilson then recited the Pledge of Allegiance.
“That’s why we did this,” he said.
A rush of applause and cheer then came from some in the crowd.
Then, the discussion sponsored by the League of Women Voters of Southwest Missouri and the Springfield-Greene County Civility Project, was over.
E-Verify forum raises applause and heckling | Springfield News-Leader | News-Leader.com
