Thread: NC: Groups discuss ways to restrict illegal immigrants

Groups discuss ways to restrict illegal immigrants
By Kristin Collins, Staff Writer

DURHAM -- A handful of state and county leaders came together today to get tips on driving illegal immigrants from their communities.

"People are tired of inaction," said Jameson Taylor, policy director for the N.C. Civitas Institute, which sponsored the event. "This is about addressing the myth that local governments can't do anything about illegal immigration." Civitas is funded by Art Pope, the founder of the conservative John Locke Foundation.

The event's speakers were two stars of the national restrictionist movement: Michael Hethmon, a lawyer who advises local governments on crafting ordinances that target illegal immigrants, and John Stirrup, a supervisor in Prince William County, Virginia, which has some of the most restrictive laws in the nation.

They suggested laws that target employers who hire illegal immigrants and landlords who rent to them. They also suggested nuisance laws that go after over-crowded homes and spots where illegal immigrants loiter, such as day labor sites.

They recommended denying any public services that are locally funded. And they endorsed a federal program that allows local law enforcement to help deport criminal suspects.

Those who attended included a few state legislators, a representative from the office of U.S. Sen. Richard Burr, an employee of the N.C. Sheriff's Association, several candidates for elected office and commissioners from six counties.

"We've got people back home that are pushing for us to do more," said Tim Sutton, a commissioner in Alamance County, which has aggressively gone after illegal immigrants accused of crimes. "But I'm not interested in passing resolutions that don't accomplish anything. We're here to see if there are some meat and potatoes laws we can pass."
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"restrictionist movement"?

When did the press start using that term?

Group works to cull illegal immigrants
Kristin Collins, Staff Writer
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DURHAM - In the absence of federal immigration reform, a group of state and local leaders came together Friday to consider ways to drive out illegal immigrants.
"People are tired of inaction," said Jameson Taylor, policy director for the N.C. Civitas Institute, which sponsored the event. "This is about addressing the myth that local governments can't do anything about illegal immigration."

Those who attended included a few state legislators, a representative of U.S. Sen. Richard Burr, an employee of the N.C. Sheriffs Association, candidates for elected office and commissioners from six counties.

"We've got people back home that are pushing for us to do more," said Tim Sutton, a commissioner in Alamance County, which has aggressively gone after illegal immigrants accused of crimes and traffic offenses. "But I'm not interested in passing resolutions that don't accomplish anything. We're here to see if there are some meat-and-potatoes laws we can pass."

Bruce Carlton, a commissioner in Lincoln County in the west, said his board has enacted laws that stop illegal immigrants from receiving public services and prohibit county contractors from using illegal workers.

Carlton said the laws have prompted many illegal immigrants to leave after a growth boom lured them in.

"We had Spanish grocery stores popping up; a community of illegal immigrants had set up home in Lincoln County," Carlton said. "What we've found is, when you pass laws, the word spreads quickly, and they tend to move over to the next county."

The event's speakers were two stars of the national restrictionist movement: Michael Hethmon, a lawyer who advises local governments on crafting ordinances that target illegal immigrants, and John Stirrup, a supervisor in Prince William County, Va., which has some of the most restrictive laws in the nation.

They suggested laws that target employers who hire illegal immigrants and landlords who rent to them. They also suggested nuisance laws that go after over-crowded homes and spots where illegal immigrants gather, such as day labor sites.

They recommended denying public services that are locally funded. And they endorsed a federal program that allows local law enforcement to help deport criminal suspects.

Stirrup said such efforts have transformed his county, where he said illegal immigrants had begun crowding into small homes, roaming the streets drunk and leering at women.

He said the number of Spanish-speaking children in schools has declined, indigent births in hospitals have dropped and code violations have decreased.

But he warned those who want to pursue such laws that they would spark a public outcry.

"It's not for the faint-hearted," Stirrup said. "I have been called a bigot, a racist, a xenophobe."

Dissenter's mike cut

The audience booed state Rep. Paul Luebke, a Durham Democrat, when he accused Stirrup of stereotyping Hispanic immigrants. Before organizers cut off his microphone during a question-and-answer session, Luebke said the group was, essentially, looking for legal ways to discriminate.

"Arresting Rosa Parks was legal," he said afterward in an interview. Luebke was among a small group of observers representing a dissenting point of view.

Taylor, of the Civitas Institute, said that failing to enforce immigration laws is, in effect, discriminatory. Civitas is funded by Art Pope, the founder of the conservative John Locke Foundation.

"With illegal immigration, you have an entire class of people who we're saying, 'You're a protected class, and we're not going to enforce the law,' " Taylor said.

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