Thread: Order to halt rental ban frustrates FB residents

Order to halt rental ban frustrates FB residents

Some say their efforts going to waste; others back court action


11:12 PM CDT on Saturday, May 26, 2007
By STEPHANIE SANDOVAL / The Dallas Morning News
ssandoval@dallasnews.com

Farmers Branch residents already outraged over the flood of illegal immigrants into the country were further angered by a federal judge's decision last week to temporarily halt a ban on apartments renting to most illegal immigrants.

"The people spoke" was the cry of many who say U.S. District Judge Sam A. Lindsay shouldn't have acted against what more than two-thirds of the voters said they wanted in a historic, record-setting May 12 election.

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As residents paused outside restaurants, stores and community centers last week, some said they weren't surprised by the judge's decision to issue a temporary restraining order Monday preventing the city from implementing the rental ban.

But they said they were frustrated.

"The federal government has done nothing, the city has done something, now the federal government is going to squash it," said William Averitt.

The court's action left many feeling as if the vote, which drew a record 43 percent of the city's 14,060 registered voters, was a wasted effort.

Of the 6,003 residents who voted on the ordinance, 68 percent supported it.

"What's the use of having an election if a judge is going to overrule it?" said B.J. Clark.

Still, others say the vote was important – even some who voted against the ordinance.

"It's always good to have a vote ... even though it didn't come out the way I wanted," said resident Larry Kenward, who supports the judge's decision. "The city has no business enforcing federal law like that, other than cooperating with the feds."


Key issues

Residents interviewed last week said their frustrations about illegal immigrants are over these issues:

•Security – They say illegal immigration means the government doesn't know who is here or why.

•Benefits – Residents mentioned in-state college tuition for illegal immigrants, pregnant women crossing the border illegally and giving birth to babies who automatically become U.S. citizens, and the availability of free education and health care.

•Money – Some residents say they pay taxes to support illegal immigrants, who send much of their money home and in some cases don't pay income tax and take jobs from U.S. citizens.

•Impact on communities and culture – Residents say overcrowding of schools, where teachers sometimes have to focus on teaching English, slows other students down. They point to multiple families living in one home where multiple vehicles block streets and driveways, and they say some immigrants are unwilling to adopt U.S. culture and language and attain citizenship.

"The illegal aliens violated the law by crossing into the U.S., and Washington is doing nothing. I am as angry about Washington as I am about the neighborhoods being taken over," Mr. Averitt said. "Americans are so angry about people crossing over the border illegally, then making demands when they are not citizens, and then the citizens paying the taxes."

And residents say they're confused and bothered by proposals coming out of Washington, particularly those that would offer those here illegally a path to legalization.

"Ship 'em back to Mexico," said resident Glin Hansard.

But not all agree.

"I think we should live and let live, and those that are already here should be given some means of becoming legal," said resident Geneva Ables.


Symptoms vs. cause

Most of the concerns cited by residents about illegal immigration can be fixed by federal legislation, said Mahmoud Sadri, professor of sociology at Texas Woman's University. But Congress is far more likely to deal with symptoms of immigration than to cut off the flow of immigrants, he said.

That's because the economy and special interests that contribute to political campaigns rely on the cheap labor pool: workers who are easy to hire and fire, don't demand health or retirement benefits and aren't unionized.

"Addressing the cause will affect interests that are politically significant and have the power to scuttle the process," Mr. Sadri said. "Always the symptoms are addressed. Why? Because the symptoms include people who are powerless, do not have a voice, do not make political contributions, do not have any means of defending themselves."

The national debate over illegal immigration homed in on Farmers Branch because although several cities around the country have adopted similar measures, those were voted on by elected officials. Farmers Branch was the first city to allow voters to decide.

But the voters won't have the final say. Judge Lindsay has set a hearing for June 5 to determine whether the temporary restraining order should be lifted, or a preliminary injunction put in place to halt the city from enforcing the ordinance until a federal lawsuit against the city and the ordinance goes to trial, or is otherwise resolved.

That could take months or years. The Pennsylvania city of Hazleton adopted a similar law last year. A lawsuit against the city went to trial in the spring, but a judge is not expected to issue a ruling in that case until at least mid-June, some observers have said.

Some Farmers Branch residents said that while the courts will have to resolve the matter, the vote at least sent a message.

One woman noted Congress seemed to begin crafting some kind of immigration reform about the time Farmers Branch was getting ready to vote.


Small city, big voice

This inner-ring suburb is home to only 28,500 residents. But it's also home to nearly 2,500 companies and 70 corporate headquarters, and the daytime population is estimated at nearly 90,000, according to the city's economic development department.

Dozens of people who were approached outside restaurants, a grocery store, the senior center and elsewhere around town said they did not live in Farmers Branch. Many of those who were residents of the city were passionate about illegal immigration but would not give their names, saying they didn't want to rile friends and neighbors on the other side.

Since City Council member Tim O'Hare first proposed cracking down on illegal immigrants in August, hundreds of people from across the country have written to the city in support.

But other non-Farmers Branch residents say the contentious debate is a blight on the city's name.

"Farmers Branch, the all-American city? It was a bad deal," said one man as he entered Marshall's Bar-B-Q for lunch.

Mr. Sadri, the sociologist from Texas Woman's University, said residents who support the ordinance are justifiably upset with the system and the hypocrisy they see in it. So they jump at the opportunity to take action when they see none being taken at other levels of government, he said.

Residents also don't see the big picture, Mr. Sadri said.

"The citizens are naturally myopic, and you can't blame them for that. They just see the trees. They do not see the forest. So they are confused and say, 'Why can't we stop the flow of immigrants?' " he said. "The U.S. can stop it, but because ... this sort of reserve army of cheap labor is fulfilling a function, [the federal government] does not want to stop it. They do not come out and say it, but they do not want to stop it."

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Residents also don't see the big picture, Mr. Sadri said.

"The citizens are naturally myopic, and you can't blame them for that. They just see the trees. They do not see the forest. So they are confused and say, 'Why can't we stop the flow of immigrants?' " he said. "The U.S. can stop it, but because ... this sort of reserve army of cheap labor is fulfilling a function, [the federal government] does not want to stop it. They do not come out and say it, but they do not want to stop it."

YOU are a flaming ass, Sadri!

WHO paid you to write this crap? WHAT are YOU getting out of this AMNESTY?

Again, another moron from academia who thinks that Americans are STUPID!

I think it totally sucks that ONE judge can completely undo a public vote!!! There's something about this that is just plain wrong. To give ONE person the power to override the voice of the people is something we need to put a stop to. I'm really getting tired of this.

Hey Feds...

What's the point of LEGAL CITIZENS having the right to vote on something that affects them, then have some idiot judge backstab them and overrule it??