Tuscaloosa Hispanic population decreasing due to tornado, immigration law

Published: Monday, July 11, 2011, 4:09 PM Updated: Monday, July 11, 2011, 4:09 PM

By Ben Flanagan


TUSCALOOSA, Alabama -- The Tuscaloosa News reports that Hispanics are leaving Alabama due to the State Legislature's passing of a law that bans hiring individuals who are in the country illegally.

The newspaper says there is no exact number of how many Hispanics have left the area since the passing of the law, but reports of fewer attending local churches suggest the decrease.

Alabama's immigration law allows police throughout the state allows police to arrest anyone suspected of being an illegal immigrant if they're stopped for any other reason. The Southern Poverty Law Center and other civil rights groups have filed a lawsuit challenging the law.

The report says that the exit from the city and state is the second in recent months after a population of Hispanics left Tuscaloosa after the devastating April 27 tornado.


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