The Filipino immigrant community is not spared from the fear brought about by the Arizona’s anti immigrant law. This recent legislation makes being an illegal alien a crime.
Sonia entered the United States as a fiancé visa holder. Mark, a US citizen twenty years older than her, petitioned her. When Sonia began residing with him in their small condo unit in Los Angeles, she noticed something unusual in Mark’s activities. She witnessed how Mark meet different people and hand them small packages in exchange for cash. Later on, Sonia confronted Mark and the latter admitted to selling marijuana. He also had an illegal marijuana plantation. To avoid getting into trouble she decided to leave Mark. She went to Arizona to live with an acquaintance.
Mark and Sonia were never married. Under the law, fiancé visa holders marry their petitioners in ninety (90) days so that they may obtain their green cards. In the case of Sonia, since she did not marry Mark she is prevented from obtaining the green card.
While in Arizona, Sonia met Philip, also a US citizen. They married and have two minor children. Sonia is still an undocumented alien because the immigration law does not provide a way for fiancé visa holders to obtain green card except through their fiancé visa petitioners.
With the Arizona anti-immigrant law, Sonia is at risk any time from being taken into custody. Unless this law is rescinded and a comprehensive immigration law is enacted in Congress, Sonia remains to live in fear of being deported.
Criminalizing the TNTs
Illegal immigrants are not criminals except in the State of Arizona. Governor Jan Brewer of Arizona signed into law the Anti Immigration Enforcement Law or SB 1070 making illegal immigrants criminals. According to the provision of this law, a state or local police may investigate status of an individual based on “reasonable suspicion” that a person is in the country illegally. This new state law is due to take effect sometime in August 2010 unless the constitutionality of the law is successfully challenged in court.
This anti immigrant State law gives law enforcement officers the authority to stop and question people about their immigration status based on ‘how they look.’ Although the provision of the law specifically prohibits the use of race or nationality as the sole basis for immigration check, still the question remains on what the standards for ”reasonable suspicion” are. There are no racial neutral criteria for determining who are reasonably suspicious. A Filipino and any ‘nonwhite’ is a suspect. One may be questioned based on her appearance, strong foreign accent or simply just looking different. Obviously all ‘ nonwhites’ may be racially profiled. A police officer may stop and question a Filipino in Arizona who is simply driving her car or walking through the mall about her immigration status pursuant to the new law. This now creating fears among immigrants especially the TNTs.
Different civil rights group and concerned citizens criticized this legislation and actually caught the attention of most legislators. There is a realization that the immigration system needed a fix not from individual states but from the Federal government who has sole jurisdiction over the country’s immigration.
The Broken & Outdated Law
Last week, the New York Times featured a story about a member of the US military, Lt. Kenneth Tenebro, a Filipino national but who is now a US citizen. He was previously deployed in Iraq and wants to serve another tour of duty either in Afghanistan or Iraq again. Lt. Tenebro may be courageous fighting terrorism as a solider, but is apprehensive about the fate of his spouse. Wilma is an undocumented alien who is not able to legalize status because the immigration law prevents seaman visa holders from adjusting their statuses to permanent residents. Since Wilma is a TNT, she runs the risk of being deported back to Manila despite the fact that she is married to a US citizen. Just like Sonia, she is left with no legal recourse to obtain the green card because law clearly prohibits them from doing so. These are among the many provisions of law that needs to be amended through a comprehensive immigration law.
Wait for the New Law
Since the enforcement of immigration law became the focus of the Department of Homeland Security, a significant number of undocumented aliens are being put into removal proceedings. Despite having established a lengthy, stable and productive life in the US, there are very limited provisions in the immigration law that provides path to legalization. Those seriously impacted are the immigrant families who have US citizen children and whose lives may be ruined by separation as a result of the deportation of one of their parents.
Referring to the Comprehensive Immigration Law that will provide earned legalization, I find it deeply frustrating advising those who have no other legal recourse to “wait for the new immigration law” to pass in Congress. The dysfunctional immigration system is yearning for a fixed. US immigration policies need fundamental changes lest they find it practical to mass deport 12 million undocumented aliens.
(Tancinco may be reached at law@tancinco.com or at 887 7177).
