Educators in Arizona are sounding the alarm about a proposed ballot measure that, if supported by voters, would allow local and state officers to arrest people they believe entered the country illegally — and they would be able to do so at schools, hospitals and places of worship.
Unlike the Texas law it is patterned after, the proposed ballot measure in Arizona, HCR2060, does not prohibit making arrests at those institutions. The measure also allows judges to order those arrested to be detained and deported.
“We’ve already been hearing a lot of parents being extremely nervous if this passes; what is going to happen with drop-off, what is going to happen with pickup” of their children at school, said Jeff Zetino, research and policy director for ALL In Education, a nonprofit organization that seeks to improve Latino education outcomes.
Zetino said that one parent leader has two children with autism and wondered what will happen when she goes to get health services.
“Does she have to worry about bringing identification or her papers or is she going to be harassed by officials on or near a health care campus?” he asked.
While drastic measures such as pulling a child out of a classroom or a worshipper from a pew may not happen, a community resource officer— security officers stationed at schools — or any official could ask a student or ask parents for proof that they did not enter the U.S. illegally, Zetino said.
This possibility “makes the really difficult relationship between the school and the community tenuous,” he said.
Rep. Nancy Gutierrez, the Arizona House minority whip, warned Tuesday that the proposal would turn parent-teacher conferences into immigration enforcement stings, that some families might not go to graduations for fear law enforcement might be conducting checks there, and children might not ask to go to the school nurse to protect parents from being called in and potentially arrested.
“Fear. This bill is hurtful and it will cost money. It will cause trauma and make our state a very fear-filled place once again … Don’t Texas my Arizona,” she said before voting “no.”
The Republican-controlled Legislature voted to approve the ballot measure after separate legislation was vetoed by Gov. Katie Hobbs, a Democrat.
The resolution says the proposal does not apply to anyone who entered illegally before the ballot measure could be enforced.
The fact that it wouldn’t be retroactive has given little comfort to opponents, who are questioning how law enforcement will know the difference and point out that there is no provision in the bill that limits the arrests to the border area, where officers can easily witness someone illegally entering the U.S.
While Arizona has many Latino immigrants, its Latino population also is made up of many Latinos who were born in the country and some whose roots trace back to before Arizona was a state. Some families are often a mix of Native American and Mexican American.
Opponents have said the proposal, if approved, would lead to racial profiling as the state experienced under SB1070, a law that allowed police to question anyone they suspected were in the country illegally.
The measure also states that people who were paroled into the country through certain programs, such as the Cuban, Haitian, Nicaraguan and Venezuelans recently granted parole by President Joe Biden, could be arrested.
