Vol. 76/No. 24      June 18, 2012

The Alabama Coalition for Immigrant Justice organized the actions, which included a march from the Capitol to the Governor’s Mansion “to show that we are united and will continue to defy racial profiling and anti-immigrant laws in our state,” according to a press statement.

The law, known as HB 658, was signed May 18. It revises HB 56, which has been the focus of protests throughout Alabama over the past year.

“We’re fighting for basic human rights, to live and to work,” Cesar Mata, a restaurant worker and an organizer of the contingent from Birmingham, told the Militant.

Among the slogans were “We are workers, not criminals,” “No Human Being is Illegal” and “Repeal HB 658! No Tweaks!”

Touted as a “reform,” the tweaked law is not qualitatively different. It no longer mandates, but strongly encourages public schools to check the status of students and parents. Penalties for bosses and landlords for hiring or renting to immigrants without papers are generally lowered, but a number of stipulations for immigrants themselves or those convicted of “harboring” them are stricter. It is no longer illegal for an immigrant without papers to establish utility services or register mobile homes, but it still criminalizes applying for ID, car tags or business licenses. Police are no longer required to check immigration status of people they pull over and suspect may be undocumented unless they issue a traffic ticket or conduct an arrest. But when they do, the check must now include passengers.

Alabama’s targeting of undocumented workers builds on stepped up attacks by the federal government, from “silent raids” and “criminal” sweeps to the record removal of 396,000 in 2011.  
 
 
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