Arizona and Beyond

In the wake of the recent anti-immigrant legislation in Arizona, PIP has formed a Rapid Response Fund to address potential repercussions of this law and similar ones being considered throughout the nation. The goal of our new fund is to provide support for groups acting swiftly to counter the Arizona law and similar anti-immigration action in other states and to bolster the movement for a national immigration reform campaign at the federal level.

Testimonials of immigrants at the national march for immigration reform in Washington in March, 2010.

Immediate action is crucial.  In just the few days since SB 1070 was signed into law, legislators in other states have expressed interest in advancing similar legislation.  For 2010 most of the potential states have ended their legislative sessions, although reports indicate other states considering copycat legislation include Tennessee, South Carolina and Louisiana. Ohio already has a bill circulating for sponsors in the State Senate.  In 2011, states that might follow Arizona include Georgia, Mississippi, Utah, Idaho and Arkansas.

Support is needed for groups responding to the Arizona law and those that work with immigrants in potential copycat states, and for the national immigration reform campaign, which can now point to Arizona as the example of why this country needs immigration reform at the federal level.  Possible areas of support include:

In Arizona:

• Advocacy, outreach, community organizing and legal support for Arizona-based groups responding to the law;
• Human Rights training on documenting abuses in the implementation of the new law;
• Litigation efforts against SB 1070 by public interest law firms;
• Research on the cost of implementing the law as well as the economic cost of a potential call to boycott Arizona;
• Messaging/communications coordination that could be used nationally and in other states; and
• Civic engagement efforts to encourage immigrant and Latino voter participation.

In other states considering similar legislation:

• Support for advocacy and outreach efforts by local and state groups to educate the public on the harmful effects of copycat bills in their state; and
• If applicable, support for similar litigation to stop or reverse repressive immigration laws.

For the national immigration reform campaign:

• Provide additional support for messaging/ strategic communications; and
• Enhance the campaign’s ability to leverage the Arizona example as an argument for the need for federal reform.

These are possible funding options – in the course of due diligence, additional needs may be identified.  The aim of the fund is to respond immediately to needs related to the Arizona legislation and the potential for similar legislation as they arise.   Donors to the fund will determine how best to fund the needs identified. This fund is not intended to be long-term.  Funds to support it will be raised within a short window of time and distributed as quickly as possible.

The fund will be staffed by PIP’s Immigration Program staff, and will build on the track record, expertise and relationships of the Four Freedoms Fund (FFF) – a model funding intermediary.

For additional information on the Rapid Response Fund, please contact Magui Rubalcava Shulman, Director of Immigration, at (612) 871-6688 or mrubalcava@publicinterestprojects.org

Donate to the Rapid Response Fund by clicking here. Please enter “ARIZONA” in the designation field, so we can be sure to allocate your donation to the Rapid Response Fund.