Students plan rally at Obama's Charlotte campaign headquarters

A Charlotte youth group affiliated with the Latin American Coalition is calling on President Obama to sign an executive order that would halt deportation of many college–aged illegal immigrants.

The United 4 The Dream youth group will be rallying Friday at 5 p.m. in front of Obama’s re-election headquarters on Elizabeth Avenue.

The Obama administration has said that congress should pass the Dream Act, which would allow some young illegal immigrants a chance at citizenship if they attend college or the join the military.

Advocates now want the president to use his authority to stop the deportations of certain groups, including students who would be eligible for the Dream Act.

For more information on the rally, call 704-941-2542 or visit www.latinamericancoalition.org.

Could N.C. be the toughest immigration state?

Five immigration enforcement bills gaining momentum in the N.C. General Assembly could, if passed, make the state one of the toughest places for illegal immigrants to reside.

One bill prevents foreign-born residents from using their home country’s IDs as legal identification. And another requires all businesses to check the legal status of new employees using a federal system called E-Verify.

The proposed measures would bring North Carolina in line with Arizona and Alabama, considered the states with the strongest immigration laws. 

Each of the N.C. bills have passed at least one house. If approved, they’d be sent to the governor’s desk for her signature.

Check the status of each bill:

House Bill 33 – Consular Documents Not Acceptable as ID
H36 – Employers/Gov. Contractors Must Use E-Verify
HB744 Safe Students Act

Senate Bill 205 – No Benefits For Illegal Aliens
S303 – Real ID Compliance/ Limited Duration Licenses

The apparent progress of the N.C. bills reflects similar efforts sweeping across the nation as some states seek to take more active roles in enforcing immigration restrictions. But immigration advocates, as well as President Obama, say the issue should be handled at the federal level. 

On Thursday, Alabama legislators appeared to take the title of toughest immigration enforcers from Arizona when the governor signed a new law, that among other things, makes it a crime to give an illegal immigrant a ride.

Most of the new immigration laws, whether those proposed in Alabama, North Carolina, or Georgia, are modeled after laws passed in Arizona last year.

More states could follow suit depending on the outcome of a Supreme Court decision on the most controversial aspects of the Arizona bill. The country’s highest court is expected to look closer at the Arizona law after a federal judge ruled some parts unconstitutional, including requiring police to check the immigration status of people detained if there is reason to believe he or she is in the country illegally.

Last month, the Supreme Court voted 5-3 to back another Arizona law that requires companies to check employee status that is similar to the E-Verify bill proposed in North Carolina.

File photo: Demonstrators supporting and opposing Arizona's Immigration policy (Annie Tritt/The New York Times)

Latino arts festival kicks off tonight

The Latino cultural festival "Con A de Arte" is returning to Charlotte this weekend.


Latino artists will be featured at a series of events, including tonight's South End gallery crawl and at the Gil Gallery/Coffey and Thompson Gallery on Morehead Street.


On Saturday, the work of more than a dozen painters, visual artists, and photographers, will be featured from 1:30 p.m. to 4 p.m. at the main Charlotte Mecklenburg Library in Uptown. 


These events are free and open to the public.

For more information visit, artsicharlotte.org.

Immigration game changer?

The Supreme Court backs Arizona on law that punishes businesses hiring illegal immigrants.

The 5-3 ruling is a victory for groups who support greater immigration enforcement at the state level. And it’s a blow to immigration advocates who say immigration enforcement should only be handled
by federal authorities.

Read the decision here.

Arizona passed the Legal Arizona Workers Act in 2007. It requires companies use free federal databases, such as E-Verify, to check the documentation of employees. It also gives the state the right to suspend the licenses of business that “intentionally or knowingly” violate those verification requirements.

"Arizona has taken the route least likely to cause tension with federal law," wrote Chief Justice John Roberts, who authored the decision. "In exercising that authority, Arizona has taken the route least likely to cause tension with federal law...it relies solely on the Federal Government’s own determination of who is an unauthorized alien, and it requires Arizona employers to use the Federal Government’s own system for checking employee status."

No doubt legislators across the country are going to now take a closer look at this bill. Many legislators, including those in North Carolina, have discussed or introduced bill that would give states greater authority in enforcing immigration laws.

Roberts was supported by his four conservative colleagues.

In dissent, Justice Sonia Sotomayor said permitting states to make E-Verify a mandatory program improperly puts states in a position of making decisions that directly affect expenditure and depletion of federal resources.

"Because state laws requiring use of E-Verify frustrate the significant policy objectives underlying this decision, thereby imposing explicitly unwanted burdens on the Federal Government," she wrote, "I would hold that federal law impliedly  preempts the Arizona requirement."

Are Latinos turning on Obama?

Are President Obama's public pledges and desire to pass immigration reform and/or the Dream Act enough for Latinos to vote for him in 2012?

It was interesting watching Obama ride the wave of support after a successful Bin Laden mission to El Paso, Texas this month to push again for immigration reform – a measure even some of the most staunchest advocates feel is not going to happen before the election.

Several pundits and editorials accused Obama of pandering to Latinos as he starts his campaign on what is expected to be a very highly contested election

The Latinos who count immigration reform as their most important issue are not likely going to switch over and vote for a Newt Gingrich, Mitt Romney or any other Republican candidate. However, those Latinos could certainly stay home on election day, which could prove costly.

The Latino vote was critical in the 2008 presidential election, Hispanics voted for Obama over Republican John McCain by a margin of more than two-to-one, 67 percent versus 31 percent, according to an analysis of exit polls by the Pew Hispanic Center. The Center’s analysis also found that 9 percent of the electorate was Latino, as indicated by the national exit poll.

And think about the prized 29 electoral votes in Florida, which many see as a potential game changer.

In 2008, Obama won 57 percent of the Latino vote in Florida, a state where Latinos have historically supported Republican presidential candidates. President Bush carried 56 percent of the Latino vote in Florida in 2004.

And many Latinos are disappointed in the president for failing to follow through with campaign promises on immigration reform.

“What I can guarantee is that we will have in the first year an immigration bill that I strongly support and that I’m promoting,” Obama said in an interview with the Spanish-language broadcaster Univision in 2008.

No doubt Obama’s handlers are thinking of these statistics as they scheduled speaking engagements advocating for immigration reform. But will they resonate with Latino voters?

Many advocates, including U.S. Rep. Luis Gutierrez, have been urging Obama to use his authority to act independently and stop deportations of some groups of illegal immigrants, including undocumented students and the parents of children who are U.S. citizens.

"When the president of the United States decided there was possibly going to be an act of genocide in Libya, he bombed Gadhafi's forces," Gutierrez told the Observer on a visit to Charlotte earlier this month. "He didn't call anyone in Charlotte or Chicago. He didn't call the Congress of the United States. ... He used his discretion."

So Obama caught the ire of some Latino advocates when he launched a new campaign ad pushing the Dream Act. The ad asks his supporters to give their email address and zip code. When they click on the button “I’m in” it takes them to Obama’s campaign website.

“Obama, END Our Pain before you start your campaign!,” the headline read on United We Dream.

The authors go on to write:

"We are tired of politicians either bashing us or praising us without ending our pain. After the president's speech we knew he was on campaign mode, but these ads just brought insult to our ever-growing pain of achieving the American Dream. Until Congress passes the DREAM Act, the President has the full authority to enable us to temporarily come out of the shadows, work and contribute to our country."

Haitians given another 18 months to remain in Charlotte

Haitian nationals, including those who arrived illegally, residing in the United States prior to the 7.0 earthquake on Jan. 12, 2010 can remain in the country through Jan. 22, 2013.

Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano today announced the extension of Temporary Protected Status for Haitian nationals living in Charlotte and across the United States.

Currently, approximately 48,000 Haitian nationals with TPS reside in the United States. According to the Census, 370 Haitians live in Mecklenburg County, but members of the community say the numbers are really in the thousands.

Temporary protected status is granted by the Homeland Security agency in cases of emergencies to allow people from a nation torn by war or disaster to receive temporary safe haven in the United States until the US government deems that it is safe for them to return.


“In the extended aftermath of the devastating earthquakes in Haiti, the United States has remained fully committed to upholding our responsibility to assist individuals affected by this tragedy by using tools available under the law,” said Secretary Napolitano. “Providing a temporary refuge for Haitian nationals who are currently in the United States and whose personal safety would be endangered by returning to Haiti is part of this administration’s continuing efforts to support Haiti’s recovery.”

Killed neo-Nazi leader conducted armed 'border patrols'

The story of an up-and-coming leader of the National Socialist Movement illustrates how some in the white supremacy movement use immigration as "potent neo-Nazi talking point."

Jeff Hall, a California man who was killed earlier this month, used the wave of anti-immigrant sentiment to attract new members, including skinheads and Klu Klux Klan members, according to a story in today's The New York Times.

Hall, 32, apparently spent much of his time on armed "border patrols." A photo in the article shows him teaching a member to pull a knife from his belt before a patrol. He bought night vision goggles and a ham radio license. According to the Times, he also bragged that he was teaching his 10-year-old son to use night vision equipment and shoot a gun.

His son has been accused of shooting his father after the boy was found with a handgun near his father dead on the living room couch. Details on the shooting are slim. Police say the killing was intentional, but motives are not clear, according to the Times.

You can read The New York Times story here. And don't miss their multimedia slideshow on their photography blog, Lens. They gained incredible access into the lives of the movement.

The photo above is of Virgil Griffin, the former Imperial Wizard of the Mount Holly-based chapter of the Klu Klux Klan in Gaston County.

We wrote in 2007 how the The Ku Klux Klan's once-diminishing numbers are increasing as the group exploits fears over illegal immigration, according to organizations that track hate groups.

Griffin, who died two years ago, said then that he had not seen membership grow so fast since the 1960s, when he joined. He said immigration was the No. 1 issue among the younger members.

Edward Fincher, 21, who is standing behind Griffin in the above photo, agree. A colonel in the Griffin Knights, he said he's concerned about illegal immigrants taking over. He's worried about his two kids being forced to learn Spanish in school and it's getting more difficult to find work.

According to the Times, a group of Hall's supporters will spread his ashes on the border during a patrol.

Top Photo: 2/8/2007 - Virgil Griffin, Imperial Wizard of the Cleveland Knights of the Ku Klux Klan poses for a portrait with two members of his "security detail", Donnie Fincher, 54 (right) and his son, Edward Fincher, 21. GARY O'BRIEN - gobrien@charlotteobserver.com