O.C. cities become centers of immigration debate
The debate over illegal immigration landed full-force this week on the hot pavement of Santa Ana Boulevard, where eight chained protesters lay for hours, blocking traffic.
It shifts next week to Orange, where council members plan to vote on a resolution in support of Arizona and its new anti-illegal immigration law.
That law has tapped into something deep in Orange County – fear on one side and frustration on the other. You can hear it in the handful of resolutions already passed by cities here, taking the rare step of supporting or opposing another state. Or in the angry chants of protesters before they go to jail.
Both sides say they are driven by their own convictions, not by any organized movement. And they agree on one thing: this is a debate that had to happen, even with raised tempers and raised voices.
“It was just bubbling up and bubbling up, and somewhere it was going to pop,” said Councilman Jon Dumitru of Orange, who introduced the proposed resolution supporting Arizona’s law. “We’re finally having the dialogue we’ve been needing for years.”
It’s a dialogue, however, between two sides that have been digging in for this fight. The Arizona law has only crystallized their differences into uncompromising slogans: rule of law versus immigration reform.
Source:
O.C. cities become centers of immigration debate
ocregister.com
