Time in Houston:
Obama attacks Alabama immigration law
November 14, 2011
President Barack Obama has told a Spanish-language newspaper that the new anti-immigration legislation in Alabama is "a bad law" and that it is not an accurate reflection of American values. The President was speaking to La Opinion, the largest Spanish-language newspaper in the country, and said that the fear the law was causing to children and families was unacceptable.
"The idea that we have children afraid to go to school, because they feel afraid that their immigration status will lead to being detained, it's wrong," he said. "We're already seeing the impact in some school districts and high schools, where 20 or 25 per cent of children aren't going to class."
A lawsuit is currently underway, filed by the US Justice Department, which aims to block the law on the grounds that it steps into the remit of federal immigration enforcement.
As well as the negative effect that the law is having on the children of illegal immigrants, the President also came down heavily against the aspect of the law that mandates that all illegal immigrants carry proof of their documentation. He also criticized the fact that law enforcement can now detain people if they have "reasonable suspicion" that the people are illegal immigrants.
Obama explained, "All this makes the law, not just anti-immigrant, but I believe it doesn't match our essential values as a country."
President Barack Obama has told a Spanish-language newspaper that the new anti-immigration legislation in Alabama is "a bad law" and that it is not an accurate reflection of American values. The President was speaking to La Opinion, the largest Spanish-language newspaper in the country, and said that the fear the law was causing to children and families was unacceptable.
"The idea that we have children afraid to go to school, because they feel afraid that their immigration status will lead to being detained, it's wrong," he said. "We're already seeing the impact in some school districts and high schools, where 20 or 25 per cent of children aren't going to class."
A lawsuit is currently underway, filed by the US Justice Department, which aims to block the law on the grounds that it steps into the remit of federal immigration enforcement.
As well as the negative effect that the law is having on the children of illegal immigrants, the President also came down heavily against the aspect of the law that mandates that all illegal immigrants carry proof of their documentation. He also criticized the fact that law enforcement can now detain people if they have "reasonable suspicion" that the people are illegal immigrants.
Obama explained, "All this makes the law, not just anti-immigrant, but I believe it doesn't match our essential values as a country."
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