Sam Dunaway | News Editor
Thirty-one years ago, the Oregon sanctuary law was put in place to prevent Oregon law enforcement agencies from “detecting or apprehending” individuals solely based on federal immigration law violations. A new initiative petition seeks to place a measure on the November ballot to repeal this law and remove Oregon’s sanctuary state title.
“I believe it’s something that would put a lot of communities under attack and fear,” explained Unidos Vice President and sophomore Monica Ortiz.
Western’s Unidos Club strives to act as a “support system to everyone who identifies as undocumented and/or are DACA recipients” according to the Unidos OrgSync. The club hosted an informational workshop on April 26 which aimed to educate students about the proposed ballot measure.
The main organization behind the campaign for IP 22 is Oregonians For Immigration Reform, or OFIR. According to their website, OFIR “works to stop illegal immigration as well as reduce legal immigration to a more environmentally, economically and socially sustainable level here in Oregon and across the United States.”
Unidos President Cristina Garcia, however, believes that the measure would only incite hate in Oregon.
“It would cause more division,” Garcia stated. Because the ballot measure would allow law enforcement to stop individuals on the basis of citizenship, she believes that it would lead to an unsafe environment.
“People of color wouldn’t feel comfortable walking around, because they’d be targeted by police,” explained Garcia.
The workshop explained the purpose of the initiative, the organizations such as OFIR that are behind it and ways that students can get involved such as voting and telling others what IP 22 is.
Garcia encourages students to get informed on the initiative petition; “We’re trying to let people know that this is what it is, don’t sign it.”
In addition to the informational workshop, a timeline of immigrant rights history with significant events including the signing of the federal anti-immigration bills in 1996 and the Oregon sanctuary state law passing in 1987 was displayed. Ortiz believes that Oregonians can create positive changes for the future.
“I believe that now is the time to do something about changing the timeline, doing something positive and helping pass something that is helping communities, not bringing them down and in fear,” expressed Ortiz.
Contact the author at journalnews@wou.edu
Photo by: LATimes.com
