Lisa Magaña – författare

With the dual and often conflicting responsibilities of deterring illegal immigration and providing services to legal immigrants, the U. S. Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) is a bureaucracy beset with contradictions. Critics fault the agency for failing to stop the entry of undocumented workers from Mexico. Agency staff complain that harsh enforcement policies discourage legal immigrants from seeking INS aid, while ever-changing policy mandates from Congress and a lack of funding hinder both enforcement and service activities. In this book, Lisa MagaÑa convincingly argues that a profound disconnection between national-level policymaking and local-level policy implementation prevents the INS from effectively fulfilling either its enforcement or its service mission. She begins with a history and analysis of the making of immigration policy which reveals that federal and state lawmakers respond more to the concerns, fears, and prejudices of the public than to the realities of immigration or the needs of the INS. She then illustrates the effects of shifting and conflicting mandates through case studies of INS implementation of the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986, Proposition 187, and the 1996 Welfare Reform and Responsibility Act and their impact on Mexican immigrants. MagaÑa concludes with fact-based recommendations to improve the agency's performance.

Empowered! examines Arizona's recent political history and how it has been shaped and propelled by Latinos. It also provides a distilled reflection of U.S. politics more broadly, where the politics of exclusion and the desire for inclusion are forces of change.Lisa MagaÑa and CÉsar S. Silva argue that the state of Arizona is more inclusive and progressive then it has ever been. Following in the footsteps of grassroots organizers in California and the southeastern states, Latinos in Arizona have struggled and succeeded to alter the anti-immigrant and racist policies that have been affecting Latinos in the state for many years. Draconian immigration policies have plagued Arizona's political history. Empowered! shows innovative ways that Latinos have fought these policies. Empowered! focuses on the legacy of Latino activism within politics. It raises important arguments about those who stand to profit financially and politically by stoking fear of immigrants and how resilient politicians and grassroots organizers have worked to counteract that fear mongering. Recognizing the long history of disenfranchisement and injustice surrounding minority communities in the United States, this book outlines the struggle to make Arizona a more just and equal place for Latinos to live.

Arizona has one of the fastest growing communities of Latino immigrants in the United States. In response to accusations that the Federal government was hampering the immigration enforcement actions of Arizona police, state Senator Russell Pearce introduced the “Support Our Law Enforcement and Safe Neighborhoods Act.” Better known as SB 1070, the policy allows police officers in Arizona to arrest unauthorized immigrants under the state’s trespassing law. The law also gives officers the latitude to question and detain those that may appear suspicious, which may simply mean that they appear Latino. Under the State’s statute, immigrants can also be criminalized for their mere presence in Arizona. The bill was signed into law on April 23, 2010, which generated a number of immensely complex issues at the local, national and international level The measure has affected an already problematic U.S.-Mexico, bi-national relationship at a time of increased security cooperation between the two countries. Furthermore, former the President of Mexico has criticized the law, issuing travel advisories, and as a sanction, trade between Arizona and Mexico has been reduced. Elected officials across the country called for a variety of economic boycotts and campaigns that would discourage the full implementation of the law. Over fifteen major cities have ended business contracts with Arizona. The State tourism industry has lost almost one billion dollars in less than six months as a result of this policy. This book examines a variety of issues and consequences of SB 1070 at the local, national and international level. It provides timely research and analysis on a topic not previously examined and from a variety of inter disciplinary approaches, making it of interest to political scientists and policy-makers alike.

Arizona has one of the fastest growing communities of Latino immigrants in the United States. In response to accusations that the Federal government was hampering the immigration enforcement actions of Arizona police, state Senator Russell Pearce introduced the “Support Our Law Enforcement and Safe Neighborhoods Act.” Better known as SB 1070, the policy allows police officers in Arizona to arrest unauthorized immigrants under the state’s trespassing law. The law also gives officers the latitude to question and detain those that may appear suspicious, which may simply mean that they appear Latino. Under the State’s statute, immigrants can also be criminalized for their mere presence in Arizona. The bill was signed into law on April 23, 2010, which generated a number of immensely complex issues at the local, national and international level The measure has affected an already problematic U.S.-Mexico, bi-national relationship at a time of increased security cooperation between the two countries. Furthermore, former the President of Mexico has criticized the law, issuing travel advisories, and as a sanction, trade between Arizona and Mexico has been reduced. Elected officials across the country called for a variety of economic boycotts and campaigns that would discourage the full implementation of the law. Over fifteen major cities have ended business contracts with Arizona. The State tourism industry has lost almost one billion dollars in less than six months as a result of this policy. This book examines a variety of issues and consequences of SB 1070 at the local, national and international level. It provides timely research and analysis on a topic not previously examined and from a variety of inter disciplinary approaches, making it of interest to political scientists and policy-makers alike.