Utah activists fear immigration deal

This year, immigration reform may be an issue on which the Democrat-controlled Congress could find accord with the Bush administration.

And that has at least some Utah activists against illegal immigration worried. They're opposed to the pathway to citizenship for most of the nation's 12 million undocumented immigrants in the House's STRIVE Act. And they're not convinced that proposed security enhancements will actually have any teeth.

"I'm extremely pessimistic and I'm trembling with fear," said Eli Cawley, a member of the Utah Minuteman Project.

At a recent meeting at the West Valley Library, a small group met to discuss illegal immigration and a planned "Wake up America" event in June to raise awareness about their cause.

"It's even worse than the bill they had last year," Cawley said. "It erases what little distinction remains between citizens and illegal aliens. ... The bill in Congress is about more amnesty. We cannot afford to have it go through."

Last year, talk of immigration reform fizzled after the Senate and House failed to see eye-to-eye. This year, federal lawmakers are revisiting an overhaul of the nation's immigration system.

Both the STRIVE Act and a separate proposal by President Bush call for enhanced border security and work site enforcement. They also both provide for ways for undocumented immigrants to obtain temporary visas, and eventual permanent residence, though the president's plan would be more stringent. It also includes a controversial provision to move away from family reunification visas, instead making an immigrant's skills fundamental.

Cawley hopes that the rally, to be held in mid- to late June, will raise broader community awareness about what he sees as a need to stop legislation that legalizes the undocumented.

"We're all in this together," Cawley said. "All our citizens are at equal risk."

Meanwhile, immigrant rights activists see the new proposals, which combine enforcement with a process of legalization, as reason for hope.

While it's impossible to say what any final legislation will look like, the STRIVE Act is "a good framework and a good starting point," said Michael Clara, chairman of the Utah Republican Hispanic Assembly.

Tony Yapias, chairman of the Utah Hispanic Democratic Caucus, said the state's undocumented immigrants are living in an atmosphere of fear amid a heightened emphasis on work site enforcement and higher-profile cases. That includes the December arrest of 145 people at the Hyrum Swift & Co. plant as part of a multistate investigation.