Activists disagree over efforts to toughen immigration laws

OREM — In talking about issues facing undocumented immigrants, Latino community activist Tony Yapias recently recounted his own journey from Junin, Peru, to Evanston, Wyo., his hometown, as he likes to call it.

Yapias, speaking at a public forum on immigration issues at the Orem City Library, said he's concerned with proposed Utah legislation that would be patterned after recent Oklahoma legislation that, among other things, denies undocumented immigrants state identification and requires state government agencies to confirm an immigrant's citizenship before bestowing benefits. He thinks if other states follow suit and create their own legislation, a hodge-podge of different laws will appear across the nation.

Perhaps as a prelude to an expected debate by the Legislature over whether to make it more difficult for undocumented immigrants to live and work in Utah, Russell Sias, a Provo resident, called Yapias' presentation biased in favor of "illegal immigrants."

"This is a great country where we can change laws," said Sias, a member of Utahns for Immigration Reform and Enforcement, "but until those laws change, we have to follow those laws."

Yapias said he hopes Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. will veto any comprehensive measure aimed at illegal immigration. "He understands the contribution of immigrants," he said. "He wants comprehensive reform."

The final answer for comprehensive immigration reform lies with the federal government, Yapias said, which he added has dragged its feet on the issue.

"The bottom line is Congress has to deal with (the immigration issue)," Yapias said. "They have to grab the bull by the horns and say, 'I wanna deal with it."'

Sias said immigration reform should start by holding accountable employers who entice undocumented immigrants into employment for low wages. Essentially, he said, "illegal immigrants are slaves."

Though immigration laws seem unfair, Sias said, people are obliged to follow them until they are fixed.

"We either live in a country of laws or a country of anarchy," he said. "Which do you want?"

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