Hazelton, PA passed an ordinance last July dealing with people illegally in the country. It will
- revoke the business licenses of companies that employ illegal immigrants;
- impose $1,000 fines on landlords who rent to illegal immigrants;
- make English the official language of the city.
I’m in favor of the way they’re handling it. They’re not discriminating on the basis of national origin here. They’re just saying, if the person is here illegally, and you aid or abet that by employing them, or renting to them, then you’re wrong. They’re not taking immigration law into their own hands. Hazelton is just addressing the demand side of the equation, in a way not dissimilar to the War on Drugs.
Not unsurprisingly, they’ve been sued, by the ACLU and the Puerto Rican Legal Defense and Education Fund, on behalf of landlords who say they’ve lost tenants, and the immigrant owner of of a grocery store and restaurant who says her business has fallen off since the ordinance was passed. Best of luck to the city. I think this is the right way to do it.
