LA Times Opinion Piece by Manuel Pastor and Miguel Santana

Check out this recent opinion piece published in the Los Angeles Times by Manuel Pastor, professor of sociology and Director of the Equity Institute at USC, and Miguel Santana, president an CEO of the California Community Foundation: What Kamala Harris needs to remember about California’s anti-immigrant past.

They write:

“This year marks the 30th anniversary of the state’s passage of Proposition 187 in 1994, a measure that sought to block undocumented immigrants in California from accessing basic, lifeline services — especially healthcare and public education for their children. It required every teacher, school nurse, firefighter and police officer to report anyone they merely suspected to be undocumented. The initiative was stayed and eventually deemed unconstitutional by federal courts, but even without going into effect it ignited a counteroffensive on behalf of all Californians.

Three decades later, California’s political terrain has shifted so significantly that the state has extended earned income tax credits, college tuition programs and health insurance to undocumented residents. Most significantly, it is now nearly impossible for an anti-immigrant candidate to win statewide office.”

IE