By Mike Sayer
Courtesy of Southern Echo http://southernecho.org/s/
 February 16, 2013
Once you read the existing law, MS Code 29-1-75, you will see the insidious purpose of HB 1275, which would amend the existing law.  Here is the entire textof the existing law:
 
Miss. Code Ann. § 29-1-75
§ 29-1-75. Who may purchase
Currentness
Except as otherwise provided in this section, neither a corporation nor a nonresident alien, nor any association of persons composed in whole or in part of nonresident aliens, shall directly or indirectly purchase or become the owner of any of the public lands; and every patent issued in contravention hereof shall …

HB 1221 Committee Substitute, now pending, is unconstitutional on its face, as is the underlying 2008 statute, 
MS Code 71-11-3, because they are pre-empted by the US Constitution express delegation of power to 
Congress to regulate naturalization and immigration. According to the US Constitution the federal law is the 
”supreme law of the land” and therefore state statutes are subordinate to the power of the federal 
government. [For the deniers: we fought a Civil War over this issue!]
The US Supreme Court decision in the Arizona immigration case, decided in June …

Bad, Anti-Immigrant:

HB 67 by Rep. Becky Currie (R) Brookhaven- punitive E-Verify bill revises “Mississippi  Employment Protection Act”  of 2008 increases penalties and requires Attorney General & Secretary of State to enforce. (Jud. B) 
HB 198 by Rep. Becky Currie (R)- Expands human trafficking law to employers. (Jud. B) 
HB 321 by Rep. Becky Currie (R)- mandates that law enforcement officers to take photographs of certain persons with out valid drivers licenses. (Jud. B) 
HB 490 by Rep. Gary Chism (R) Columbus- attempt to prevent Federal pre-emption of  state  Laws and to “assert the sovereignty of …

It’s still early to know what legislation might be introduced this year. Lawmakers have several days yet to file their proposed legislation – the deadline for filing is Monday, January 21st. We do know, however, that at least three bills related to immigration have been introduced, and several others are being drafted.
 
One anti-immigrant bill that has been introduced and assigned its number is HB-67, a punitive E-verify bill. Click here to see the full text of the bill (http://billstatus.ls.state.ms.us/documents/2013/pdf/HB/0001-0099/HB0067IN.pdf). This piece, authored by the ever-vigilant anti-immigrant legislator Becky Currie, expands …

Presented by Bill Chandler, Executive Director

Once again there is a possibility of legislative proposals being introduced into the 2013 Mississippi Legislative Session that are preempted by Federal Law.
On April 25, 2012, the United States Supreme Court ruled that Arizona’s SB 1070 was largely unconstitutional in Arizona v. United States. In its decision, the Supreme Court struck down three of the four sections of the law that were challenged. It also struck down a provision criminalizing undocumented workers for working— including much of Mississippi’s so-called Employment Protection Act …

Voter suppression is an old tactic, used by the majority population to prevent minorities from gaining fair representation. Both the new redistricting plan and voter ID would have a profoundly negative impact on immigrants, African Americans and ironically, many white voters. Last November, news stories abounded about voters in states with voter ID laws losing their voting rights. 
Redistricting, while necessary and constitutionally required, is often used to punish those who do not walk lock-step with the majority party in the legislature. By re-drawing the districts along racial lines or illegally …