I cannot believe Utah must go through this debate again. Over a tortured 12 months between April 2010 and March 2011, Utahns endured a contentious debate over what to do with undocumented immigrants already in residence. We didn’t address the border — that’s not Utah’s issue to address. We addressed the many thousands of undocumented immigrants living in Utah.
We took care of it. Let me remind you.
Arizona was concerned about immigrants crossing its border with Mexico and passed strong enforcement-only legislation in April 2010. Arizona’s unique situation caught the eye of Utah’s conservative caucus, who were giddy to replicate what Arizona had done. At the time, the majority of Utahns polled favored following a policy of enforcement-only. The kick-them-out crowd had momentum and optimism.
But a funny thing happened on the way to the roundup. In May 2010, I sat next to State Senator Luz Robles at a Sutherland Institute annual dinner and we talked immigration. Me, the head of the most influential conservative organization in the state at the time, and her a female, Hispanic, liberal Democrat. Together we wrote what I believe was the gold standard of all immigration bills, a state-based comprehensive immigration reform policy. Importantly, we created a compelling alternative to the zealous efforts of the enforcement-only crowd. The scales of public opinion began to tip.
By August 2010, a bright young man working with the Downtown Alliance conceived of a document to coalesce public support around five principles in dealing with undocumented neighbors residing in Utah. That document is the Utah Compact. I am proud to have been a co-author. It provided a clear and prudent foundation for moving forward at the Legislature. By January 2011, at the start of the annual legislative session, the majority of the public was now in favor of our comprehensive approach. The Utah Compact was a masterstroke.
Conservative legislators went to work on a bill that would bring undocumented immigrants to the surface of society safely and productively. The zealots favoring enforcement-only ran their bill. Reform won, enforcement-only lost.
We’re caught up now.
The numbers of undocumented immigrants today doesn’t change a thing about what was accomplished during the 2011 legislative session. The smart play is the same — pass policies that entice immigrants to the surface of society. Leave soccer moms alone. Leave profiling behind. Let law enforcement focus on real criminals.
Conservatives from 15 years ago (a few still serving) passed special drivers licenses for undocumented immigrants, mostly for them to get car insurance, and also passed a special work permit, mostly to keep significant parts of our economy thriving. After comprehensive reforms were in place, immigrant parents could walk their children to school unmolested and an immigrant neighbor living next to a meth house could call the police without fear of being deported. All people of good will were accountable to society. Utah’s immigration reform policies became the standard for other states who desperately sought to follow our example.
But today, many so-called conservatives in the state Legislature have taken a bite out of Trump’s deceptive apple and have fallen back into enforcement-only thinking. As with all enforcement-only policies, the central idea is to choke out immigrants — make life in Utah not only uncomfortable but also unmanageable and drive good people back into the unmerciful arms of real criminal immigrants.
At the heart of the problem, a problem Utah resolved 15 years ago, is the idea that all undocumented immigrants are “criminals” who need to be deported. That notion is a Trumpism, and it’s false. Utah decided long ago that, regardless of imprudent laws from a broken immigration system, there is a difference between people of good will and violent criminals.
Authentic conservatives did the heavy lifting throughout 2010 and into the 2011 legislative session, and Utah has flourished since then. This renewed interest in clumsy public policy would undo every prudent policy accomplished by intelligent conservatives and a broad coalition of interests in the original Utah Way. So, please leave people alone.