Proposition 187 Illegal Immigration

Traveling to a state that could be key to his White House hopes, California Gov. Pete Wilson said Saturday he faces a teaching task in Florida because few voters understand that the centerpiece of his reelection last year--Proposition 187--was for him an issue of fairness, not racism.

In a high-stakes federal court hearing Wednesday in Los Angeles, civil rights attorneys argued that Proposition 187 should be declared unconstitutional immediately because it clearly seeks to usurp the federal government's sole authority over immigration matters. U.S. District Judge Mariana R.

A year ago today, California voters declared emphatically that it was time to do something about illegal immigration and what many consider its price tag: rising crime, overcrowded classrooms, skyrocketing health and social service costs and a sense that once-familiar communities were under "invasion." After a bitter campaign, Proposition 187--the so-called "Save Our State" ballot initiative--passed by a commanding margin, helping to propel its most high-profile supporter, Gov.

When pediatrician Luz Medina looks into the eyes of a pregnant, undocumented immigrant, she sees her own mother. * She sees the mother who told her to hide from the landlord and kept the family out of public places after they came to Los Angeles illegally in 1966. She sees the mother who went through a pregnancy without medical care, giving birth to a child with a heart defect that required corrective surgery. The surgery saved the life of Medina's younger brother, Alex.

Inspired by the lurching course of California's Prop. 187, a bill that passed the House on Thursday would make it more difficult for federal courts to block state voter initiatives. The measure would put an end to a system that allows a single federal judge to halt by injunction an initiative passed into law by state voters and instead turn such decisions over to three-judge panels. Prop.

Orange County voters and state legislators are among the top financial donors in California for the "Save Our State" immigration initiative to be voted on statewide in November, according to campaign finance statements filed Tuesday with the registrar of voters' office.

If the Los Angeles City Council decides to join the court battles to overturn Proposition 187, it should seek free services from private attorneys rather than spend public funds to fight the measure, City Atty. James K. Hahn recommended Thursday. Hahn's recommendation came in a two-page letter to council members as they prepared to debate again today on what to do about the measure that calls for illegal immigrants to be barred from most public services. On Nov.

Weighing in on the volatile issue of illegal immigration, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors voted Tuesday to oppose a statewide ballot initiative that would deny many public services to undocumented residents. The board's 3-2 vote, with Supervisors Mike Antonovich and Deane Dana dissenting, was an advisory motion that carries no force but sends an important political message.

In politics, as in theater, there are dress rehearsals where the plot and the players are displayed before a small audience before moving to the larger arena. Take Proposition 187, now center stage from Eureka to San Ysidro. If California is Broadway for this political-social-cultural drama, then Encinitas was New Haven.

The Los Angeles City Council, with three members absent, delayed a vote Friday on whether to soften its decision to fight Proposition 187 in the courts, but the roiling ill will that has characterized council debate on the divisive initiative continued in full bloom. Councilman Joel Wachs, who wants the city to limit its role in the legal dispute over implementation of the initiative, said there were not enough members present to approve his motion.