How effective will the law be in curbing illegal immigration?
Regardless of one’s stance on immigration, this law will do little to mitigate the presence of undocumented immigrants in the US. To understand why the law will fail, we need to distinguish between the economics and morality of immigration. A law that is focused on the removal of undocumented or illegal immigrants does little to address the underlying economic and moral dimensions of immigration reform. The economics of migration are built around a vulnerable pool of low-wage workers (in Arizona these are largely undocumented Mexican immigrant workers) whose efforts guarantee profits for business while holding down costs for consumers. We should not mistake the economics of migration for a moral discussion. What is morally reprehensible is often economically profitable, and SB1070 does nothing to stop the demand for labor. In fact, it may only push immigrants further into the shadows of our economy, creating an even more isolated and separate undocumented working class that preserves l
