Colonial Terrace Apartments resident Angella Rector speaks with a slow southern drawl that drips of mobile home and Larry the Cable Guy. The redhead married her husband, Juan Espanoza, two years ago. They lived on a tight family budget with their three children before U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials arrested Espanoza last weekend for being in the country illegally.
Rector said Espanoza worked hard on various construction jobs in and around the Jackson area before ICE busted him during a four-day raid last weekend that included Rankin County, specifically in the apartment complexes and trailer parks near or in the city of Pearl. Together, Rector said, she and her husband managed to keep their bills paid and avoid the need for government assistance for their children, who, like Rector, were born American citizens. Without him, however, her income isn't enough.
"It irritates me how they say Mexicans are coming over here taking public assistance, but when they're taking daddies away (and) that ... leaves the Momma," Rector said. "If I go to work—I (work) right now—but if I go to work now how am I supposed to pay a baby-sitter to take care of my three kids and pay my bills, my rent?"
ICE announced the arrest of 57 men and one woman, ranging in ages from 17 to 71, over the course of the weekend: 40 from Mexico, nine from Guatemala and four from Honduras. Other people arrested come from Panama, Peru, Costa Rica and El Salvador. ICE reports that seven of those arrested this past weekend had returned after being deported previously.
Brown University's US 2010 project, which uses Census 2010 data, reports that the city of Pearl's Hispanic population increased from 446 individuals in 2000 to 1,598 in 2010. A portion of the new population consists of undocumented immigrants working temporary jobs. Mississippi Immigrants Rights Community organizer Ulises Hernandez Rincon said the majority of unregistered workers do not jump a fence to enter the country but, instead, managed to land steady work, and could not bear to surrender their jobs after their temporary work visas expired.
Rector's children, who are ages 1, 3 and 5, will be going to school soon, if she decides to stay in Pearl. However, the city of Pearl may not be happy to have her or her kids in town if her single-parent income can't sustain a two-bedroom apartment.
The city passed an ordinance last year limiting bedroom occupancy in residential premises to two occupants per bedroom. It applies to houses, apartments and manufactured homes, restricts a man and wife who are expecting a child from living in a single-bedroom apartment without a special permit from the director of community development in the Department of Code Enforcement.
The director can refuse to grant the permit if other property with more sufficient bedroom capacity is available within city limits, without regard to the potential price increase residents face for multiple-bedroom apartments. The fine for violating the ordinance can be up to $1,000 or 90 days in jail, and each day of noncompliance counts as a separate offense. The price for applying for a Pearl Code Enforcement special permit is $50.
Pearl City Attorney Jim Bobo said last year that the ordinance targets unscrupulous landlords who attempt to pile numerous beds into a single dwelling, creating an unsafe environment, but Chandler said the ordinance clearly targets low-income Latinos.
Bear Atwood, interim legal director for the ACLU of Mississippi, said the ordinance gives too much power to the community development director who may value traditional families and could restrict unmarried, gay and lesbian couples, and large extended families.
"We want to be treated as humans, not as trash," said Herrero, a recent U.S. citizen.
Conservatives in the Mississippi House and Senate have pushed laws in previous sessions and new bills this session that discourage undocumented residency. The Legislature passed a law in 2008 that makes holding a job while being an undocumented resident a felony carrying a prison term of up to five years, a fine of up to $10,000 or both. That same law, is more forgiving to employers of undocumented workers, who suffer the risk of canceled state contracts and ineligibility for future contracts for up to three years and the possibility of the revocation of the employer's business license for up to one year as a consequence of non-compliance, but no jail time or fines beyond covering the costs to the state for canceled contracts.
This year, the House and Senate are considering different versions of a controversial Arizona law that force police in the state to request residency documentation at routine traffic stops and public interdictions. The House of Representatives passed Senate Bill 2179 last month, but stripped a section that would allow citizens to sue local law enforcement and public officials for not enforcing federal immigration laws. House members say the section puts undue legal pressure on municipalities and local governments. The House inserted a provision allowing citizens to take a business to court for hiring undocumented workers.
Senate Republicans, including bill author Sen. Joey Fillingane, R-Sumrall, said last month the new House-inserted section now puts undue legal pressure on businesses.
Previous Commentsshow
What's this?More like this story
More stories by this author
Support our reporting -- Follow the MFP.
Comments
Use the comment form below to begin a discussion about this content.