WHAT YOU MISSED

Diversity in Brief - June 12 Edition

Updated: June 12, 2012 | 9:28 a.m.
June 12, 2012 | 8:00 a.m.

Texas GOP adopts revamped immigration stance; two states consider giving law licenses to illegal immigrants and more.

Texas GOP Adopts Revamped Immigration Stance

Texas Republicans approved a new party platform that includes support for a temporary worker program and new ways to secure the U.S. border, signaling an attempt by the party to attract conservative Hispanic voters who may have been swayed otherwise. The previous party platform, which gets updated every two years, originally took a harder line against immigration, including strict penalties for employers and denial of health care coverage except for emergencies.

Some party members are concerned that the more lenient approach may turn off staunch conservatives, but others maintain the platform is a good middle line that offers solutions while attracting an essential voter base.

Read more here.

Law Licenses for Illegal Immigrants?

Officials in California and Florida are considering separate appeals by two illegal immigrants who want to legally be lawyers. Both who were brought to the U.S. when they were children and graduated from law school in the U.S.

The Florida Board of Bar Examiners is debating whether Jose Manuel Godinez-Samperio, an undocumented law student who did pass the bar, would be eligible for a license. In California, Sergio C. Garcia’s immigration status was brought into question after he was sworn in as a lawyer and inquiries began to surface about him.

Legal experts say that it’s unlikely the two will get a pass, the Wall Street Journal reports, because it’s illegal for employers to knowingly hire illegal immigrants.

Read more here.

Immigrants Claim Activist Posed as Lawyer, Scammed Them

Ten undocumented immigrants are filing a civil lawsuit against Margaret Carrasco, a prominent immigration activist, alleging that she fraudulently claimed to be an immigration lawyer, but did not show up to court proceedings after they paid her. The most recent complaint involves as 19-year-old undocumented woman who was under deportation proceedings and allegedly paid Carrasco to represent her in court.

A Chicago Reporter investigation from 2011 found that Carrasco was listed as the attorney in 40 immigration cases between March 2010 and June 2011.

Read more here.

Get the latest news and analysis delivered to your inbox. Sign up for National Journal's morning alert, Wake-Up Call, and afternoon newsletter, The Edge. Subscribe here.


Leave A Comment
The National Journal Group has the right (but not the obligation) to monitor the comments and to remove any materials it deems inappropriate.
Comments powered by Disqus
@TheNextAmerica
twitterLogo
What is Next America?
Virtually every issue the United States contends with promises to be affected by deep currents of change illuminated by demographic shifts. With The Next America, National Journal unveils an unprecedented effort to explore the significant political, economic and social impact of profound racial and cultural changes.

The initiative includes polls, national and local events with thought leaders, magazine supplements and launch of a full website May 1.


The Story That Started It All

In 2010, Ronald Brownstein wrote The Gray and the Brown: A Generational Mismatch about America’s shift to an older, more ethnically diverse population and how these changes affect us as a nation.