Loading...
Loading...
Click here if you don’t see subscription options
March 29, 2010

The Catholic bishops of Arizona have denounced “punitive” and “costly” legislative proposals that require stricter enforcement of immigration laws by local police. The bishops said the proposals could harm public safety and separate families. “Arizona would become the first state in the nation to codify its own ‘illegal immigration’ law by requiring persons who are here unlawfully in terms of federal law to be charged with trespassing under Arizona law,” said the three bishops who make up the Arizona Catholic Conference in a March 8 statement. The three are Bishops Thomas J. Olmsted of Phoenix, Gerald F. Kicanas of Tucson and James S. Wall of Gallup, N.M., whose diocese includes parts of Arizona. The bishops added that the proposed legislation does not “clearly state that undocumented people who become victims of crimes can come forward without fear of deportation.”

Comments are automatically closed two weeks after an article's initial publication. See our comments policy for more.

The latest from america

A Reflection for the Memorial of St. Athanasius, Bishop and Doctor of the Church, by J.D. Long García
J.D. Long GarcíaApril 30, 2025
A Homily for the Third Sunday of Easter, by Terrance Klein
Terrance KleinApril 30, 2025
In a pre-conclave meeting, an Italian cardinal, and backer of Cardinal Parolin as next pope, attacked Pope Francis for opening positions of responsibility in the church to men and women not in holy orders.
Gerard O’ConnellApril 30, 2025
Michael B. Jordan, left, in “Sinners” (Warner Brothers)
As the film’s title promises, there is plenty of sin on display, even before the vampires arrive.
John DoughertyApril 30, 2025