Georgia Democrats Want Repeal of Arizona-Style Immigration Law

Advocates for farmers joined Georgia House Democrats at a public hearing Thursday seeking repeal of H.B. 87.

"There are parts I agree with, but passing it is a bad idea," said Rep. Elena Parent. "I do not support illegal immigration. I do, however, believe it is a federal issue and not a state issue."

Parent said H.B. 87 harms Georgians by costing them jobs in a down economy and damaging the state's reputation. The law affects not only Georgia's largest industry, agriculture, but also its second-largest industry, tourism.

"The bill can devastate our tourism because foreigners will not come here," she said. "The bill supports racial profiling. How? If a traveler from Korea comes here for a business convention, he may be pulled over and asked to show his papers. If he can't prove himself to an officer, he might be carted off to a detention facility. When he's released and tells his colleagues, they won't do business in Georgia."

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Parent added that Arizona lost $45 million in tourism in 2011 because of S.B. 1070, its version of HB 87.

House Minority Leader Stacey Abrams explained the effects of H.B. 87 at a House Democratic press conference Tuesday.

“H.B. 87 is a failed attempt at immigration reform that has simply served to cripple the economy of Georgia,” Abrams said. “The most modest estimates place the price tag for six months of this bill at $75 million in lost crops alone. That’s real money to the thousands of family farms, small grocers and shop owners who rely on Georgia’s agriculture industry to survive.”

Rep. Pedro Marin, author of the repeal bill, said Tuesday that Georgia must get out of the immigration business and return to the business of producing the nation’s food supply.