Boycott These Racists, These Nazis,These Hateful People from Arizona!

American political debate has regained strength over the past few days; this time, Tea Partiers aren’t the ones making themselves heard, but rather the left or the Latinos, who are protesting a “racist” law recently enacted in Arizona. On Sunday night, swastikas made with frijoles were smeared on federal buildings in Phoenix, the capital of Arizona. The law, to take effect in July, was compared to “German Nazi and Russian Communist techniques” by Cardinal Roger Mahony, head of the largest archdiocese in the United States, in Los Angeles (with, of course, a strong Latino congregation.

The Reverend Al Sharpton, in turn, compared the law to apartheid in South Africa and to segregation, which long prevailed in the southern U.S. He promised that, just as freedom riders battled segregation 50 years ago, he will organize “freedom walkers.” Several activists and politicians have already called for a boycott of Arizona.

Felipe Calderon, president of neighboring Mexico, whose population is directly affected, denounced a law that “opens the door to unacceptable racial discrimination.” He added that trade and political ties with Arizona would “be seriously affected.” For a small selection of some of the most colorful tirades, see the Huffington Post, dated April 27.

What stirs the debate is a statutory provision that permits local police forces to detain any individual they wish and request to see their identification, simply because they might be illegal immigrants. Civil rights defenders such as Frank Sharry, from a group called America’s Voice, are indignant, saying that it is an open door to racial profiling or, to be more precise, Latino profiling. Some 460,000 illegal immigrants are thought to live in Arizona, most of them originally from Mexico. According to Republican Governor Jan Brewer, the law will deal more effectively, not only against illegal immigration, but also against Mexican drug cartels, which have extended their activities to American soil.

All this sound and fury may be a mere foretaste of American political debate until the next mid-term elections in November. In fact, Barack Obama took advantage of the turmoil in Arizona, once again, to highlight his campaign promise for federal immigration reform. Rather than continuing to pressure the Senate over his climate bill (which hardly anyone expected to see pass this year, anyway), the White House will now make immigration its new priority, along with financial regulation. “If we continue to fail to act at a federal level, we will continue to see misguided efforts around the country,” explained the president on Friday. The law envisioned by Barack Obama — yet to be drafted — would legalize all or a portion of the estimated 12 million illegal immigrants currently in the U.S., while reinforcing controls at the border and in hiring procedures. The effort is certainly commendable and in compliance with Barack Obama’s campaign promises. A few months from the elections, however, it does smack of political maneuvering, aimed at remobilizing Democratic troops and re-awakening American passions — at the risk of being increasingly outrageous.