Immigration law needs overhaul, panelists say

This public forum had people talking about all sides of the issue and all agree that immigration reform is needed. Soon. - - Donna Poisl

By John Stark, The Bellingham Herald, Wash.

Mar. 17--BELLINGHAM -- The recent raid at Yamato Engine Specialists demonstrates the need for an overhaul of U.S. immigration laws, according to panelists who spoke Monday, March 16, at a public forum.

''We've got to have laws that make sense, and laws that we can enforce, and laws that we can follow," said Pramila Jayapal, executive director of Seattle-based OneAmerica, an immigration reform advocacy group.

Bellingham immigration attorney Scott Railton argued that workers who have established themselves in a community should be given some opportunity to legalize their status.

''The laws weren't being enforced for years and years," Railton said. "The government was looking the other way. Now they (immigrants) are in our communities, in our churches, and in our schools, and the laws of the game have changed."
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