The Associated Press drops “Illegal Immigrant” from style guide

The Associated Press announced today that they would no longer be using the phrase “illegal immigrant” to describe a person without legal status in our country.

It might seem like inside baseball, but it’s actually a very important change. The AP stylebook is taught in every communications class, is used as a standard for journalistic writing, and directly or indirectly sets the tone for public discussion through the media.

By dropping the pejorative phrase, the AP has taken a step towards acknowledging the complexity of the issue and the important role of immigration in American culture and history. This excerpt from their announcement captures the weight of their decision:

“The Stylebook no longer sanctions the term “illegal immigrant” or the use of “illegal” to describe a person. Instead, it tells users that “illegal” should describe only an action, such as living in or immigrating to a country illegally…

…Specify wherever possible how someone entered the country illegally and from where. Crossed the border? Overstayed a visa? What nationality?

People who were brought into the country as children should not be described as having immigrated illegally. For people granted a temporary right to remain in the U.S. under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, use temporary resident status, with details on the program lower in the story.”

The last paragraph is particularly important. The death of the DREAM Act, which passed the House with a strong bipartisan 77-20 vote but was killed in the Senate Higher Education Committee, was a blow to progress in equality and social justice in our state. But changes like this show that, even if polices falter this legislative session, broader and deeper cultural change continues to bend the arc of history towards justice.

DREAM Act passes committee, heads to vote in full House of Reps

The DREAM Act (House Bill 1817) passed the Higher Education Committee yesterday on a 14-4 vote.

The bipartisan bill – authored by Rep. Zack Hudgins (D-Tukwila) and Rep. Bruce Chandler (R-Granger) – brought a full house of students and citizens on the day of its public hearing, with 110 people signed in to testify in favor of the reform and zero people signed up to testify against it.

Here's the video of Hudgins and Chandler testifying together and, below that, highlights of their remarks.

Parts of Rep. Bruce Chandler's testimony:

"I just want to say that, first of all, these are kids that have grown up in our communities, that have grown up in mine, have gone through our school system."

"I absolutely believe that every student who graduates from a Washington high school should be given the same opportunity."

Parts of Rep. Hudgins' testimony:

"As a kid, you just get uprooted with your parents, you don't have a lot of say in it. We're talking about kids who've chosen to go to college … who've worked hard."

"This really isn't a big deal. … We are simply leveling the playing field. These kids are on a path to citizenship. This is a small incremental step from a policy standpoint."

"For the students this affects, this is a big deal. … It makes college possible."

"I don't think you should underestimate that Rep. Chandler and I are sitting here together. This is not a partisan issue. It's a policy about our economic future. If we want to continue to sell apples and airplanes and software to the world, we need the best talent. It's good for the kids in Washington state … and good for our economic future. These are the kids who'll sell Washington to the world."

And here's Ben Crowther with the Washington Student Association, speaking on behalf of more than 120,000 college students in the state, during the public hearing on the bill:

Related post:

A Dreamer named Francisco tells his story

Read this story in Spanish.

A Dreamer named Francisco tells his story

Francisco Rodriguez told a tough story with a smile and charm.

He came to Olympia yesterday to testify in favor of The Dream Act (House Bill 1817), by Rep. Zack Hudgins, D-Tukwila and co-sponsored by Rep. Bruce Chandler, R-Granger.

The legislation is aimed at making college more affordable for undocumented students like Francisco, who's studying computer science at Eastern Washington University.

Francisco graduated from Sunnyside High School with a 3.7 GPA and struggled to pay for college.

"When I first started college," he told lawmakers on the committee, "I only had $3,000 in my pocket."

That money quickly ran out during his second quarter of studies at Eastern.

So he went back home to Sunnyside to pick cherries. His father also worked long hours picking in the fields, all to save up enough money to send Francisco back to college.

"I slept on couches," Francisco said. He got food from friends.

Then he got a $10,000 scholarship from Google, and another scholarship from Microsoft, and he hopes to intern at one of those companies.

The Dream Act, he told lawmakers, would help students like himself get the opportunity to finish school. The legislation would make undocumented students eligible for the state need grant, just like other college students in the state who can't afford to pay tuition out of pocket.

Francisco wasn't alone. The hearing room in Olympia was packed with supporters of the bill, with 110 people signed up to testify in favor of the bipartisan bill and zero signed up to testify against it.

Read this story in Spanish.

House votes to help immigrants do the right thing the right way

Last night the House unanimously passed HB 5023, a measure to crack down on quasi-legal assistants who swindle hard working men and women out of hundreds or thousands of dollars with the promise of fixing their immigration papers.

This consumer protection bill solves the problem of people using misleading labels, such as “registered immigration assistant” and “notario publico,” a term that is the equivalent to attorney in some Latin American countries. With these titles they deceive vulnerable immigrants about their authority, qualifications, competency and ability to provide professional services.

The deceptions that have taken place as a result of this practice have caused serious harm to immigrants and prevented them from getting the legal advice and services they do need.

By eliminating the current state registry of “immigration assistants,” the bill stresses that only lawyers are authorized to provide legal advice on immigration matters. Under this measure assistants to lawyers can still translate, transcribe and provide other helpful services to immigrants that do not constitute the practice of law.

Watch the video below to see freshman Rep. Cindy Ryu, a naturalized citizen, as her moving remarks remind everyone in the chamber what being an American is all about:


The measure has the support of immigrants, immigrant organizations, and other groups that work directly with immigrants, such as One America, the Northwest Immigrant Rights Project and the American Civil Liberties Union.

“This is really a good consumer protection bill,” said Rep. Phyllis Gutiérrez Kenney, who sponsored the House companion to the Senate measure that passed. “Too many people wanting to do the right thing are instead seeing their lives ruined from having trusted these individuals who masquerade as attorneys.”

SB 5023 now goes back to the Senate for concurrence and then to Governor Gregoire for her signature.