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STATE OF UNREST: A NEW ARIZONA LAW

COULD KEEP MUSICIANS OUT
Alternativ e Press - Tim Karan on 5/24/10 @ 7:00 AM - altpress.com

STORY: Luke O'Neill

The debate over immigration in the United States has been gradually reaching its inevitable

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crescendo during the past few years, but the passage of Senate Bill 1070 last month in
Arizona may be the turning point that pushes the issue into a full-scale crisis. The bill, w idely
considered the toughest immigration law in the country, empow ers state law enforcement to FEATURES:
detain those w hom there is a "reasonable suspicion" that they're in the country illegally and Exclusive: More outtakes from...
requires citizens to carry proof of their legal status at all times. Supporters of the bill see it as a Track-By-Track: The Reverend...
w ay for the state to enforce federal law s that are already in the books. But critics of the bill State Of Unrest: A New Arizona...
say it renders Arizona a police state, one in w hich racial profiling has essentially been w ritten Exclusive Video: Silverstein...
into law . Their concern: How exactly does one inspire suspicion that they are an illegal Video: Valencia talk about...
immigrant aside from skin color? NEWS:
Lydia upload new track, title...
When it comes to race relations, Arizona has historically been one of the most contentious The Wonder Years sign w ith...
battlegrounds in the country. During the Civil War, it w as one of the only territories in the West Arcade Fire release 12-inch,...
to fight alongside the Confederacy, and the state didn't recognize Martin Luther King Jr. Day
until 1992--nearly a decade after it became a federal holiday. (In 1987, governor Evan Mecham REVIEWS:
rescinded the holiday as his first act in office.) During the next several years, w idespread FILE UNDER: Folk-ska
boycotts of the state stirred the controversy, most notably w ith the NFL relocating the site of FILE UNDER: Anti-Jock Jams
that year's Super Bow l out of Arizona. Public Enemy commentated on the state in "By The Time I FILE UNDER: Goofball pop-punk
Get To Arizona" on 1991's Apocalypse 91... The Enemy Strikes Black : "What's a smiling face
w hen the w hole state's racist? The cracker over there, he try to keep it yesteryear, the good ol'
days the same ol' w ays that kept us dyin'." ALTPRESSLIVE
By comparison, the reaction to that bit of racially problematic law -making may eventually pale in And that's a wrap, folks! The 2010 AP Tour has
comparison to the pending fallout from SB 1070. Seattle recently became the 11th city in the come to an end. We'll see y'all in the fall!
U.S. to endorse a full boycott of Arizona, cutting off future contracts w ith Arizona-based 19 day s ago
businesses and ending official travel to the state. Prominent members of the sports community
like the NBA's Arizona Suns have voiced their displeasure (even w earing "Los Suns" jerseys "Big City Dreams" brings the house down!
during the conference semifinals in response to the bill), many members of the baseball #aptourcleveland http://twitpic.com/1m9tk7
community have called for MLB to relocate training facilities from the state and prominent 19 day s ago

members of the entertainment and music industry have taken an oppositional stance. Most
Chris Drew is naming every song after NSN's
notable among them so far are CYPRESS HILL, the veteran Latino rap group w ho canceled a
merch dude: "I Love You Nick," "Nick Doe," etc.
planned concert in Arizona earlier this month in protest. They released a statement w hich Cute! #aptourcleveland
reads: 19 day s ago

"In a show of resistance to the criminalization of immigrant communities and in opposition Supposedly the girl from iCarly is in the house?
to SB 1070, recently signed into Arizona legislation, Cypress Hill has elected to cancel a Whatup! #aptourcleveland
performance scheduled in Tucson for May 21, 2010. This decision was made in an effort to 19 day s ago
show support and solidarity with those, undocumented and otherwise, being directly
affected by this unconstitutional 'law.' Cypress Hill recognizes those living in the struggle Join the conversation
for their basic civil rights. Rise up!"

Tucson radio station La Caliente 102.1 FM also canceled its annual Tusa Festival w here some ALTPRESS
of the biggest names in Mexican music w ere set to perform. Under the new law , suspicious
parties are essentially considered illegal immigrants until proven otherw ise. Since 30 percent of Find out how you can perform on an upcoming
the state's population are of Hispanic or Latino origin, it has effectively criminalized entire Frank Turner single: http://bit.ly/ac8Sfe
6 hours ago
sw aths of the state's citizens. "I definitely think that the Cypress Hill cancelation is the

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harbinger of more stuff like this to come," says Curtis McCrary of the Rialto Theater in Tempe, Arcade Fire release 12-inch, set release date for
the venue w here the show w as to take place. "I've been told of a few other cancellations over full-length: http://bit.ly/bW6cWF
it and threatened cancellations [Los Lobos w ere going to cancel planned dates but later 13 hours ago
changed their minds], and some bands such as Stars have already made their intent to boycott
public." Stars w rote in a tw eet, "We love AZ. But until its racist new immigration law is NEW REVIEW: "Moved On" by Less Than Jake side
repealed, Stars (and many others) w ill boycott this state." project Coffee Project -- read here:
http://bit.ly/dtQw3k
This is a perilous development for anyone involved in planning events w ithin the state. "For 13 hours ago

now , going forw ard I'm going to verify that a given band w ill not cancel before I confirm a
All Time Low Guitar Hero song pack to be released
show ," says McCrary. "But w ho know s how many bands simply skip the state w ithout making
in June: http://bit.ly/9cYUd7
a public statement on it because they don't like SB 1070 and other recently passed insane 13 hours ago
Arizona legislation?" He's referring to the new law that prohibits classes in the Arizona school
system from focusing on a specific race such as African American, Native American and Join the conversation
Mexican American studies and also prohibits classes that advocate the overthrow of the
American government.

One band w ho may consider avoiding the state altogether are El Paso, Texas, psych-prog outfit
ZECHS MARQUISE--featuring bassist Marfred Rodriguez-Lopez, the brother of the Mars
Volta's Omar Rodriguez-Lopez. "I'm Puerto Rican, and I look like it," says Rodriguez-Lopez. "If I
w as visiting Arizona and the authorities w anted to, they could detain me because I might be
illegal. It's left to their discretion. After that, it's their game, their rules until things get sorted out. I
remember returning home one time from Mexico. Crossing the bridge over to the U.S., I w as
asked by customs w here I w as born and the brilliant customs officer didn't know Puerto Rico is
a U.S. commonw ealth and that all its natives are U.S. citizens. After hassling me for the better
part of an hour, I w as let go." He also said, "Three-quarters of us in the band are Hispanic.
Now w e're a target. The less time w e spend in that state the better."

Zechs Marquise Live @ The Black Market in El Paso, Tx (11/07/09) from Paco Ibarra on Vimeo.

Matt Sanchez of Massachusetts indie dance-pop band THE BLUE PAGES agrees it's an affront
to musicians, saying, "I have been follow ing the situation and am completely flabbergasted
about the outcome." Sanchez's family is from Spain and Mexico. "It's most definitely a case of
racial profiling. It infringes on the rights of all Americans and is therefore very unjust. It's a sad
day w hen you can be w alking dow n the street and asked for papers based off of w hat you
look like." It's clear that a law like this might cause bands planning tour itineraries to think tw ice
about stopping in Arizona. "As a touring musician, it's something that I w ould definitely take into
consideration," says Sanchez. "We have tw o people in the band of Latin descent, and it w ould
be very disturbing if w e w ere stopped and asked to prove our American citizenship. I don't
think this law w ould ever stop us from touring because music comes first, but it w ould sure put
a damper on things. This w ould be something that I'd be thinking about in the back of my mind,
and it's terrible that I can't be comfortable in my ow n country."

How ever, Sanchez doesn't think a boycott of the state w ill affect the kind of change

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necessary. "If w e w ant change, w e have to actively voice our opinions and demand reform,"
he says. "Maybe bands should urge all of their fans to w rite to their state demanding change. I
know it seems like a letter w on't do a lot, but millions of letters w ill create aw areness, w hich
w ill create change."

Juan Dies of Grammy- and Latin Grammy-nominated folk group SONES DE MEXICO says his
group w ill play in Arizona w henever invited, although he is "very unhappy and embarrassed"
about the legislation. "I don't w ant to punish all the people from Arizona on account of those
w ho favored this legislation. Not all people in Arizona support this policy. The Arizona HB 2162
is evidence of it." That more recent bill revises the original SB 1070, essentially saying that law
enforcement may only undertake determination of legal residency during the normal course of a
routine violation such as a traffic stop.

It's important to point out that w hile much of the attention has been focused on Arizona, at least
10 other states including Texas, Nebraska, Utah and Colorado are considering enacting similar
immigration law s. You can't boycott everyw here, and David Slutes of Tucson venue the Hotel
Congress thinks it w ould do more harm than good. "Our feeling, even though I abhor the bill
personally and as a business guy, is that the boycott is, particularly in our industry, not the w ay
to address it," he says. "I w ould almost go so far as to say many artists are being lazy and
self-serving to knee-jerk boycott our state w hen they can be much more effective coming to
the state and energizing the base. It's just a horrendous bill and our soul is hurt by this.
[Musicians] have a soapbox to stand on. If the toothbrush manufacturers convention doesn't
come to the state, so be it. They aren't energizing the base. These acts have a pulpit, they have
thousands of people w atching and cheering them on and listening to w hat they have to say."

In Tucson, arguably the liberal enclave of Arizona, people are aggressively lobbying against the
bill. In fact, the city council has filed suit against the state saying that the immigration law is
unconstitutional, and w ill also be bad for the economy and result in millions of dollars in losses
in potential law suits against the state. That's one reason w hy Slutes said his attempts to
convince Los Lobos to reconsider their boycott of Arizona w as heartening. He asked the
band's management, "What are you trying to achieve here? You lose money by doing it. If your
goal is to affect change in this, it's much better served by coming here. It's an election year and
w e need to get [the legislators w ho did this] out of office. Cypress Hill w ere given a very
[similar] argument from Curtis at the Rialto trying to convince them to do [the same], but they
considered and decided still to boycott. So it's splitting evenly."

Will state legislators actually care w hat rock musicians have to say? History show s that often
isn't the case. Slutes says Arizona legislators w ould prefer no one came and spoke out. "Do
you think for a second that the authors of this bill w ant Latino bands coming to the state making
all this new s? Of course they don't. [The law makers] love that they're boycotting. They don't
w ant [the artists] coming here. They'd rather have the supporter impoverished and
unenergized."

Members of Canadian punk band FUCKED UP think a boycott is counterproductive as w ell.

Vocalist Damian Abraham took issue w ith their countrymen Stars' boycott announcement in an
op-ed piece for Stereogum. "This law is purported to be a w ay of addressing w hat is a

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perceived to be a lacking in enforcement of immigration law s," he w rote. "But it is felt by many--
myself included--to be a massively flaw ed piece of legislation that is, at its core, out and out
racism." He thinks a band boycotting the state makes an assumption about their fans that they
support the law . "There's such a huge number of people opposed to this law w ithin Arizona
that by trying to force a change through a boycott, the side-effect is punishing these people.
These people need support now more then ever."

Fucked Up recently performed in Phoenix and enlisted the humanitarian aid group No More
Deaths to provide an information table at their show . NMD is dedicated to helping prevent
fatalities in crossings along the U.S./Mexico border. "It's easy to boycott a place you don't go to
very often anyw ay," says Sean Bonnette of Phoenix folk-punks ANDREW JACKSON JIHAD.
"It's easy to say you're boycotting and just skip it from New Mexico to California to make a
grand political stand. I think indie bands should come to Arizona more. People should move here
and vote. That w ould make a real difference. When Fucked Up just came here, they got a hold
of No More Deaths. That's w ay more productive than just not coming."

AJJ are one of 17 bands to contribute a song to A Line In The Sand , a compilation of protest
songs compiled by the Phoenix New Times . Music editor Martin Cizmar says the album serves
to show the diversity of the state's music scene, and that not everyone supports the bill. "The
thing that I'm w orried about is that [the bill] makes us look like a bunch of rednecks and people
aren't going to w ant to play here," he says. "They're going to look at their tour schedule and it
leaves a bitter taste in the their mouth. It gives them a bad idea of w hat Arizona is all about."

Another problem is the idea of bands coming through giving Arizona citizens a lecture on w hy
they are misguided. Cizmar says this isn't necessary. "When John McCain w as running against
Obama, [during every show ] I saw in fall 2008, bands took a couple minutes to chastise McCain
and talk about how great Obama is to an audience w here 90 percent of the people already
agreed w ith them. Why did they feel the need to do that? I don't know , but it's w hat they did.
This is going to be like that times 10."

Another artist inspired to release a song in opposition to this law is New York City-based
electronic artist COSTANZA. Her video for "Just Another Alien" is a recitation of the questions
taken from the U.S. DS-156 Immigration Form. Put in this context they seem ominous and
threatening.

"I am an alien," says Costanza. "I w ent through a w hole bunch of papers to get my visa. I'm
very close emotionally to the immigration issue, not only because I'm an alien in the U.S., but I'm
from Italy w here w e have a lot of big problems w ith immigration. When this law [w as passed], I
w as very touched by it, so I decided to release this video not so much as a protest against the
law , but because I feel like w e need to speak up."

While there have been vocal opponents to the law , it still definitely has its supporters. "Let there
be no doubt that this state has its share of utter lunatics," says the Rialto's McCrary.

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"Unfortunately, many of them have managed to get elected to the legislature." AJJ's Bonette
hates the message all of this sends to the rest of the country. "It's so embarrassing that
Arizona has pretty much proved itself to pretty much be the most racist state in the nation," he
says.

Costanza is more w orried about the spreading of this type of law . "If this thing stays in Arizona,
it's bad. But if it comes in other states it w ill be huge," she says. "It's not something that's just a
little law , that any alien can be stopped w ithout papers. It's about privacy, it's about culture. It's
an excuse to talk about something bigger. Let's talk about w hat's going on. The concept of the
United States w as born on immigration. I'm very little, just an artist in the middle of Brooklyn, but I
think the revolutions of culture, especially in civil rights issues, start from the small movements."
alt

Com m ents

Post a Comment

rm c512 Posted 05.24.10 at 11:17AM

i'm w illing to bet that most of these bands & musicians, like Obama & his administration, are
criticizing the law w /o taking time to read the 10 page law , w hich prohibits racial profiling. i w ill
boycott any band that boycotts arizona.

orange_peel Posted 05.24.10 at 11:20AM

As an Arizonian, I'm by and large embarrased by this law . In this day and age, it is absolutely
unacceptable and unforgivable that it w as passed. I'd also like to say that I have been a
reader of AP for years, and I am very happy to see longer-form stuff making it online.
How ever, there is a major error w ithin your story. Saying that law enforcement officials are
simply allow ed to detain a person w hom they suspect is undocumented is false. In fact,
officers must initially make "law ful contact" w ith the person. In other w ords, the person must
be suspected of doing something illegal BEFORE they can be detained and questioned. That
said, I am ashamed of and abhor this law .

lukeoneil47 Posted 05.24.10 at 11:26AM

@orange_peel I address that later on w ith the introduction of Arizona HB 2162 "That more
recent bill revises the original SB 1070, essentially saying that law enforcement may only
undertake determination of legal residency during the normal course of a routine violation such
as a traffic stop."

orange_peel Posted 05.24.10 at 11:27AM

cont... That doesn't solve the problem of possible racial profiling, though the law explicitly
prohibits it. The bill stops short of listing any indicators of undocumented status though, and
simply says that law enforcment agencies w ill be trained on detection methods. Furthermore, I
think it speaks volumes that the law w as revised less than tw o days after it w as formally
signed as law makers scrambled to say "We're not racist! Really!" It's pathetic and
embarrassing to Arizona's residents.

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orange_peel Posted 05.24.10 at 11:30AM
@lukeoneil47 Yes, I see that. But it still is kind of unfair to lede w ith it the w ay it is. But like I
said, there's essentially nothing to stop an officer from follow ing a person until they do
something w rong, no matter how minor, before stopping them. It's also missing anything from
the tourism division, or anyone else, but their standard dribble really w ouldn't add any context.
Other than that, it's a great piece and I enjoyed reading it.

lukeoneil47 Posted 05.24.10 at 11:37AM

Point taken, thanks for the constructive criticism.

a_rodhow e Posted 05.24.10 at 11:41AM

The Arizona law is nearly identical to the federal immigration law . The only reason that this is
an issue is because the White House w ill do anything to pander to illegal immigrants. Obama
even said that illegal immigrants are "law -abiding citizens". That's not the case if they're in the
country illegally, right? Anyw ay, this w hole issue is stupid and pointless because Arizona has
every right to pass a perfectly Constitutional law like this.

cgold111 Posted 05.24.10 at 12:13PM

there is a video on youtube of brett from the riot before playing "5 to 9" acoustic and he says
that w hile he doesn't know the intricacies of the immigration law s he does know that w e
should start by respecting all human beings. moreover, this law is absolutely not constitutional,
and w ill hurt everyone in the long run, from immigrants, to mexican-american citizen, to w hite
business ow ners in arizona. i'm proud to support bands like andrew jackson jihad and fucked
up w ho realize that the problem should be confronted rather than avoided. i understand
staying out of arizona if you don't feel safe, but people should be rallying in arizona, not
avoiding it.

dinokat Posted 05.24.10 at 12:30PM

honestly bands should not boycott arizona due to the immigration law that arizona has put into
place. i think that if bands that are more than just of hispanic and latin decent can put out a
w ord to this w hole thing this state w ould take into consideration. not only is music taking on
the issue of boycott, but look at that soccer event that w as supposed to take place at the
University of Phoenix stadium. w e need to stop the boycott and actually read into this bill and
see how it can be more "constiutional". people run aw ay from issues rather than speaking
their minds only because they're affraid of w hat they w ill get in response. i guess its just
another form of stage fright

gm onkey1655 Posted 05.24.10 at 01:15PM

While I understand w hy bands feel like they need to boycott coming to AZ to make a stand, I
feel it is completely w rong for them too. You are actually boycotting the people that care most
about you. And mostly everyone in AZ is opposed to the bill. Simply boycotting us isn't a
means to an end.

a_rodhow e Posted 05.24.10 at 05:15PM

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@cgold111 - How is this law unconstitutional? Our constitution protects American CITIZENS,
not illegals. It w as never meant to protect people w ho aren't here legally. Think of all the things
that illegals get from programs that are made of taxpayer money that they don't pay into:
schools, roads, w elfare, medicare, etc. These things are paid for by those w ho are either
natural-born citizens OR legally immigrated citizens. They're a drain on our government's
budget and they aren't putting anything back in. An honest day's w ork is not honest if it isn't
legal. As much as it w ould suck to do some of the jobs they do, at least it w ould mean that
more LEGAL Americans w ould have jobs.

lukeoneil47 Posted 05.24.10 at 05:23PM

Myth #6: Undocumented immigrants do not pay taxes. Undocumented immigrants pay the same
real estate taxes—w hether they ow n homes or taxes are passed through to rents—and the
same sales and other consumption taxes as everyone else. The majority of state and local
costs of schooling and other services are funded by these taxes. Additionally, the U.S. Social
Security Administration has estimated that three quarters of undocumented immigrants pay
payroll taxes, and that they contribute $6-7 billion in Social Security funds that they w ill be
unable to claim (Porter 2005). http://w w w .urban.org/publications/900898.html

a_rodhow e Posted 05.24.10 at 07:48PM

Mostly impossible. How the hell could somebody rent or ow n w ithout a Social Security # and
other things that are legally required to earn a pay stub or to ow n/rent property? Also, I'm
going to need something better than USSSA's "estimates". Those people have no idea how to
use numbers, or the Social Security w elfare system w ouldn't be virtually bankrupt. Those
numbers can't be trusted because that organization is financially suspect to begin w ith.

zaizariii Posted 05.25.10 at 12:14AM

the only reason america is putting up immigration law s is because theyre scared the people
they killed and tortured and stole from w ill rally in the U.S. and riot and start a w ar to take back
their land and get revenge. the U.S. stole this land and killed for this land. americans are the
illegal aliens, w hy is is that theyre trying to keep out the natives? w ith this bill, every "w hite"
person should be arrested and shipped back to europe w hence they came from.

UndeadCircus Posted 05.25.10 at 12:33AM

I w ish w ith all my heart that New Mexico is the next state to get this law . My fingers are
crossed real hard.

huzzahforhobos Posted 05.25.10 at 06:49AM

As an Arizonian, this is extremely frustrating to me. Immigration-related issues take up a large
part of the political debate in our state, much more so than in other regions less affected by it.
Other states in the Union do not have the same experience w ith such issues, and it is
therefore quite easy for them to offer up their opinions on the subject w ithout having the
know ledgeable position to opine from. That being said, I do not support the bill. While I
desperately yearn for action to be taken w hen it comes to illegal residency, this isn't the right
step. While completely 'constitutional,' it w ill lead to racial-based dissent. That is apparent.

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huzzahforhobos Posted 05.25.10 at 06:56AM
(cont.) The real problem is w hat caused the motivation behind this bill's passage. Arizona (and
Jan Brew er) had to take action because the federal government failed to uphold one of its
fundamental duties- secure the borders of the country. None of this w ould have been
necessary if such neglect had not gone unchecked for so long (thanks to Janet Napolitano,
w ho somehow got her hands on the homeland security job after failing at that very task in AZ.
Come again, Obama? I digress.) Because the illegal immigration situation has been allow ed to
deteriorate for so long, it has put certain law makers in the unenviable position to remedy it.
Granted, they took the w rong approach.

huzzahforhobos Posted 05.25.10 at 07:00AM

How ever, it is very easy-as a resident of this state and therefore w itness-to see w hy they
w ould w ant to affect change. There is nothing w rong w ith being Mexican, it is only looked
dow n upon due to the socioeconomic imbalances present in our w orld. These problems w ill
alw ays be present, but how w e deal w ith them is w hat w ill define us. I hope that this current
law is repealed, solely because of w hat it could lead to. Then, to replace it, a new law that is
not racially motivated needs to be enacted to stem the flow of drugs and gang violence being
brought over by the drug cartels in Mexico. It is a national security issue, and it demands
attention.

huzzahforhobos Posted 05.25.10 at 07:07AM

(cont.) It irks me w hen I see liberals spouting off about issues they make judgments about
from reading the headlines. It also peeves me w hen conservatives make racially motivated
slurs. Mostly, it annoys me w hen anyone has the nerve to offer their opinion for something on
w hich they possess no know ledgeable basis. Get yourself an education, because ignorance
is never bliss. Am I happy that my state is embarrassing itself w ith a poorly constructed law ?
No. Am I glad that someone in my community is taking action on a very prevalent issue? Most
definitely. Hopefully it w ill get changed, and hopefully you w ill all inform yourselves before you
pass judgement on my state. Peace :)

brianna7x Posted 05.27.10 at 12:36AM

@a_rodhow e I can see w hy people are upset over this, I really can. But it is absolutely NOT
unconstitutional, from my stance, I completely agree w ith you. It protects American CITIZENS,
not illegal immigrants. And no, it's not just Mexico. I'm not okay w ith an illegal w hite Canadian
just marching over here, either. So I see a tiny bit w hy the racial profiling thing is coming up, it
makes sense. But still; if a person is legal, w hat in the w orld do they have to w orry about?
"Racial profiling", if that's w hat you w anna call it, has been around forever. Now that it's been
pointed out, everyone's freaking out. I just hope America can come to an agreement soon;
altho it's not likely.

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