Immigration Crackdown: Alabama immigration law stops home permits

AP/GadsdenTimes.com: " A new federal lawsuit was filed Friday challenging a section of Alabama’s immigration law that civil rights groups say makes it impossible for those who can’t prove U.S. citizenship or lawful immigration status to legally keep their manufactured homes.

(The plaintiffs) are challenging a section of the law that prohibits most contracts where one party is an illegal immigrant. Attorneys for the plaintiffs say that provision is being used by state revenue officials to keep illegal immigrants from paying an annual registration fee and obtaining a decal that by law must be displayed on manufactured homes. State law requires the registration to be renewed by Nov. 30.

Mary Bauer, legal director of the Southern Poverty Law Center, said that without the permit some people may be forced to abandon their homes and left homeless. "It’s a flagrant violation of the Fair Housing Act and the United States Constitution,” Bauer said." read more