Over the past 20 years or so, the subject of immigration policy has been something of a Goldilocks proposition. Those on the left say conservatives’ policies are too severe while those on the right say the liberal policies are too lenient. We haven’t arrived at the “just right” solution.

After 20 years, it should be obvious that neither side is going to get everything it wants. If there is to be a reasonable, sustainable solution that everyone can accept, there must be compromise. It is not a dirty word. Compromise is a big part of any relationship, and the wild swings we see in policy from one administration to another is proof of the chaos that emerges in the absence of compromise.

We look forward to the day when reasonable people can disagree and try to find common ground. That used to be one of our nation’s greatest strengths.

In Mississippi, we fear that day has grown a bit more distant if the latest immigration bill proposed in the legislature is any indicator.

House Bill 1484, authored by Justin Keen, a first-term representative from DeSoto County, creates a Bounty Hunter Program to identify and detain undocumented migrants, in some cases sentencing those convicted of being in the state illegally to life in prison without parole, a sentence currently reserved for those convicted of first-degree murder or violent habitual offenders.

That provision alone identifies the bill for what it is, a mean-spirited policy of intimidation and terror.

It is also deeply offensive. Who among us would not be offended if we were accosted without cause by a bounty hunter – not necessarily a law enforcement officer – demanding that we prove our citizenship status and be taken into custody if we could not produce it upon that request? It is no less offensive for people of different creeds or color.

Further, the bill proposes $1,000 bounties for valid reports leading to arrests, so a financial incentive for over-reporting would exist.

This bill endangers citizens, especially where there may exist a language barrier, creates an atmosphere of intimidation and stirs memories of our state’s poor record of protecting civil rights.

In practical terms, the bill would be costly to operate, not only for payments made but for the employment of the 65 law enforcement members the bill says will need to be hired to man a hotline “information system.” The cost of housing, feeding and moving the accused through the system is not accounted for, either.

The advocacy group American Immigration Council identifies 64,600 immigrants in Mississippi. Of that total, 41.5% are naturalized citizens while it is estimated that 20,000 of the state’s immigrants are “illegal” or otherwise undocumented, less than one percent of the population.

Whatever your opinions on immigration, this is a remarkably bad bill. Its primary result will be to stoke fear and hatred in our community.

This bill endangers citizens, creates an atmosphere of intimidation and stirs memories of our state’s awful past regarding civil rights. It is morally wrong and a step backward in addressing this complex issue in a meaningful way. It delays our journey along the pathway of progress.

We urge our legislators to oppose this bill.

The Dispatch Editorial Board is made up of publisher Peter Imes, columnist Slim Smith, managing editor Zack Plair and senior newsroom staff.

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