Proposition 187 Case Study

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Federalism Proposition 187 was a controversial measure in California in 1994. Focusing on illegal immigration, California was looking to fix the large influx of illegal immigrants in the state. Due to the initiative process in California, Proposition 187 was placed on the ballot for consideration of the voters. This Proposition had a numerous step plan in order to achieve the goal of fixing the large illegal immigrant population. Proposition 187 called for the denial of health, education, and social services to those people who are not registered citizens of the United States, or to those who are not legal immigrants. The requirements in order for this to be carried out however were great, requiring administrators and law enforcement to check on people’s citizenship status. Proposition 187 recognized illegal immigration as a serious problem that…show more content…
They had gone through all the proper steps in their initiative process to pass what they, the citizens of California, thought to be a correct way to deal with what they viewed as an immense issue. Although the restrictions Proposition 187 would have put on those people who were illegal immigrants should not be put into place, Judge Pfaelzer’s decision expressed too much federal power over the states. Separation between the federal and state governments was not seen concerning the issue surrounding the decision on Proposition 187. Proposition 187 displays how the separation between federal and state governments can be at times murky. The issue surrounding illegal immigration through Judge Pfaelzer’s decision has been dealt with for now, but it will always remain controversial. Proposition 187 and the conflict surrounding it demonstrates how federalism is not a system of an equal sharing of power between the state and federal levels of government, but instead it is a system of shared
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