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    Vol.60/No.33           September 23, 1996 
 
 
California Governor Denies Services To Immigrants  

BY OMARI MUSA

SAN FRANCISCO-On August 27, less than a week after President William Clinton signed the bipartisan welfare bill, California governor Peter Wilson signed an executive order denying an array of state funded services to immigrants. Wilson acted under the new federal welfare law provision that allows states to deny basic social services to undocumented immigrants. In a bipartisan one-two punch against immigrant workers, the federal legislation denies food stamps, disability assistance, and the option to cut off Medicaid to immigrants with proper documentation. Wilson's measure denies state benefits to "illegal" immigrants.

The governor, the state's best known proponent of the notorious anti-immigrant Proposition 187, was gleeful at the news conference signing the new measure. "Today's executive order, is a vindication of the act [Proposition 187] itself," Wilson stated. Implementation of the proposition has been held up in the courts since its passage in 1994. It would have banned undocumented immigrants from public and private schools and cut off all medical aid except emergency care.

Wilson's decree bars undocumented workers from receiving prenatal care, professional and commercial licenses, long-term medical treatment, and admission to state colleges and universities unless they pay the full cost. California's prenatal care program helped 70,000 women last year.

Wilson's order mandates state social service workers to act as immigration officials. Legal challenges to Proposition 187 specifically prohibited state workers from seeking to determine if an applicant for social services is "legal." The southern California American Civil Liberties Union, a participant in the legal challenges to 187, said it will go to court if the governor attempts to enforce the decree.

The governor's measure banning prenatal care has already run into opposition here. San Francisco director of health Sandra Hernández said at a news conference here September 4, "If you think you are pregnant, come in and get tested. We will not be requesting any form of documentation." The news conference was held the day after city health commissioners voted unanimously to continue the services.

Socialist candidate for San Francisco Board of Supervisors Susan Zárate noted that the state has not been able to implement Proposition 187. "While I support the legal challenges to Prop. 187 and welcome the same around the governor's decree, the real power that stopped 187 was the demonstrations, rallies, and marches by Chicano youth and others against its implementation," Zárate said in an interview. "This is the key to turning back Clinton's welfare law and Peter Wilson's decree. I completely support the resistance of local and state public workers to acting as agents of the INS and investigating whether applicants for social services are `legal' or not.

"The socialist campaign urges unionists, students, and others who oppose the bipartisan welfare law and Wilson's executive order to organize teach-ins, educationals, rallies, and demonstrations against these moves. Further, our efforts should also be directed to building participation in the October 12 National March on Washington, D.C., to defend immigrant rights."

Omari Musa is the Socialist Workers candidate for U.S. Congress in the 9th District, and is a member of the Oil, Chemical and Atomic Workers Local 1-326.  
 
 
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